Our Endless Numbered Days

Photo by Joël de Vriend on Unsplash

There can only be one truth.

What do I mean by that? In any given subject; history, science, religion,  I believe it is a matter of either true or false, no in between.

Let me further explain my point. Have you ever read a storybook and tried to imagine how the characters look like? Perhaps in the past, your parents may have read you bible stories before bedtime and you tried to picture how David and Goliath looked like or, perhaps in Daniel and the lion’s den you imagined how the whole scenario played out in your mind.

Whether or not you’re a visual person with a wild imagination, the reality is that there is only one way David and Goliath actually looked like (I believe many would have imagined Goliath to be a towering 15m giant, when in reality he was only around 3m tall). Also there is only one true account of what actually happened transpired in the lion’s den with Daniel when he was thrown in. Did he tried talking to the lions? Was he fearful? Was he praying the whole time? We can only imagine and make guesses based on the description or text in the bible.

The same thing can be said about Hitler who committed suicide in his bunker on the 30th of April 1945 as we turn through the pages of more recent history. What exactly happened on that day? What were the events that led up to it? Did it really happened the way it was told to us? We may not know for sure. But one thing we do know is that, there was only one version of the whole story that is true of what actually happened. Maybe Hitler combed his hair before pulling the trigger? Maybe he ate oatmeal before committing the act? Maybe one of his bodyguards was the one that shot him? Truly there is only one version of what actually happened that fateful day.

Let us also look at science. Gravity for instance is what pulls us down to the Earth and is also what pulls Earth to us. No matter what our definition or idea of what gravity is, there is essentially one truth. Also with evolution and the big bang theory, either that, creationism or some other unexplained occurrence can explain our existence now. In other words, only one version (whatever it was) happened at the very start.

I’m not sure if what I’m writing is making sense to you. I also happened to plagiarized my title from Iron and Wine’s 2004 album.

But the point I’m driving at is that there is only truth of the any given matter even if there a billion different opinions on it. There may be many ways I could write this article out, think of clever phrases to make myself sound more intelligent than I really am, yet there is only one way in which it will be presented; in the manner you are reading it now.

There is a saying that all roads lead to Rome. While this may be true geographically, it may not be true spiritually. You see many people believe all religions lead to heaven. But do people actually think to themselves what this means?

While all (or at least most) religions are intrinsically good, in the sense that it teaches good things and gives people a moral compass or a code of conduct to live by, yet which is really the true way? I like how Ravi Zacharias, a renown Christian apologist (someone who defends one’s faith)  puts it, “All religions are fundamentally different and at most, superficially similar.” Why? Because “All religions claimed exclusivity.”.

All religions are exclusive in terms of their origin, meaning, morality and destiny. All religions are exclusive in terms of their meaning of salvation. Some claim the destruction of the soul upon death, some talk about reincarnation, while some claim either hell or paradise are the final destination. So this prompts the question again which is what then is the truth?

Surely they all can’t be true at the same time. That will be contradictory on many levels.  And surely we can’t say either that whatever we subscribe to will be correct in the end. You mean to say that the many deities out there will conform to whatever version we think is truth? That if we believed in reincarnation that will be the case for us or if we believe we will simply cease to exist that will be as we wish when we die? This is a touchy subject but it should be discussed.

I would like to clarify that I believe in the God of the bible. And that the bible though seemingly made up of many random stories of the lives of different individuals, and of the nation of Israel as a whole, is actually really about the redemptive plan of God to save mankind from sin and death through Jesus Christ. He wasn’t just a random man who popped up in history over 2000 years ago, but he was God from the beginning (See John 1:1-3, 14) But this is not the point of this article( I may or may not write about my thoughts on the divinity of Christ another time)

So while we want to remain respectful and considerate about different beliefs and worldviews, I think it’s important that we be seeking out for what is truth. Too many people are not seeking and are nonchalant about truth. With regards to this matter on truth, there is no sitting on the fence either. Either there is a God or there isn’t and if there is, which one? And if God exists, do we simply continue to live however we like? Or do we come under something, something that is of a higher power?

We live in a generation where people live solely for self gratification. Many people are not interested in seeking the truth because it doesn’t benefit their advancement of, self. It just doesn’t fit their vibes. But what if our worldviews are wrong? That there truly is a creator and that our lives have destiny. This post is much intended for those who are casually cruising through life without truly knowing their purpose. We need to be seeking the truth and we need to do so in a manner which promotes thinking, for example through debates and discussions.

I am of course writing from the standpoint that I am satisfied in my understanding of truth found in Jesus Christ. But I can be wrong, though I want to be very forthright and invite you to try Jesus.

One thing is for sure, it can’t all be truth. Just like the many different portraits of Jesus found in Catholic or Orthodox churches (of which I believe none are actually what he looked like), there is only one way Jesus truly looked like.