Proverbs 23:23. Buy truth, and do not sell it; buy wisdom, instruction, and understanding.
There’s almost nothing more valuable than truth. That’s what King Solomon is telling his children when he tells them to buy truth and do not sell it. Of course, he doesn’t mean that we can literally spend money on truth. He means that truth should be a precious commodity to us.
Note that Solomon is not telling his children that they should be looking for the truth inside of themselves, in their hearts. No, the truth is something outside of them that they have to find, or buy, and then hold on to for life. The world will talk about “my truth.” But “your truth” might not actually be THE truth. If “my truth” and “your truth” disagree, then which one is the truth? The world will say both, but how illogical is that?
No. There are not many truths. There is one truth and we have to seek it, buy it, and never sell it.
Just as there is THE truth, there is also THE lie. What is THE lie? The lie is that we don’t need God. The lie originated in the Garden of Eden when Satan told our grandparents, Adam and Eve, that they could be like God without God. Believing this lie is at the root of all sin. I can only trust myself. I must be able to do what I want to do in order to be free. I can have self-autonomy.
Now that we know what THE lie is, we can begin to understand what THE truth is. Or better yet, WHO the Truth is.
John 14:6. Jesus said to him, “I am the way, and the truth, and the life. No one comes to the Father except through me.
Why did Jesus call himself the truth? Because he spoke truth? Taught truth? Pointed to truth? Yes, he did all these things, but there’s even more to his claim. Jesus IS truth. THE truth. He is the embodiment of all that is real. We don’t have to go on a quest for truth as Proverbs seems to suggest. Truth has gone on a quest for us. By our union with Christ we are joined to THE truth, to reality. To all fullness, completeness, and integrity.
The truth we all need to buy and never sell, is the truth of the gospel of Jesus Christ. The gospel tells us everything we need to know. All truth is found in the Christ event – his incarnation, life, death, resurrection, and glorification. Why are we here? What happens when we die? What is the meaning of life? How do we process our suffering? How should we live on earth? There is not a single one of life’s big questions that are not answered by the truth of to live is Christ.
Now we can be people of the truth. We can put away falsehood. We can speak the truth in love. We can walk in the truth and practice the truth. Not because this is what a good Christian would do, but because this is what the Truth living in us is doing.
You: What is truth to you? Is there absolute truth?
You in Christ: How does union with Christ answer your biggest questions?
Christ in you: How does Christ in us allow us to live from God’s reality without fear, rather than trying make up our own version of reality?
Pray: Jesus, you are my Truth. With you I know everything I need to know about God, myself, life, everything. Help me to hold on to you all the days of my life. Amen.
To Live is Christ 