No Longer I - John Hodge
Teachers
Lesson Summary
John Hodge led the congregation in exploring the nature of truth and its critical importance in Christian evangelism. The class began by examining why truth matters, noting that Satan has been a deceiver from the beginning, offering partial truths mixed with lies in the Garden of Eden. The teacher highlighted that truth appears extensively throughout Scripture—147 times in the Bible, with John's gospel and Paul's epistles emphasizing it particularly. The central text, Proverbs 14:12, warns that "there is a way that seems right to a man, but its end is the way to death," illustrating how people are often drawn to comfortable, easy paths that align with personal desires rather than God's truth. The class discussed how modern culture increasingly embraces relativistic views of truth—phrases like "that's my truth" suggest truth changes from person to person, which the teacher emphasized contradicts absolute truth. A pivotal insight emerged from John 14:6, where Jesus declares, "I am the way and the truth and the life." This passage revealed that truth isn't merely abstract or impersonal like scientific standards, but is fundamentally personal because it is contained in a person—Jesus Christ. This understanding challenges the modern notion that individuals can interpret truth subjectively; instead, truth demands recognition of and choice to follow Jesus.
Key Scriptures
There is a way that seems right to a man, but its end is the way to death.
Jesus said to him, I am the way and the truth and the life. No one comes to the Father except me.