Truth Decay<?xml:namespace prefix = o ns = "urn:schemas-microsoft-com:office:office" />
by Kerby <?xml:namespace prefix = st1 ns = "urn:schemas-microsoft-com:office:smarttags" />Anderson
 
 
We live in a world that has dramatically changed its view of truth and thus have inherited an ethical system that denies the existence of truth. The worldview of the 21st century is postmodernism, and the dominant ethical system of the last two centuries has been relativism.
 
Postmodernism is built upon the belief that truth doesn't exist except as the individual wants it to exist. Truth isn't objective or absolute. Truth is personal and relative. Postmodernism isn't really a set of doctrines or truth claims. It is a completely new way of dealing with the world of ideas. It has had a profound influence in nearly every academic area: literature, history, politics, education, law, sociology, linguistics, even the sciences.
 
Postmodernism, however, is based upon a set of self-defeating propositions. Postmodernists assert that all worldviews have an equal claim to the truth. In other words, they deny absolute truth. But the denial of absolute truth is self-defeating. They claim that all worldviews are relative is true for everyone, everywhere, at all times. But that claim itself is an absolute truth.
 
It's like the student who said there was no absolute truth. When asked if his statement was an absolute truth. He said, "Absolutely." So he essentially said that he absolutely believed there was no absolute truth, except the absolute truth that there is no absolute truth!
 
Postmodernists tolerate religion as long is it makes no claim to universal truth and has no authority. But they are very critical of those who believe there is one truth or an absolute truth. They are also critical of Christian missionaries because they believe they are "destroyers of culture." This is reminiscent of the TV show "Star Trek" that had "The Prime Directive" which prohibited those on the star ship from interfering with any culture. The assumption was that each culture must decide what is true for it.
 
The worldview of postmodernism provides the foundation for moral relativism. Although a view of relative ethics began in the era of modernism, it has reached full bloom in the era of postmodernism. If there is no absolute truth, then there is no absolute standard for ethical behavior. And if truth is merely personal preference, then certainly ethics is personal and situational.
 
Moral relativism is the belief that morality is relative to the person. In other words, there are no set of rules that universally apply to everyone. In a sense, moral relativism can be summed up with the phrase: It all depends. Is murder always wrong? Relativists would say, "It depends on the circumstances." Is adultery wrong? They would say, "It just depends on whether you are caught."
 
Moral relativism is also self-defeating. People who say they believe in relativism cannot live consistently within their ethical system. Moral relativists make moral judgments all the time. They speak out against racism, exploitation, genocide, and much more. Christians have a consistent foundation to speak out against these social evils based upon God's revelation. Moral relativists do not.
 
So what has been the impact of a loss of truth? There are many ways to measure this, and many ministries and organizations have done just that.
 
Currently, Christian students at public schools score as secular humanism, headed toward a socialistic worldview. And vast majority of students in Christian schools score as secular humanists.
 
Let's also consider the work of George Barna. He conducted a national survey of adults and concluded that only 4 percent of adults have a biblical worldview as the basis of their decision-making. The survey also discovered that 9 percent of born again Christians have such a perspective on life. And when you look at the questions, you can see that what is defined as a biblical worldview is really just basic Christian doctrine.
 
            What should we do? First we must be prepared for the intellectual and philosophical battle we face in the 21st century. Colossians 2:8 says, "See to it that no one takes you captive through philosophy and empty deception, according to the tradition of men, according to the elementary principles of the world, rather than according to Christ."          
 
We must also be studying the Scriptures on a daily basis. Paul says the Bereans were "noble-minded" because "they received the word with great eagerness, examining the Scriptures daily to see whether these things were so" (Acts 17:11).
 
We should also develop discernment, especially when we are considering the worldviews that are promoted in the media. Philippians 4:8 say, "Finally, brethren, whatever is true, whatever is honorable, whatever is right, whatever is pure, whatever is lovely, whatever is of good repute, if there is any excellence and if anything worthy of praise, dwell on these things." Christians must wisely discern these trends and apply proper biblical instruction to combat these views.