Can You Discern the Truth?

A recent study conducted by researchers at the University of California-San Diego revealed the following:

“Through mobile phones, online entertainment services, the Internet, electronic mail, television, radio, newspapers, books, social media etc. people receive every day about 105,000 words or 23 words per second in half a day (12 hours) (during awake hours). Although people can not really read these 105,000 words each day, this is the real number estimated to be reaching the human eyes and ears every day. After adding pictures, videos, games, etc., we reach the volume of 34 Gigabytes of information per day on average.”

We receive over a book a day in information before including digital media. But the question remains: Can we discern the truth of the information we’re receiving?

It’s easy to believe that our choice to share a spam article or pass along a half-truth isn’t a big deal, but a recent study warns that doing so has significant consequences, and three decades of research has labeled the phenomena illusionary truth. The experiment authors say, “Repetition increases the likelihood that a statement will be judged as true.” Since there is nothing new under the sun (Eccl. 1:9), I believe we see examples of the consequences of illusionary truth in Scripture.

First, in Acts 14, Paul and Barnabas encountered a group of people in Lystra. There are three events to consider in this section of Scripture.

In the first, the crowd watched Paul heal a lame man and decided Barnabas was Zeus and Paul was Hermes (v. 8-11).

Lystra was located in what is now south-central Turkey. The Lycaonian people weren’t Jewish, and they worshipped many gods. They refused to listen to Paul’s and Barnabas’ insistence that they were human, which led to the second conversation:

“But when the apostles Barnabas and Paul heard of this, they tore their clothes and rushed out into the crowd, shouting: ‘Friends, why are you doing this? We, too are only human, like you. We are bringing you good news, telling you to turn from these worthless things to the living God, who made the heavens and the earth and the sea and everything in them. In the past, he let all nations go their own way. Yet he has not left himself without testimony: He has shown kindness by giving you rain from heaven and crops in their seasons; he provides you with plenty of food and fills your hearts with joy.’ Even with these words, they had difficulty keeping the crowd from sacrificing to them.” (Acts 4: 14-18 NIV)

Verse 19 highlights the third event: “Then some Jews came from Antioch and Iconium and won the crowd over. They stoned Paul and dragged him outside the city, thinking he was dead.”

The Lycaonians thought Paul and Barnabas were gods. Then, they believed the lies of the Jews and stoned Paul. Yet, when they heard the truth about God, they didn’t listen. The Lycaonians couldn’t discern the truth, yet eagerly latched onto two lies.

The second story I think it’s important to consider is in 1 Kings 22. At the time, Israel was divided into two kingdoms, Judah and Israel. Ahab, the King of Israel, goes to the king of Judah, Jehoshaphat, and asks for help reclaiming land:

“And Jehoshaphat said to the king of Israel, ‘I am as you are, my people as your people, my horses as your horses.’ Moreover, Jehoshaphat said to the king of Israel, ‘Please inquire first for the word of the Lord.’ Then the king of Israel gathered the prophets together, about four hundred men, and said to them, ‘Shall I go against Ramoth-gilead to battle or shall I refrain?’ And they said, ‘Go up, for the Lord will give it into the hand of the king.’ But Jehoshaphat said, ‘Is there not yet a prophet of the Lord here that we may inquire of him?’ The king of Israel said to Jehoshaphat, ‘There is yet one man by whom we may inquire of the Lord, but I hate him, because he does not prophesy good concerning me, but evil. He is Micaiah son of Imlah.’ But Jehoshaphat said, ‘Let not the king say so.’” (1 Kings 22:4-8 NASB)

When Ahab asks for help, Jehoshaphat says he needs to pause to inquire of the Lord first. Ahab has brought along 400 prophets, who all agree it’s fine to go to battle, but Jehoshaphat still requests more insight.  This is telling. We also find out that when Jehoshaphat wants to consult a prophet, Ahab is resistant because the prophet, Micaiah, always tells him things he doesn’t want to hear. They aren’t lies; they just aren’t things that Ahab wants to hear. Wisely, Jehoshaphat asks to hear from Micaiah.

In 1 Kings 22:18-25, Micaiah speaks disagrees with the other 400 prophets, and King Ahab is angry.  Micaiah explains that God created this situation to prove that Micaiah is the trustworthy prophet. Even though he is one voice against 400, Micaiah is speaking God’s truth. He’s thrown in jail for speaking up, and in the end, Ahab dies.

In both these stories, God sent someone to help his people learn the truth about him and his character. Everyone had the choice to discern the truth or reject what they heard as a lie.

We have the same opportunity, but our job is harder because we have a lot more information to weed through every day, which can make it harder to discern the truth. Here are two things we can consider from these passages:

1. We will always benefit from inviting God into our choices. Jehoshaphat asked Ahab to pause to inquire of the Lord before moving forward.
2. We shouldn’t ignore people just because we don’t like what they are saying, and we shouldn’t believe people simply because they agree with us. Ahab died as a result of making such choices, and the Lycaonians lost the chance to learn about Jesus.
3. We have a responsibility to be discerning about the information we pass along. John 8:31-32 says, “So Jesus was saying to those Jews who had believed Him, ‘If you continue in My word, then you are truly disciples of Mine; and you will know the truth, and the truth will make you free’” (NASB).

When we pass along lies, whether we do so intentionally or not, we can make ourselves seem less trustworthy, and we can misguide others. It’s important to ask ourselves, Why would someone listen to us when we try to tell them about Jesus’ truth? Are we trustworthy in all we say?

God has been so gracious to sharpen my eyes and ears as I continue to ask for help to discern the truth. I won’t always get things right, but I will continue to pause to inquire. I hope you will, too.

Beth Walker is a football coach’s wife and mom of two energetic boys. She strives to encourage those around her to pursue their best lives in Jesus whether she is near the game field, in church, or at the local coffee shop. As a writer, Beth has been striving to find her voice through seeing Jesus in the ordinary and extraordinary of daily life. She blogs at Lessons from the Sidelines.

Photograph © Pixabay, used with permission