170. John 18:33–40 – What Is Truth?
What Is Truth?
John 18:33–40
📖 Bible Passage
33 Then Pilate entered the Praetorium again, called Jesus, and said to Him, “Are You the King of the Jews?”
34 Jesus answered him, “Are you speaking for yourself about this, or did others tell you this concerning Me?”
35 Pilate answered, “Am I a Jew? Your own nation and the chief priests have delivered You to me. What have You done?”
36 Jesus answered, “My kingdom is not of this world. If My kingdom were of this world, My servants would fight, so that I should not be delivered to the Jews; but now My kingdom is not from here.”
37 Pilate therefore said to Him, “Are You a king then?” Jesus answered, “You say rightly that I am a king. For this cause I was born, and for this cause I have come into the world, that I should bear witness to the truth. Everyone who is of the truth hears My voice.”
38 Pilate said to Him, “What is truth?” And when he had said this, he went out again to the Jews, and said to them, “I find no fault in Him at all.”
39 “But you have a custom that I should release someone to you at the Passover. Do you therefore want me to release to you the King of the Jews?”
40 Then they all cried again, saying, “Not this Man, but Barabbas!” Now Barabbas was a robber.
👑 The Kingdom of Jesus
Pilate thinks about politics and possible rebellion. But Jesus says:
“My kingdom is not of this world.”
Christ’s kingdom is not built on weapons, fear, or manipulation. Its foundation is truth, holiness, and transformed hearts.
If Jesus wanted earthly power, His disciples would fight for Him. But Christ came not to conquer Rome, but to save people.
✨ Jesus Offers Truth
Jesus says:
“For this cause I was born, and for this cause I have come into the world, that I should bear witness to the truth.”
Philosophers debated truth for centuries, but Christ speaks about it with complete certainty. Later He says:
“I am the way, the truth, and the life” (John 14:6).
Jesus does not simply teach truth — He Himself is Truth.
🏛 Major Views of That Time
🎭 Skepticism — doubting whether absolute truth even exists.
🧠 Stoicism — truth through reason and self-control.
🌌 Platonism — true reality exists above the material world.
🏺 Roman Pragmatism — stability and usefulness matter more than truth.
🐘 The Blind Men and the Elephant
Today many people compare religions to blind men touching an elephant: each person feels only one part and sees only “part of the truth.” This story is used to argue that all religions are equally true in different ways. But Jesus never claimed to be just one piece of truth. Christ said:
“I am the way, the truth, and the life.”
That is not an additional perspective — it is an exclusive claim. Christ’s teaching directly contradicts many other religions regarding salvation, God, sin, and eternity. In fact, the story of the blind men already assumes that absolute truth exists: in order to say everyone sees only part of the elephant, someone must see the whole elephant. Christianity teaches that this ultimate standard of truth has been revealed in Jesus Christ.
⚠️ Refusing to Accept the Standard of Truth
Pilate asks:
“What is truth?”
But the problem was not the lack of an answer — Truth was standing right in front of him.
Pilate understood that Jesus was innocent:
“I find no fault in Him at all.”
But accepting truth would require changing his decisions. Sometimes people would rather follow the crowd, keep their comfort, and avoid pressure from society.
📱 What Is Truth for Us?
Today the world says:
“Everyone has their own truth,”
“Feelings matter most,”
“Truth is relative.”
But without truth, it becomes impossible to distinguish good from evil and light from darkness.
For a Christian, truth is not based on trends or popular opinion. Truth is connected to God and His Word.
🔥 Practical Lessons
Not everything popular is true.
Crowds can be wrong.
People can know the truth and still reject it.
Truth requires change.
Christ remains the Truth even when the world disagrees with Him.
✨ Conclusion
Pilate asked:
“What is truth?”
Humanity is still asking that question today. But the Bible gives an answer:
Truth is not just an idea or philosophy.
Truth has a name — Jesus Christ.