Skip to main content

Distorted Truths

You’ve probably seen them at fairs or farmer’s markets, those artists that do caricature paintings.

The “nice” definition of a caricature painting is that it is a rendered image showing the features of its subject in a simplified or exaggerated way through sketching, pencil strokes, or other artistic drawings.

The “not so nice” definition is that it is a picture, description, or imitation of a person in which certain striking characteristics are exaggerated in order to create a comic or grotesque effect.

Having a somewhat prominent nose and some slight gaps between some of my front teeth, I’ve never been interested in seeing how either or both of those two features would be exaggerated in a comic or grotesque way!

But whether nice or not so nice, a caricature normally should resemble that which it is supposed to represent.  Yet, the greater the exaggeration effect, the more difficult it can become to see what it is supposed to represent.  And, if the exaggerations are pushed too far, you could probably lose all resemblance.

In a way, false teachers are caricature artists.  They sometimes emphasize or exaggerate one attribute of God to the exclusion of others.  For example, false teachers might emphasize that God is love while deemphasizing or excluding the fact that He is holy.  The caricature then reflects a distorted and exaggerated message that God no longer cares how much sin is an affront to his holiness because God’s love is all that matters.

The Apostle Paul put it this way:  “For some godless people have slipped in unnoticed among us, persons who distort the message about the grace of our God in order to excuse their immoral ways, and who reject Jesus Christ, our only Master and Lord. Long ago the Scriptures predicted the condemnation they have received.”  (Jude 1:4)

The Apostle Peter wrote similarly:  “For certain individuals whose condemnation was written about long ago have secretly slipped in among you. They are ungodly people, who pervert the grace of our God into a license for immorality and deny Jesus Christ our only Sovereign and Lord.”  (2 Peter 2:1)

The false teachers in both contexts perverted and distorted truths about the grace of God so that they could justify engaging in immorality which likely was of a sexual nature. 

Peter further wrote this about those false teachers and how they approach truth:  “Many people will follow their lead. These people will do the same evil things the false teachers do. They will cause people to think badly about the way of truth.”  (2 Peter 2:2)

If we begin to think badly about truth, it probably means that we are starting to believe distorted or exaggerated messages.  Furthermore, it should tell us something if these distorted or exaggerate messages try to justify unrighteous behavior, especially that of sexual immorality. 

While these messages typically start with minor distortions or exaggerations, they usually become so exaggerated and so distorted that it is difficult to recognize what they are supposed to represent.

But whether slightly distorted or grotesquely exaggerated, the key to determining if something is a caricature of the truth is to know what the truth really looks like!

Comments

Post a Comment

Popular posts from this blog

Excel Still More!

To excel, according to some of the meanings from a few dictionaries, is to surpass others, do extremely well, outdo, do something better than anyone else. In 1 Thessalonians 4:1, we find the phrase “excel still more”.   It prompts the question:  if we are already doing something better than anyone else, why would we be encouraged to do even more? Perhaps it would be helpful to see the wording that other translations use for “excel still more” to see why we would be encouraged to do so.  Here is a sampling: • abound more and more • to keep doing so more and more • but try even harder • live that way more and more. • that you progress even more. • that you increase more and more in how you ought to walk Maybe it would also be helpful to see some other verses where the word “excel” is used: “Now in Joppa there was a disciple named Tabitha (which when translated means Dorcas); this woman was excelling in acts of kindness and charity which she did habitually.”...
Post a Comment
Read more

Value Proposition

Value proposition:  it’s a marketing statement that summarizes why a consumer should buy a product or use a service.  It should clearly and concisely communicate what customers can gain from selecting a particular brand over that of its competitors. In a value proposition, you don’t want your product to be viewed as being worth less than what your competitors offer.   But even worse, in a bit of a quirk of how letters and spaces can fall, if you take out the space between “worth” and “less”, you get “worthless”, which means something of no value.   If that word is used in conjunction with how your product is viewed by customers, it’s a word that will likely kill your brand. In the book of Philippians, the Apostle Paul, in a sense, communicated some value propositions. In chapter three, he starts off with describing the value of some things that many considered as extremely valuable in that day and age.   They had to do with status and achievement in the reli...
Post a Comment
Read more

Can't Get No Satisfaction

One of the songs that were popular in my youth was not particularly upbeat or helpful but it probably did express some of the angst of my generation.  It was not one that particularly resonated with me but as I recently read the book of Haggai, it did come to mind, well, at least some of the lyrics did.  It was the Rolling Stones song with the lyrics “I can’t get no satisfaction”.  Take a look at the chorus of that bleak song:   I can't get no satisfaction; I can't get no satisfaction; Gonna try and I try and I try and I try; I can't get no - I can't get no –   Now take a look at Haggai 1:6 – “ You have planted much, but harvested little. You eat, but never have enough. You drink, but never have your fill. You put on clothes, but are not warm. You earn wages, only to put them in a purse with holes in it.” It sure sounds like the people of Judah couldn’t get any satisfaction with the things of life that normally should have brought some type of s...
Post a Comment
Read more