{"id":91708,"date":"2025-05-27T09:15:55","date_gmt":"2025-05-27T14:15:55","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/sites-stage.josh.org\/main\/?p=91708"},"modified":"2025-05-30T10:45:36","modified_gmt":"2025-05-30T15:45:36","slug":"two-almost-truths-failure-fulfill","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/sites-stage.josh.org\/main\/two-almost-truths-failure-fulfill\/","title":{"rendered":"Two Almost Truths And Their Failure to Fulfill"},"content":{"rendered":"
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A <\/span>recent report <\/span><\/a>surveying 11 studies globally has indicated that young people in English speaking democracies are <\/span>less happy and less satisfied<\/span><\/i> with their lives than they were in past decades. It’s no secret that since the Covid 19 pandemic, research has continued to find an increase in people\u2019s depression and poor mental health. What\u2019s alarming is that this trend does not seem to be slowing down.<\/span><\/p>

While I am no expert, I do have thoughts as to why this is the case, and it has to deal with \u201c<\/span>almost truths<\/span><\/i>\u201d. I\u2019ve heard it said that the best lie is a half-truth. Sometimes blatant lies are easily caught for just what they are, like a friend claiming all is \u201cfine\u201d when you know their life is a mess.\u00a0 But half truths, or almost truths, are much more dangerous. Almost truths contain pieces of partial truth and thus seem as if they have something going for them. But easily believed does not make it true.\u00a0 And because it’s a lie, it will never deliver on its promises. An almost truth distorts reality for some gain other than the benefit of the individual. We see these distorted almost truths all over culture today. Here are two prominent \u201calmost truths\u201d:<\/span><\/p>

Being Seen Will Fulfill You<\/b><\/h2>

Celebrity and popularity will always be a draw for humanity. This is because being seen promises value and worth. Influencers, content creators, streamers and movie stars’ lives are glamorized, and thus we think\u2026 \u201cif only I could attain that.\u201d Thus we think, if I could be seen by more people, gain celebrity and status, I would be happy like they are happy.<\/span><\/p>

Related: Three Profound Truths about Being Made in the Image of God<\/span><\/a><\/p><\/blockquote>

The Almost Truth<\/i><\/strong><\/p>

Being seen does satisfy to an extent. We all live our lives looking at people and things and ascribe worth to them. Material objects have value as they are useful for us, and often we treat people the same. Thus, when thinking about being seen ourselves, we imagine that others will look to us and ascribe worth.\u00a0<\/span><\/p>

The Lie<\/i><\/strong><\/p>

Being seen through what we portray is superficial and conditional. It’s superficial because no one shares everything publicly. We ascribe to the motto: \u201cshare the best and hide the rest.\u201d No matter how much we share the looming thought remains, \u201cif they really knew me, they wouldn\u2019t treat me like this.\u201d Our failures and flaws are staring us in the face daily. It’s conditional because your value becomes dependent on your performance. The following\u00a0 is ascribing value to you as long as you are providing value to them. Their loyalty depends on your utility. Chasing celebrity and popularity promises value and worth but delivers frantic restlessness.\u00a0<\/span><\/p>

The Truth<\/i><\/strong><\/p>

The truth is we are all born looking for someone looking for us. But it\u2019s who we are seen by that makes all the difference. The bible states that you are intimately known by the God who sees. In Psalms 139:1, King David writes, \u201cYou have searched me, Lord, and you know me.\u201d In Genesis 16:13, Hagar cries out to God and calls him El Roi, which means the God who sees. Here is the difference between the superficial eyes of others and the fulfilling eyes of God: God sees you completely, the good and the bad, and chooses to love you not for what you do, but who you are. Instead of a frantic restlessness to deliver value to others, we rest in God\u2019s love for us which empowers us to love others.\u00a0<\/span><\/p>

Intuition over Institution<\/b><\/h2>

Have you ever heard someone claim: “All religions teach truth and lead one way or another to god.\u201d The idea is that life is one big mountain and we’re all on our own paths up to the top. It’s religious pluralism, and it’s a lie containing an almost truth. The underlying belief is that anyone can follow whatever they feel is right, because in the end we will all end up in some paradise. It states that in our religious quests, we fundamentally follow our<\/span> intuition<\/span><\/i> rather than an<\/span> institution<\/span><\/i>.\u00a0<\/span><\/p>

The Almost Truth<\/i><\/strong><\/p>

Our intuition is a guide of sorts. Everyone is created in the image of God, which means we have a moral compass testifying to what is right and wrong. In Romans 2, Paul states that God\u2019s law is written on our hearts and our conscious bears witness. Whether someone knows or follows God or not, everyone knows right and wrong and can live accordingly.\u00a0<\/span><\/p>

The Lie<\/i><\/strong><\/p>

While our intuition may guide us, it’s not centered on what will actually fulfill us, but instead on what we think will fulfill us. It’s centered on immediate pleasure and immediate gain. Jeremiah 17:9 states \u201cthe heart is deceitful above all things\u2026.\u201d James 1:14-15 (NLT) says, \u201cTemptation comes from our own desires, which entice us and drag us away. These desires give birth to sinful actions. And when sin is allowed to grow, it gives birth to death.\u201d What matters is not what we think will gratify, but what will actually fulfill. Our hearts may know right and wrong, but they are a terrible guide to real fulfillment.<\/span><\/p>

Related: Jesus: Truth that Changes Everything<\/span><\/a><\/p><\/blockquote>

The Truth<\/i><\/strong><\/p>

In John 14:6, Jesus states \u201cI am the way, and the truth, and the life. No one comes to the Father except through me.\u201d There is a guide we should follow, and He has revealed himself and his design through the Word of God. To follow one’s intuition is like saying to God, even though you created me, I actually think I know better. This is futile. Flourishing is found in knowing God, letting yourself be known by Him, and walking in his design. There really is one way to salvation and it’s through Jesus and that is good news.\u00a0<\/span><\/p>

As Christians, we must train ourselves to spot these almost truths in culture. How can we do this? Compare the claim to scripture, ask what it is promising, what it will deliver, and how it differs from scripture. Ask, what’s the almost truth, the lie, and the real truth?. In this we find an apologetic for Christianity: When we walk in God\u2019s good design, and rest in his view of us, we find fulfillment and are empowered to do good in the world. It’s true and because it’s true, it works.\u00a0<\/span><\/p>\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t<\/div>\n\t\t\t\t<\/div>\n\t\t\t\t\t<\/div>\n\t\t\t\t<\/div>\n\t\t

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Inspire. . . Challenge. . . Fuel Your Faith<\/strong><\/p>\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t<\/div>\n\t\t\t\t<\/div>\n\t\t\t\t<\/div>\n\t\t

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#TRUTH<\/p>\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t<\/div>\n\t\t\t\t<\/div>\n\t\t\t\t

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365 Devotions for Teens Connecting Life and Faith<\/p>\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t<\/div>\n\t\t\t\t<\/div>\n\t\t\t\t

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\n\t\t\t\t\t\n\t\t\t\t\t\t\n\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\tView In Store<\/span>\n\t\t\t\t\t<\/span>\n\t\t\t\t\t<\/a>\n\t\t\t\t<\/div>\n\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t<\/div>\n\t\t\t\t<\/div>\n\t\t\t\t<\/div>\n\t\t\t\t<\/div>\n\t\t\t\t\t<\/div>\n\t\t\t\t<\/div>\n\t\t\t\t<\/div>\n\t\t","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"

A recent report surveying 11 studies globally has indicated that young people in English speaking democracies are less happy and less satisfied with their lives than they were in past decades. It’s no secret that since the Covid 19 pandemic, research has continued to find an increase in people\u2019s depression and poor mental health. What\u2019s […]<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":237743,"featured_media":91726,"comment_status":"closed","ping_status":"closed","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"_acf_changed":false,"_seopress_robots_primary_cat":"80","_seopress_titles_title":"Two Almost Truths and Their Failure to Fulfill | %%sitetitle%%","_seopress_titles_desc":"While blatant lies are easy to see, it can be harder to see lies that are almost true. Here is how to pull back the curtain.","_seopress_robots_index":"","footnotes":""},"categories":[80],"tags":[1256,1257,1253],"translator":[],"blog-author":[70],"class_list":["post-91708","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","has-post-thumbnail","hentry","category-apologetics","tag-distorted-truth","tag-false-hope","tag-fulfillment","blog-author-austin-fruits"],"acf":[],"jetpack_featured_media_url":"https:\/\/sites-stage.josh.org\/main\/wp-content\/uploads\/sites\/607\/2025\/05\/light-bulb-distortion.jpeg","meta_box":[],"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/sites-stage.josh.org\/main\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/91708","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/sites-stage.josh.org\/main\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/sites-stage.josh.org\/main\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/sites-stage.josh.org\/main\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/users\/237743"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/sites-stage.josh.org\/main\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/comments?post=91708"}],"version-history":[{"count":33,"href":"https:\/\/sites-stage.josh.org\/main\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/91708\/revisions"}],"predecessor-version":[{"id":91748,"href":"https:\/\/sites-stage.josh.org\/main\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/91708\/revisions\/91748"}],"wp:featuredmedia":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/sites-stage.josh.org\/main\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media\/91726"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/sites-stage.josh.org\/main\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=91708"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/sites-stage.josh.org\/main\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/categories?post=91708"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/sites-stage.josh.org\/main\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/tags?post=91708"},{"taxonomy":"translator","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/sites-stage.josh.org\/main\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/translator?post=91708"},{"taxonomy":"blog-author","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/sites-stage.josh.org\/main\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/blog-author?post=91708"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}