Deeper Reflection
Besides truth being personified in Jesus (the living Word of God), spiritual and moral truths are found in the Bible (the written Word of God). Within its sacred pages, God revealed His moral standards, which are grounded in His unchanging character of holiness and righteousness. God’s Word guides us in our reasoning and decision-making regarding moral choices, as we discern what is (a description of truth and reality) and what ought to be (a prescription of right and wrong). In biblical ethics, what God requires of His people, He has in Christ already done for us,¹⁵ shown us by His example¹⁶ and by His Spirit empowered us to do.Jesus wants His disciples to be set apart for holy purposes. He asked the Father, “Sanctify them in the truth; Your word is truth” (v.17). This work of regeneration by God’s Word¹⁷ is effected through the Spirit of truth¹⁸ . Verses 17 to 21 tell us that the sanctification of believers is for witness to the world. Earlier, Jesus prayed, “I have given them the words that You gave me, and they have received them and have come to know in truth that I came from You; and they have believed that You sent me” (v.8). Receiving God’s Word equates to knowing and believing the truth, which leads to obeying the truth. Our understanding of Scripture as divine truth is fundamental and indicative of our acceptance of God and His authority over our lives. This the Lord desires, not just for His disciples to-date, but for all people in the world who have yet to come to believe in Him.

¹⁵ Loving God with our whole being and loving our neighbour as ourselves (Matt 22:37-40; 5:17-18). ¹⁶ For example, Jesus instructed His disciples to wash one another’s feet, but not before setting Himself as an example for them to follow (Jn 13:12-15). Similarly, Jesus’ commandment for them to love one another (Jn 13:34) came after He first loved them (Jn 15:9; 17:26; cf. 1 Jn 4:11, 19) ¹⁷ See Jesus’ conversation with Peter in the upper room in John 13:6-10 (cf. Jn 15:3; Eph 5:26). ¹⁸See John 14:16-17; 15:26; 16:13.