Ephesians 4:25 & Isaiah 8:11-15 - Avoiding Lies and Conspiracies

[AlexB23]

Hello folks. Ephesians and Isaiah are relevant in 2024, especially with the modern world.

Date​	May 5, 2024​
Verse​	Ephesians 4:25 (ESV): "Therefore, having put away falsehood, let each one of you speak the truth with his neighbor, for we are members one of another." Isaiah 8:11-15 (ESV): "For the Lord spoke thus to me with his strong hand upon me, and warned me not to walk in the way of this people, saying: ‘Do not call conspiracy all that this people calls conspiracy, and do not fear what they fear, nor be in dread. But the Lord of hosts, him you shall honor as holy. Let him be your fear, and let him be your dread. And he will become a sanctuary and a stone of offense and a rock of stumbling to both houses of Israel, a trap and a snare to the inhabitants of Jerusalem. And many shall stumble on it. They shall fall and be broken; they shall be snared and taken.’"​
Explanation​	The passage from Ephesians 4:25 is encouraging Christians to speak the truth with one another. The context of this verse is a larger section of the letter to the Ephesians that emphasizes unity and love among believers. The verse specifically calls for putting away falsehood and speaking truthfully with neighbors, as members of one another in the body of Christ. This passage is directly related to people telling lies or spreading conspiracy theories because falsehood and conspiracy theories are contrary to truth. The passage from Isaiah 8:11-15 does warn against fearing what the people are frightened by and being in constant fear. Instead, it encourages trust in the Lord and honoring Him as holy. The passage speaks of the Lord becoming a "stone of offense and a rock of stumbling" to the people of Israel, which could be interpreted as a warning against being led astray by false beliefs or conspiracy theories.​
Societal Relevance​	In the digital age, it is essential for Christians to be discerning and truthful in their use of social media and other forms of communication. Spreading lies or conspiracy theories such as saying that the January 6 attack was peaceful can harm individuals and the body of Christ as a whole. To avoid spreading lies or conspiracy theories, Christians should fact-check information before sharing it, consult reliable sources, and be open to correction when they are wrong. For instance, the Apollo 11 moon landing has been verified with satellites orbiting the moon, such as the Lunar Reconnaissance Orbiter launched in 2009, showing the items left on the moon back forty years earlier back in July 1969. They should also be cautious about sources that consistently spread false information (extremist news sites from the far fringes of the political spectrum) and seek to discern the motives behind such information. COVID-19 has been proven by multiple countries and independent agencies to be real, masks slow down the spread between individuals, and vaccines reduce the probability of severe illness by ~60-80%. January 6, 2021 has been well documented with thousands of hours of video footage, unedited speech made earlier that day. A Washington DC officer named Jeffrey L. Smith shot himself nine days later due to PTSD from defending the Capitol. Ultimately, Christians are called to be truthful, loving, and unified in their speech and actions, both online and offline.​

 

[Stephen3141]

You are correct, in general.

Specifically, Christians need to study the core topics in Epistemology.
They include a methodology for testing our perceptions/opinions/beliefs
to see if they are true.
And, realizing that when we find a tested truth that contradicts our own
belief system, we have a moral-ethical OUGHT to revise our belief system.

Some of the marks of a conspiracy theory, are...

1 the theory is UNFALSIFIABLE. That is, it can explain ANYTHING, and
ANY fact that contradicts it.What is unfalsifiable, is also, logically, unprovable.
Examples would be the claim that "the Bible was totally corrupted in the
early centuries of Christianity." Or "the Deep State" destroyed all evidence of
terrific corruption in the 2020 presidential election.

2 People who hold to conspiracy theories, have a dysfunctional METHOD for
testing whether a proposition is true. They may bypass a careful test of the
proposition, and only accept as true what corresponds to their personal belief
system. So, dyed in the wool (for example) atheists reject all evidence that
points to weaknesses in their belief system: anti-intellectual Christians reject
all evidence that suggests that they should accept the basic goodness of sound
reason, and revise their belief system (stop being anti-intellectual).

3 People who believe conspiracy theories, often quote one conspiracy theory as
"evidence" that another conspiracy theory is true. This is not testing each proposition,
but appealing to the concept of "coherence" or regularity within a belief system.
But this methodology in trying to assert which propositions are true, confuses
objective tests of trueness, with emotional warm feelings that some proposition
fits with my personal belief system. That a proposition fits with my current belief
system, DOES NOT mean that the proposition is true.
---------- ----------

There is no reason why a single person MUST hold to some specific model
of truth. Many people appeal to different characteristics, depending on
whatever proposition they want to accept or reject. (This is the same
regarding moral-ethical systems, among Americans, or Americans who are
appealing to "human rights"). Or, some Americans despise "truth" altogether
and simply declare, day by day, what they think is "true". Some politicians are
like this.

North American Christians would be in a much better place, if they carefully
studied the historic models of truth, and morality.

Epistemology: Becoming Intellectually... book by W. Jay Wood

Moral Theory book by Mark Timmons

 

[HopeSings]

You are correct, in general.

Specifically, Christians need to study the core topics in Epistemology.
They include a methodology for testing our perceptions/opinions/beliefs
to see if they are true.
And, realizing that when we find a tested truth that contradicts our own
belief system, we have a moral-ethical OUGHT to revise our belief system.

Some of the marks of a conspiracy theory, are...

1 the theory is UNFALSIFIABLE. That is, it can explain ANYTHING, and
ANY fact that contradicts it.What is unfalsifiable, is also, logically, unprovable.
Examples would be the claim that "the Bible was totally corrupted in the
early centuries of Christianity." Or "the Deep State" destroyed all evidence of
terrific corruption in the 2020 presidential election.

2 People who hold to conspiracy theories, have a dysfunctional METHOD for
testing whether a proposition is true. They may bypass a careful test of the
proposition, and only accept as true what corresponds to their personal belief
system. So, dyed in the wool (for example) atheists reject all evidence that
points to weaknesses in their belief system: anti-intellectual Christians reject
all evidence that suggests that they should accept the basic goodness of sound
reason, and revise their belief system (stop being anti-intellectual).

3 People who believe conspiracy theories, often quote one conspiracy theory as
"evidence" that another conspiracy theory is true. This is not testing each proposition,
but appealing to the concept of "coherence" or regularity within a belief system.
But this methodology in trying to assert which propositions are true, confuses
objective tests of trueness, with emotional warm feelings that some proposition
fits with my personal belief system. That a proposition fits with my current belief
system, DOES NOT mean that the proposition is true.
---------- ----------

There is no reason why a single person MUST hold to some specific model
of truth. Many people appeal to different characteristics, depending on
whatever proposition they want to accept or reject. (This is the same
regarding moral-ethical systems, among Americans, or Americans who are
appealing to "human rights"). Or, some Americans despise "truth" altogether
and simply declare, day by day, what they think is "true". Some politicians are
like this.

North American Christians would be in a much better place, if they carefully
studied the historic models of truth, and morality.

Epistemology: Becoming Intellectually... book by W. Jay Wood

Moral Theory book by Mark Timmons

We avoid political gossip as well.