Tell all the truth but tell it slant –
Success in Circuit lies
Too bright for our infirm Delight
The Truth’s superb surprise
As Lightning to the Children eased
With explanation kind
The Truth must dazzle gradually
Or every man be blind –
Emily Dickenson, poem 1263.
Tell the truth but tell it slant.
You can’t come at truth directly.
Success does not lie in a straight line.
It’s too bright to see directly.
What we are able to see is like lightning.
It’s amazing, but it’s not the sun.
The sun would be too bright for us.
It would blind us.
What is she getting at? Why would she say that we can’t talk about truth? What are we supposed to do? Lie?
There are two types of knowledge (or truth) in the world. There is the mathematical kind. That you can experience directly. 2+2=4. Got it. That truth is important, but it never touches the heart.
The most important truth can’t be had directly. It’s not like math or science. Truth that touches the heart can only be had indirectly.
We would say that the most important thing is to have a living relationship with Christ Jesus. But where is he? Can you see Him?Find Him? Can you come at him directly? He is truth, but you can only come at Him indirectly. He is truth, but if you try to approach Him like math, you’ll miss Him. Tell the truth, but tell it slant.
What am I getting at? The importance of faith. You can have all the arguments for God you want. They don’t amount to anything.
They cannot secure truth for you. There is one way to secure truth: hold it fast with all the passion of your being. Hold on with all the love and power of faith.
You will see nothing. You will have no evidence. And yet, if you hold fast in the passion of faith, you will never doubt. Success in circuit lies.
You might have asked questions like: “What is the truth?” “Where is all this going?” “How can I be sure about life?” And I’m telling you those answers will never come with evidence you can hold. There is one way to secure truth: By holding in your faith what cannot be held in your hands. In your heart, in you innermost being, you say, “Yes.” And then all the waves are calm. All the shifting ground is made firm.
The Yes of passionate faith secures truth that is more certain than mathematics. And what will it get you? Nothing. Except the most important thing: you know that Jesus loves you. You know it has certainly as the sun rises. You know He is for you. You know it as definitely as the ground under your feet.
The way toward certainty, the way out of doubt, does not lie outside of you. It lies within you. What did Christ say, “Your faith has saved you.” What did Christ mean? Believe.
Tom+