Truth as an Agreement Between Persons?

Truth as Personal Agreement: A Christian Reflection on Relational Truth

What is truth? For many, it’s a fact. For others, a feeling. But I’ve come to believe truth is something deeper — a sacred agreement between persons, with God always present. In this reflection, I explore how truth is not just discovered, but entered into. It’s not static — it’s relational, covenantal, and alive. This paper is for anyone who’s wrestled with truth, faith, and the mystery of divine presence.

Truth in Philosophy and Theology: A Brief Context

Before exploring truth as relational agreement, it helps to consider how truth has traditionally been understood in both secular and Christian thought. Philosophers have proposed several major theories of truth:

• Correspondence Theory: Truth is what matches reality. A statement is true if it reflects the way things actually are. This theory has been widely accepted in both secular philosophy and Christian theology, where truth is seen as aligning with God’s created order.

• Coherence Theory: Truth is what fits consistently within a system of beliefs. A statement is true if it coheres with other accepted truths.

• Pragmatic Theory: Truth is what works. A belief is true if it proves useful or leads to successful outcomes.

• Deflationary Theory: Truth is a linguistic convenience. Saying “it’s true that snow is white” adds nothing beyond saying “snow is white.”

• Constructivist Theory: Truth is shaped by social or epistemic frameworks. It’s not discovered but constructed.

Christianity has traditionally leaned on the correspondence theory, especially in affirming that God’s Word is true because it reflects divine reality. Yet Scripture also reveals a deeper dimension: truth is not just factual — it’s personal. Jesus didn’t merely speak truth; He is the Truth (John 14:6). This opens the door to a richer understanding.

Truth Is a Relationship, Not Just a Fact

Truth is not merely a fact to be proven — it is a relationship to be entered. In my journey of faith, I’ve come to see truth as an agreement between two or more persons, with God always present as one of those persons. This means truth is not static or impersonal — it is alive, relational, and sacred.

The definition of truth, as I’ve come to understand it, is this: for something to be truly true, two or more persons must be present in agreement — and one of those persons is always God. Truth is not born in isolation; it is revealed in communion. It is not merely correspondence with reality, but correspondence with divine relationship.

So if you say, “I see the dog,” and you truly see it — even if no other person agrees with you but God — then you do truly see the dog, and you are in agreement with God. That agreement is enough for truth to exist. Truth is not dependent on human consensus alone; it is sustained by divine presence.

God Is Personal

Scripture reveals a God who speaks, listens, loves, and enters into covenant with humanity. From the garden of Eden to the cross of Christ, truth is revealed through relationship. Jesus said, “I am the way, and the truth, and the life. No one comes to the Father except through me” (John 14:6). He didn’t just claim to know truth — He claimed to be truth. That means truth is not a concept — it’s a person. And more than that, it’s a relationship with that person.

Agreement with God Is Where Truth Begins

When a person agrees with God, truth is born. That agreement may come through revelation, conviction, or quiet surrender. And when others join in that agreement — whether through shared faith, mutual understanding, or spiritual awakening — truth becomes a shared space. It is no longer private; it is communal, and God dwells in that communion.

Truth Sets Us Free — Through Abiding

Jesus said, “If you abide in My word, you are My disciples indeed. And you shall know the truth, and the truth shall make you free” (John 8:31–32). Truth is not stumbled upon — it is revealed through abiding. It’s not just intellectual — it’s experiential. And the result? Freedom. Not just freedom from ignorance, but freedom from sin, fear, and separation from God.

Truth Transforms Our Conversations

This view of truth transforms how we speak and listen. Conversations become sacred ground. Disagreements are not battles to win, but invitations to deeper relationship. Evangelism becomes less about persuasion and more about participation — inviting others to step into truth by stepping into relationship with God.

Truth Without God: The Limits of Seeing Without Personal Agreement

If someone says, “I see the tree,” and denies God’s presence in that moment, they affirm a fact but deny its source. The tree exists — but its existence becomes detached from meaning, purpose, and relationship. Without God, reality becomes impersonal. The tree is just matter, not creation. The person is just a mind — if even that — not a soul, not a being in communion, not a participant in divine meaning. They become a perceiver without purpose, a witness without wonder. Truth becomes isolated, stripped of covenant and communion.

Even if they use the word “matter” to describe what they are experiencing, the word loses its meaning. Matter becomes mass — and the same happens with the word “mass” — with no message. “Stuff” becomes a label for what we can touch, but not what we can understand. And “noise” — a word that implies disorder — only makes sense if there’s such a thing as order. Without God, all sound is noise, and even noise loses its contrast. Language collapses. Meaning dissolves. Truth disappears.

But when God is present, even silence can speak. Even “stuff” becomes sacred. Even “noise” can be redeemed into voice.

Truth as Answered Prayer: Seeing Revelation as Divine Response

Truth is so necessary and constant in our lives that, like air, we live within it and rarely notice it. Yet every truth we encounter is an answered prayer — whether we asked for it consciously or not. For those who say that God doesn’t answer prayers, the truth is often so close to us that it’s like water to a fish: surrounding us, sustaining us, unnoticed. And more than that, the Giver of those answers is with us too — closer than breath, nearer than thought — and we fail to engage with Him.

Scripture affirms this view:

• Psalm 25:5

“Guide me in your truth and teach me, for you are God my Savior, and my hope is in you all day long.”

• Daniel 2:22

“He reveals deep and hidden things; he knows what lies in darkness, and light dwells with him.”

• Jeremiah 33:3

“Call to me and I will answer you and tell you great and unsearchable things you do not know.”

• John 16:13

“But when he, the Spirit of truth, comes, he will guide you into all the truth.”

• James 1:5

“If any of you lacks wisdom, let him ask of God, who gives to all generously and without reproach, and it will be given to him.”

To recognize truth as answered prayer is to recognize the presence of God in every moment of clarity, every insight, every step forward. It turns discovery into worship.

Conclusion: Truth Is Covenant

Truth is not a solitary possession — it is a shared agreement, a sacred communion between persons, with God always present. When we align ourselves with God, we step into truth. And when others join that agreement, truth becomes a living fellowship. It is not just a concept — it is a covenant. In a world of shifting opinions and fractured dialogue, this view of truth invites us back into relationship — where truth is not only found, but felt, lived, and shared.

About the Author

I’m a Christian thinker exploring the intersection of faith, truth, and relationship. I write not as a scholar, but as a seeker — someone who believes truth is found where people and God meet.

Note from the Author

This paper was written with the help of AI, but the ideas and convictions are mine. I’m not a polished writer — though I wish I were — but I believe God gave us technology to be used for good. If anything here resonates with you, all credit goes to the One who is Truth.