What is Truth... Which religion is true?

I find it very interesting that there are so many adherents to so many religions in the world today.
I really do wonder what is the purpose of all these religions?  In any argument or discussion or discourse there must be an agreement in the definitions that will be used in the interchange.   I regularly hear people of two different perspectives, religious views, etc. using the same words, but meaning something totally different when referring to them or mentioning them in a conversation.  How can Truth be proclaimed or accepted if we really aren't even having a valid discussion because we could never discover Truth without mutual agreement of definitions of words used in proclaimed truth statements.   If we agree that a truth statement is true, but have different definitions or meanings of the words used in our truth claim, then we have basically only confused the situations and we really haven't done any good towards one another or anyone else hearing our discussion.   I really wish that definitions of terms where agreed upon before any other statements were shared in attempt to discover what is true.  This statement should regularly be stated during a discourse on what is true - "What do you mean when you say that word"?  or "When you say that, are you meaning this, yes or no"?   We have to ensure that we are in agreement with the terms used before we can continue in our discussion.   Here is a clear example of what I mean.  The statement "I have accepted Jesus Christ as my personal Lord and Savior".   If two people uttered this statement, are they in agreement?  Have they submitted to what is true?   After all, a statement is either true or not true.   It can't be half true and half false.
This is either a statement of truth or it is simply someone's or some other's opinions.   But before we accept this statement we must dissect and digest what is meant by it.  Who is this Jesus Christ and what does it mean to say "I have accepted him as my "Lord" and "personal savior"?
Before we continue, lets back up a bit. Anyone can make any statement and the statement will either be true or false.  If it is true we should...dare I say, must accept it and base or conform our life choices, behaviors and responses upon it's truthfulness.   If someone says "don't enter that room, there is a hungry lion in there!", we have a choice to make, decision to consider, a response that could mean either life or death.  Prior to entering the room, should we say, what do you mean by "room", "hungry" or "lion"?   We more than likely are in agreement with these terms, so the logically response would be, must be not to enter the room.  However what if you sincerely believe that there is no lion in the room and/or a group of people outside the room are proclaiming that there is no lion in the room, in fact the room is filled with choice treasures, and expensive items that the person proclaiming there is a lion in there simply wants for him/herself.  what do you do then?
Which statement is true?  More than likely evidence submitted to support the truthfulness of each claim will be very important with regard to whether you decide to enter or not to enter the room.   This is a simple analogy to keep in mind when considering the truthfulness of the truth claims of all religions of the world.  Does it matter if any of the religions are actual true or can they be relevant simply based on millions or even billions of adherents who believe the truth claims of a particular religion?  Which of these is a valid statement - "All religions are false and not one is true".
 "Only one of all religions that exist today and will exist in the future can b and ise true".
 "Two or more religions are true, the rest are false and thefore not true, nor founded on truth."
  "All  religions are true, none - not one is false or untrue."
  Which of these statement is actually true?  Evidence presented to support each claim must be examined and either accepted or rejected, but prior to this exercise thee must be a discussion and agreement on the definition of terms or words used to have a valid discourse or for the possibility of determining and accepting what is actually true.

How sad it would be for me personally and it is for you if this in fact is your personal experience to sincerely believe in something, some philosophy, some belief system sincerely and earnestly and what you believe is NOT true nor based in Truth.  However, you have convinced yourself of it's truthfulness or your parents and heritage has accepted it as true (based on past traditions) and you have decided to keep the tradition of beliefs for yourself and also proclaim it to your children and instruct them to do the same.  How truly sad it is to propagate and promote generations upon generations of sincere and earnest adherents who believe in a system or philosophy of beliefs that in fact are not true.  Deciding to submit to and promote religious dogma is a dangerous, pointless, futile, and meaningless pursuit.

How sad it is to demand believe in a system of beliefs ie. religious dogma and threaten consequences even death if a potential adherent chooses not to believe or submit to a particular system of beliefs.  I really don't even understand some systems of beliefs who's purpose is to convert all of the nations of the world to their system of beliefs by force if necessary and eventually to convert the entire world to their religious dogmatic system of beliefs and torture and kill anyone who chooses not to believe this system of belief.  What is the ultimate goal of this exercise if indeed the religious dogma is NOT true?  If in fact there is a system of beliefs that is not based on dogma, but actual truth that has been denied, rejected and dismissed due to personal desires, pursuits, and interest, rest assured that this will NEVER happen and these dogmatic zealots will never, ever experience their ultimate goal whether believed or not which is ushering the entire world into complete darkness and away from Truth.

Why are so many people so content and accepting of system of truths based on "shades of gray"?  There is no black and white for most people.  They believe that certain things are true or false in only cerntain situations and for certain people.  Most people believe they can decide for themselves what is true and what is not true.  However, they really don't want to suffer any consequences or feel that they should or will suffer any consequences.  They have in fact become their own gods because what they say gooes.  It is amazing to hear such things uttered by them, such as.. "There is no Hell", "Satan does not exist", "After we die, we simply rot, decompose and become part of the earth - No Heaven to look foward to, no Hell to fear", "As long as I try to do righ by my fellow man and try not to harm anyone (or anything) all will be well after I die", "the most important things in life is to love, accept, and tolerate everyone and hope that everyone else will do the same to you", "There is no such thing as absolute truth or absolute wrong", etc.  How do we decide whether or not these statements are true?  Majority rule, what we feel and sincerely believe to be true?  What appears to be good or benefical to us, who we love, to mankind in general?
"There is no such thing as absolute truth or absolute wrong" -  I would also believe this statement, but with one qualification.  There is no such things as abosulte truth or absolute wrong unless a super-natural being with absolute authority and power to enforce consequences and reword conformity proclaims the absolute truthfulmess of truth claims revealed to all.  God and God alone is responsible for revealing or communicating truth claims if they indeed exist.  Only He is able to ensure the absolute truthfullness of any claims revealed or communicated.  Man often and frequently proclaim things that are NOT true and supress what is actually True to their own eternal detriment.  Sadly, others share thhis eternal detriment due to deciding to believe Man rather than the Eternal God.  Man (men & women) really can't proclaim anything is true, they can only quote or misquote what God has already proclaimed as Truth.

I digress... Let's consider the (4) general religious positions and review some statements that pertain to each.
Let's consider the truth claim that all religions are false, none of them are true.  Could this actually be true?
The only way that this could be true is if none of them are based on what is actually true.  Actually the only way for a religious system to be true is that it's teachings and beliefs are based and founded upon what is actually true.  If this is not the case, then the religion is false.  This would have to be the case.  Since there is actual truth that exist in the world, rest assured that there is at least (1) religious system among the numerous systems that exist in the world that is actually true.  The second question would be - Can more than religious system be true? This wouldn't make any since because if more than one religious system all submitted to what is actual true then they would all be identical.  If one of the group disagreed with what is actually true then they could not be considered as part of the actual adherents.  If all the adherents that did submit were in agreement then they would represent the one, true religious belief, the rest would be false.  Could all religions of the world be true?  This, of course, could not be the case especially if all the terms used by all religious systems had the same definitions. If  all religions of the world believed in the same definition of terms, but disagreed on the teachings or beliefs then the ones that did not submit to what is actually true would be false.
The only logical conclusion is that only one religious system is true and ALL others are FALSE.

Of course there will be people who agree with or disagree with this statement, but that really isn't important.  The crucial necessity is to ensure that you and all others determine what is true and only conform and submit to what is in fact, true.  This must be done regardless of what anyone else believes or how many others believe something different, or who it is that believes something different - friend, family, foe, or relative is irrelevant.   If my enemy believes something.  If my family or relatives believed and believes somethings.  If my peers, friends, acquaintances believed something.  If generations upon generations of family (present, extended, past), friends, etc believe something that in fact was actually not true it should have no bearing on what I believe is true.   The same must be said if any of these people or groups of people believed something that was in fact true and I chose not to believe based on my own personal reasoning.  My own personal reasoning, sincere feelings, personal sense of right and wrong would be irrelevant regardless of my position or anyone else's unless it was based on and conformed to what is actually true.

Is this what we see in the world today?  I would say No.. absolutely not.  People believe what is convenient, pleasurable, beneficial, safe, respected, and expected of them, for them and to them.  The strongest and most popular reasoning behind submission to a particular religious dogma is due to personal beliefs or family tradition.  We believe what we want to believe out of desire for personal gain or we believe what is expected out of fear of loss or avoidance of consequences even the preservation of physical life (our own and others).  It really doesn't mater if what we believe is actually true.  This is true of the majority of people of the world.  Truth really isn't important to the average person.  Most peopel believe in relative truths - "shades of gray".  They really can't say for certain what they believe is true, but as for them they have accepted them as true and believe that they will experience in the present or future any consequences, detriment, or negativity for believing what they believe is true.  They also are confident that there are no eternal (after death) considerations associates with what they have chosen to believe is true. Again,   what a sad commentary!

A new term was developed and popularized for the sake of tolerance and as an attempt not to offend and offer acceptance and validation of all believes of all people.  The term mentioned earlier, is relative truth as opposed to absolute truth.  Relative truth is thought to be true for some people or in certain situations, predicaments or occasions, but not true for or in others.  In other words, what is true for you may not be true for me and vice-versa.  The real question is - regardless of who is doing the believing or the situation that presents itself, is the belief in question actually true?  If it is true then the preferences, opinions, situations at hand are irrelevant.  If the truth in question is in fact absolutely true then it is true for all and in all situations.  What if truth offends, or hurts, or affects the disposition of someone.  Should the main focus be on maintaining peace, happiness, fellowship or a harmonious relationship.  Should we allow someone to continue to believe a lie or that which is not true because from their or your perspective this is the best alternative?  Even if there are temporary benefits and advantages for believing a lie or something that is not true or if there are temporary consequences, deficits, disadvantages associated with believing something that is true, truth must be believed and submitted to and falshood or untruth must be rejected and dismissed regardless of the reprecussions.   Here are a few passages from scripture, the Holy Bible.  After reading it, ask yourself - does this make sense?  do these statements appear to be true?  Or doe they appear to be he rabbllings of man and not founded on or based in truth?  Remember, continue to keep in mind that whether or not you believe the following statements are true, if in fact they are true, they must be believed, adheered to and proclaimed to All, continually  regardless of any consequences, suffering, ridicule, threats or exclusions in the name of so-called tolerance to those views which may appear to be true, but are in fact NOT true. :

Romans 1: Amplified Bible (AMP)

¹⁶ For I am not ashamed of the Gospel (good news) of Christ, for it is God’s power working unto salvation [for deliverance from eternal death] to everyone who believes with a personal trust and a confident surrender and firm reliance, to the Jew first and also to the Greek,

¹⁷ For in the Gospel a righteousness which God ascribes is revealed, both springing from faith and leading to faith [disclosed through the way of faith that arouses to more faith]. As it is written, The man who through faith is just and upright shall live and shall live by faith.

¹⁸ For God’s [holy] wrath and indignation are revealed from heaven against all ungodliness and unrighteousness of men, who in their wickedness repress and hinder the truth and make it inoperative.

¹⁹ For that which is known about God is evident to them and made plain in their inner consciousness, because God [Himself] has shown it to them.

²⁰ For ever since the creation of the world His invisible nature and attributes, that is, His eternal power and divinity, have been made intelligible and clearly discernible in and through the things that have been made (His handiworks). So [men] are without excuse [altogether without any defense or justification],

²¹ Because when they knew and recognized Him as God, they did not honor and glorify Him as God or give Him thanks. But instead they became futile and ^[c]godless in their thinking [with vain imaginings, foolish reasoning, and stupid speculations] and their senseless minds were darkened.

²² Claiming to be wise, they became fools [professing to be smart, they made simpletons of themselves].

²³ And by them the glory and majesty and excellence of the immortal God were exchanged for and represented by images, resembling mortal man and birds and beasts and reptiles.

²⁴ Therefore God gave them up in the lusts of their [own] hearts to sexual impurity, to the dishonoring of their bodies among themselves [abandoning them to the degrading power of sin],

²⁵ Because they exchanged the truth of God for a lie and worshiped and served the creature rather than the Creator, Who is blessed forever! Amen (so be it).

²⁶ For this reason God gave them over and abandoned them to vile affections and degrading passions. For their women exchanged their natural function for an unnatural and abnormal one,

²⁷ And the men also turned from natural relations with women and were set ablaze (burning out, consumed) with lust for one another—men committing shameful acts with men and suffering in their own ^[d]bodies and personalities the inevitable consequences and penalty of their wrong-doing and going astray, which was [their] fitting retribution.

²⁸ And so, since they did not see fit to acknowledge God or approve of Him or consider Him worth the knowing, God gave them over to a base and condemned mind to do things not proper or decent but loathsome,

²⁹ Until they were filled (permeated and saturated) with every kind of unrighteousness, iniquity, grasping and covetous greed, and malice. [They were] full of envy and jealousy, murder, strife, deceit and treachery, ill will and cruel ways. [They were] secret backbiters and gossipers,

³⁰ Slanderers, hateful to and hating God, full of insolence, arrogance, [and] boasting; inventors of new forms of evil, disobedient and undutiful to parents.

³¹ [They were] without understanding, conscienceless and faithless, heartless and loveless [and] merciless.

³² Though they are fully aware of God’s righteous decree that those who do such things deserve to die, they not only do them themselves but approve and applaud others who practice them.

Colossians 2:

³ In Him all the treasures of [divine] wisdom (^[d]comprehensive insight into the ways and purposes of God) and [all the riches of spiritual] knowledge and enlightenment are stored up and lie hidden.  ⁴ I say this in order that no one may mislead and delude you by plausible and persuasive and attractive arguments and beguiling speech.

⁸ See to it that no one carries you off as spoil or makes you yourselves captive by his so-called philosophy and intellectualism and vain deceit (idle fancies and plain nonsense), following human tradition (men’s ideas of the material rather than the spiritual world), just crude notions following the rudimentary and elemental teachings of the universe and disregarding [the teachings of] Christ (the Messiah).

2 Timothy 3 

3 But understand this, that in the last days will come (set in) perilous times of great stress and trouble [hard to deal with and hard to bear].

² For people will be lovers of self and [utterly] self-centered, lovers of money and aroused by an inordinate [greedy] desire for wealth, proud and arrogant and contemptuous boasters. They will be abusive (blasphemous, scoffing), disobedient to parents, ungrateful, unholy and profane.

³ [They will be] without natural [human] affection (callous and inhuman), relentless (admitting of no truce or appeasement); [they will be] slanderers (false accusers, troublemakers), intemperate and loose in morals and conduct, uncontrolled and fierce, haters of good.

⁴ [They will be] treacherous [betrayers], rash, [and] inflated with self-conceit. [They will be] lovers of sensual pleasures and vain amusements more than and rather than lovers of God.

⁵ For [although] they hold a form of piety (true religion), they deny and reject and are strangers to the power of it [their conduct belies the genuineness of their profession]. Avoid [all] such people [turn away from them].

⁶ For among them are those who worm their way into homes and captivate silly and weak-natured and spiritually dwarfed individuals, loaded down with [the burden of their] sins [and easily] swayed and led away by various evil desires and seductive impulses.

⁷ [These weak individuals will listen to anybody who will teach them]; they are forever inquiring and getting information, but are never able to arrive at a recognition and knowledge of the Truth.

⁸ Now just as ^[a]Jannes and Jambres were hostile to and resisted Moses, so these men also are hostile to and oppose the Truth. They have depraved and distorted minds, and are reprobate and counterfeit and to be rejected as far as the faith is concerned.

⁹ But they will not get very far, for their rash folly will become obvious to everybody, as was that of those [magicians mentioned].

Revelations 21:

⁵ And He Who is seated on the throne said, See! I make all things new. Also He said, Record this, for these sayings are faithful (accurate, incorruptible, and trustworthy) and true (genuine).

⁸ But as for the cowards and the ignoble and the contemptible and the cravenly lacking in courage and the cowardly submissive, and as for the unbelieving and faithless, and as for the depraved and defiled with abominations, and as for murderers and the lewd and adulterous and the practitioners of magic arts and the idolaters (those who give supreme devotion to anyone or anything other than God) and all liars (those who knowingly convey untruth by word or deed)—[all of these shall have] their part in the lake that blazes with fire and brimstone. This is the second death.

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Thanks for your time and may God ever continue to bless you, extend his Love, Grace, Power & Peace to you and grant you spiritual discernment for what is indeed, and in FACT absolutely True and base your life and convictions on absolute truth, rejecting and dismissing untruth and falsehood and being content in living and operating in a system of detrimental, pointless, futile, and confusing "Shades of Gray".  AMEN!!