The Bible gives a threefold answer to this question.
- First, Jesus declares, “I am the truth.” (John 14:6)
- Second, Jesus declares, “Your Word is truth,” in His prayer to the Father. (John 17:17)
- Thirdly, according to John 14:17, the Holy Spirit is the Spirit of truth.
We know we have found the unchanging truth if all three of these requirements are met.
Guidance of the Holy Spirit
It is the special responsibility of the Holy Spirit to make the truth evident to us in this tripartite presentation of Jesus, God’s Word, and the Holy Spirit: “And the Spirit is the One that testifies, because the Spirit is the truth.” John 5:6 The eternal Son of God, Jesus, who shed His blood on the cross as a sufficient atonement for our sins, is attested to by the Holy Spirit. The veracity and authority of God’s Word are also attested to by the Holy Spirit. We require the assistance and direction of the Holy Spirit in order to stay in the truth.
Blessed with the knowledge of God’s truth
The professing church of Jesus Christ is richly blessed with the knowledge of God’s truth. God judges us according to the degree of light (or “revelation”) which we have received. Peter proclaimed to the Christians in his time that judgment begins at the house of God: “And if it begins with us, what will be the outcome for those who do not obey the gospel of God?” (1 Peter 4:17). To remain in the truth, we must obey the doctrinal and moral biblical truths and not replace or obscure these truths by interpreting them in a way to fit our own insights and preferences. Paul warns us against this practice by pointing out a number of errors, i.e. sins, in 1 Corinthians 6:9-10. If we want to walk with God, we cannot compromise the truth. The Holy Spirit, who is the Spirit of truth, and Satan, the father of lies, can never go together.
When Ananias and Sapphira chose to fabricate the amount of money they provided to the church, it was evident to the first assembly in a spectacular way (Acts 5:1-11). Another instance involves David, who sought to conceal his adultery with Bathseba until the prophet Nathan questioned him about it (2 Samuel 12:1-14). He acknowledges his transgression in poem 51:6, a poem of confession and atonement, and then declares, “Behold, You delight in truth in the inward being.”
Walk in the truth
To continue to walk in the truth, we must be on our guard against the temptation of worldly riches and the cares of this world that will choke the Word (Matthew 13:22). We can be so preoccupied and focused on the life here and now, that the undivided attention for the Holy Spirit and the devotion to Jesus will come under pressure. To prevent that, we can humbly ask the Holy Spirit, who is “the finger of God” (see Matthew 12:28 and Luke 11:20) to place His finger on our sins, which we then must confess: “If we confess our sins, He is faithful and just to forgive us our sins and to cleanse us from all unrighteousness” (1 John 1:9). But only confessing our sins is not enough. The second step is forsaking them, as Proverbs 28:13 says: “But he who confesses and forsakes them will obtain mercy”.
It is imperative that we individually submit to and embrace the authority of God’s Word in order to avoid the perils of both materialism and compromise. It is also critical that we carefully consider God’s Word with the assistance of the Holy Spirit, the Spirit of truth. Walking in that truth brings abundant life, and that is just what our benevolent heavenly Father is providing for us! Witnesses to this will be those who follow this path of truth.
