Jesus told us, “Anyone who wants to do the will of God will know whether My teaching is from God or is merely My own.” (John 7:17). Instead of questioning, nitpicking, or doubting the things that we do not understand, pay closer attention to putting into practice the things that we do understand, and we will open ourselves to learning even more. We should obey as best as we can everything that we know we should do, and this will open the door to more truth, and obedience and action are what silence doubt.
There is a type of evidence that is available to everyone—from the most educated person to the most illiterate—and this evidence is our own experience. God encourages us to prove for ourselves that His word is true and that He keeps His promises. He calls us to “taste and see that the Lord is good.” (Psalm 34:8). Instead of depending on others understanding of the Bible, we should read it and study it ourselves. He boldly tells us to, “Ask, using My name, and you will receive, and you will have abundant joy.” (John 16:24). His promises have never failed, and they never will fail. As we experience life with Jesus, and as we continually draw closer to Him and His love, our doubts and uncertainties will disappear in the light of His presence and purpose.
Paul tells us that God “has rescued us from the kingdom of darkness and transferred us into the Kingdom of His dear Son.” (Colossians 1:13). “Anyone who accepts His testimony can affirm that God is true.” (John 3:33). Those who accept Christ’s testimony can say, “I needed help, and I found it in Jesus. Jesus filled the void in my life, and He freed me to be truly alive. The Bible completely focuses on the Jesus that I love. I believe in Jesus because He is my Divine Savior. I believe the Bible because the Holy Spirit has spoken truth into to the very core of my being.” Experiencing the Bible in our own lives confirms that it is true, and that Jesus Christ is the Son of God. Experiencing the Bible confirms to our minds and hearts that we are not following a fairy tale.
Peter calls us to “grow in the grace and knowledge of our Lord and Savior Jesus Christ.” (2 Peter 3:18). When the people of God are growing in the grace and knowledge of Jesus, they will be constantly gaining a clearer understanding of His word. They will be continually being reinforcing the truth that they know with new insights and revelation within their study. This has been true throughout the history of the church, and it will be that way until Christ returns. “The way of the righteous is like the first gleam of dawn, which shines ever brighter until the full light of day.” (Proverbs 4:18).
With faith, we are able to look to God and grow our minds as we continue to grow with Jesus. Our minds, hearts, and our very essence will join with the One Source of Truth. We can celebrate that all the complexities that have confused us will be made plain in the end, and that everything that was hard to understand for us will be thoroughly explained to our satisfaction. In heaven, what previously had been impossible for our limited minds to grasp we will understand as we look into the face of our Creator, and our Savior. “Now we see things imperfectly as in a cloudy mirror, but then we will see everything with perfect clarity. All that I know now is partial and incomplete, but then I will know everything completely, just as God now knows me completely.” (1 Corinthians 13:12).
Next week, we will begin looking at the last topic we will focus on in this series. It has been an exciting time together and what better way to finish than to look at Celebrating Life with Jesus.
~Cam
P.S. As always, if I missed something, or if you would like to respond on this topic, join the conversation below!