(Part 6)
“Behold, You desire truth in the inward parts, and in the hidden part You will make me to know wisdom.”
Psalm 51:6
The key to developing in truthfulness is to get His truth into our spirit! This begins by first having the way of truth opened to us. Jesus said in John 14:6:
“I am the way, the truth, and the life. No one comes to the Father except through Me.”
To know truth, we must first come to know Jesus Christ. Scripture tells us that He is truth! Once we have come to put our faith in Him, the scripture tells us that we are then given the Holy Spirit, who will guide us into all truth:
“However, when He, the Spirit of truth, has come, He will guide you into all truth; for He will not speak on His own authority, but whatever He hears He will speak; and He will tell you things to come.”
John 16:13
This is one of the Holy Spirit’s primary functions. He has been commissioned to guide us and reveal to us the truth found in God’s Word. We, however, must then live out what has been revealed to us, before it will genuinely become truth to us.
“Then Jesus said to those Jews who believed Him, “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
It is important to know that truth alone cannot set you free. It is the truth you “know” that sets you free.
To “know truth” is more than having a head knowledge or appreciation for what is written in the Bible. To “know truth” is to put into practice the truth that is found there. It is when we seek to live according to God’s Word, that we are able to develop a deeper understanding and appreciation for God’s truth and consequently enjoy greater freedom in our lives. Consequently, when we reject the Word of God or fail to live out the Word of God, we are in a very real sense rejecting truth; and the pursuit of anything less than truth is to pursue a lie:
“Why do you not understand My speech? Because you are not able to listen to My word. You are of your father the devil, and the desires of your father you want to do. He was a murderer from the beginning, and does not stand in the truth, because there is no truth in him. When he speaks a lie, he speaks from his own resources, for he is a liar and the father of it. But because I tell the truth, you do not believe Me.”
John 8:43-45
God hates lying (Proverbs 6:16-19), because lying is the opposite of truthfulness. This includes all varieties of lying including white lies, half-truths, concealing information, and withholding truth with the intention of deceiving.
It is the language of the devil, not the language of God the Father. God wants us to learn to speak the language of truth, however when we lie, it is indicative of a lack of truthfulness in our inmost being.
The presence of lying in the life of an individual communicates a disconnect from truth. You cannot be full of lies and full of truth! 1 John 2:4 tells us that:
“He who says, “I know Him,” and does not keep His commandments, is a liar, and the truth is not in him.”
Lying silences truth in our lives and halts the transformation process.
“Do not lie to one another, since you have put off the old man with his deeds, and have put on the new man who is renewed in knowledge according to the image of Him who created him.”
Colossians 3:9-10
As believers, we are being renewed in knowledge day by day according to the image of Him who created us. When we lie, or fail to pursue truth, we derail God’s desire for us to know truth and live in freedom.
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