July 25

Whoever accepts His testimony has certified that God is truthful. — John 3:33 BSB

We can only affirm that God is true in any point of doctrine, experience, or precept when we have an inward witness that God has indeed declared it. Every time we experience God’s goodness, receive Christ’s blood applied to our conscience, or see a revelation of God’s grace, it is only when we accept Christ’s testimony, feel its sweetness, and approve of it inwardly, that we can affirm that God is true. This is the only way to truly know the power and reality of religion, to understand the Scriptures, and to enjoy the assurance that God is our God, Christ is our Savior, the Holy Spirit is our teacher, heaven is our home, and we are saved with an everlasting salvation.

When God gives such a testimony, how certain we can feel! At times, we may feel as though we can believe nothing, and that nothing in God’s word makes sense. Everything feels confused, and we feel lost in ignorance, unable to affirm any truth. But when the Spirit of God testifies to us about the things of God, and we receive Christ’s testimony in our hearts, then we walk in the light of that testimony with a holy certainty. This kind of faith will carry us through all trials and sorrows. Though we may go through the depths of temptation, we will know that God is true. This is the test of faith: to receive Christ’s testimony and to hold on to it, despite all opposition from within and without, feeling its power, weight, and sweetness.