“Ye shall know the truth, and the truth shall make you free” (John 8:32).
“The truth shall make you free.” ‘Free’ from what? Free from bondages to sin and to Satan, physical, mental and spiritual bondages.
Here is the test of any teaching or doctrine. Whatever the truth you may believe in or teach, if it does not change your stubborn, proud and arrogant nature, there is something wrong with the teaching or with your understanding of it. “Acknowledging of the truth which is after godliness” (Tit 1:1). The Living Bible puts it as, “to lead them to the truth – the kind of truth that changes life.” Yes, the test of the truth is whether it changes our lives or not.
When Amy Carmichael was a young girl, she was struggling to live a holy life. When she heard the verse “He is able to keep you from falling,” instantly her addled mind cleared; nothing ever mattered to her since then but things were not eternal. She dedicated her whole life to the Lord’s service and served as a missionary in India till her death.
Perhaps you know many doctrines and deeper truths; if they do not have any impact on your character, it’s all vanity of vanities.
“Freedom from all the carnal affections,
Freedom from envy, hatred and strife,
Freedom from vain and worldly ambitions
Freedom from all that saddened my life.”
Here is the test of any teaching or doctrine. Whatever the truth you may believe in or teach, if it does not change your stubborn, proud and arrogant nature, there is something wrong with the teaching or with your understanding of it. “Acknowledging of the truth which is after godliness” (Tit 1:1). The Living Bible puts it as, “to lead them to the truth – the kind of truth that changes life.” Yes, the test of the truth is whether it changes our lives or not.
When Amy Carmichael was a young girl, she was struggling to live a holy life. When she heard the verse “He is able to keep you from falling,” instantly her addled mind cleared; nothing ever mattered to her since then but things were not eternal. She dedicated her whole life to the Lord’s service and served as a missionary in India till her death.
Perhaps you know many doctrines and deeper truths; if they do not have any impact on your character, it’s all vanity of vanities.
“Freedom from all the carnal affections,
Freedom from envy, hatred and strife,
Freedom from vain and worldly ambitions
Freedom from all that saddened my life.”
– Taken from Morning Manna – Thoughts for Daily Devotion
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