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Recently, I was enjoying coffee with a friend. As often happens, our conversation turned to parenting. My friend was going through a difficult season with her teenaged daughter. “She doesn’t want to go to church with us anymore,” my friend explained sadly. “She isn’t sure what she believes about God.” Her daughter had lost the connection between truth and faith
I nodded sympathetically. “Kids their age need to figure out their faith for themselves, and having doubts can be a normal part of that process,” I said.
“I’m praying it’s just a phase,” she said. “But every time I want to talk with her about it, she tells me she just needs to find her truth.”
“Find her truth.” It has become such a common phrase in today’s world. But as a Christian, do we get to decide what the truth is when it comes to matters of faith?
Let’s see what the Bible says about the connection between truth and faith.
God Establishes the Truth
“To the Jews who had believed him, Jesus said, ‘If you hold to my teaching, you are really my disciples. Then you will know the truth, and the truth will set you free.’ They answered him, ‘We are Abraham’s descendants and have never been slaves of anyone. How can you say that we shall be set free?’ Jesus replied, ‘Very truly I tell you, everyone who sins is a slave to sin. Now a slave has no permanent place in the family, but a son belongs to it forever. So if the Son sets you free, you will be free indeed.’”
– John 8:31-36 (NIV)
- God has laid out a universal truth—that He sent His only Son, Jesus, to die for our sins. If we accept Jesus’ sacrifice, we become children of the King. We are set free from the punishment we deserve, and instead, we receive the gift of eternal life. That’s the truth. As human beings, our choice is to believe in God’s truth or reject it.
The Truth is a Person, Not a Thing
“Jesus answered, ‘I am the way and the truth and the life. No one comes to the Father except through me.’”
– John 14:6 (NIV)
- God designed humans to live in fellowship with Him, but our sin separated us from Him. In the days of the Old Testament, people had to perform animal sacrifices to atone for their sins. But then God did away with those rules and established a new plan. When Jesus died on the cross, He created a bridge between us and God. He made a way for us to get right with God because His death was a perfect sacrifice, and it could replace the need for all other sacrifices. Jesus is the way to God; His death established the truth of the gospel, and He is the only path we have to eternal life.
God’s Definition of Faith
“Now faith is confidence in what we hope for and assurance about what we do not see.”
– Hebrews 11:1 (NIV)
- God asks us to put our trust in Him, even though we’ve never seen Him. That’s how God defines faith. Faith is feeling confident that God will keep His promises. It’s believing in the truth of the gospel and knowing it’s real in our hearts, even though we haven’t seen it with our eyes. Author Elizabeth Gilbert once said, “Faith is belief in what you cannot see or prove or touch. Faith is walking face-first and full-speed into the dark.”
Listen now to a short segment of this Abide meditation based on Hebrews 11:1. Let God speak to your heart about believing, even when you don’t have all the answers.
The Bible is clear: God determines the truth, not us. We can choose to believe Him or not. God has given us that freedom. The wonderful news is that putting our faith in God and accepting the truth of the gospel is our path to freedom. The truth is that faith in God equals freedom from sin, and all we have to do is believe.
For more help exploring the connection between truth and faith, check out the Abide app, where our 1500+ Bible-based meditations all exist to help you deepen your faith. Use this link for 25% off a premium subscription, giving you access to our entire library of content.
Diane Stark is a wife, mother of five, and writer. She writes about the important things in life: her family and her faith.
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