How to Know What Is True: Understanding Truth Through God’s Word

In a world saturated with conflicting voices, relative morality, and endless information, knowing what is true can feel overwhelming. From a biblical perspective, however, truth is not a subjective feeling or a shifting cultural consensus. Truth is a Person and an unchanging standard revealed by God.

To know what is true through God’s Word, you can move through three stages: understanding the Source, applying the Standard, and practicing Discernment.

1. The Foundation: The Source of Truth

The Bible teaches that truth is not something you invent; it is something you discover. It originates entirely from the nature of God.

• God the Father is the Origin: Truth is an attribute of God. He is described as the “God of truth” (Psalm 31:5). Because He cannot lie (Titus 1:2), His reality is the baseline for all reality.
• Jesus is the Embodiment: Jesus did not just teach the truth; He claimed to be the truth.
  “I am the way, and the truth, and the life. No one comes to the Father except through me.” — John 14:6 To know truth, you must first know Jesus. He is the lens through which we interpret reality.
• The Holy Spirit is the Guide: You are not left to figure out the Bible intellectually on your own. The Holy Spirit is called the “Spirit of Truth” who guides believers “into all the truth” (John 16:13).

2. The Standard: The “Litmus Test” of Scripture

When you encounter an idea, a feeling, or a cultural claim, you can “test” it against the Bible to see if it holds up. Use this three-part framework to measure truth:

A. The Test of Scripture (Is it Written?)

The most direct way to know truth is to look for explicit teaching in the Bible.

• The Principle: “Sanctify them in the truth; your word is truth” (John 17:17).
• The Action: Search the Scriptures. Does the Bible explicitly command or forbid this? Does it speak directly to this issue?
• Example: If society says revenge is acceptable, the Bible explicitly says, “Do not repay anyone evil for evil” (Romans 12:17). Therefore, revenge is not “true” righteousness.

B. The Test of Character (Does it Align with Jesus?)

Many modern issues (like AI or social media) aren’t mentioned by name in the Bible. In these cases, you test the “spirit” of the idea against the character of Jesus.

• The Principle: Truth is in Jesus (Ephesians 4:21).
• The Action: Ask, “Does this idea promote the fruit of the Spirit (love, joy, peace, patience…) or the works of the flesh (anger, division, selfishness)?”
• Example: A philosophy that encourages you to step on others to get ahead fails this test because it contradicts Christ’s nature of servanthood.

C. The Test of Freedom (Does it Liberate or Enslave?)

God’s truth always leads to spiritual freedom, while lies lead to bondage.

• The Principle: “You will know the truth, and the truth will set you free” (John 8:32).
• The Action: Ask, “If I believe this, does it bring me peace and closer to God, or does it create anxiety, fear, and compulsion?”

3. Practical Habits: How to Cultivate Discernment

Discernment is like a muscle; it grows as you use it. You cannot recognize a counterfeit bill by studying fakes; you recognize it by studying the real thing so closely that the fake becomes obvious.

1. Immerse, Don’t Just Read: Don’t just read the Bible for inspiration; read it for formation.
   • Try this: Read Psalm 119. It is a massive love letter to God’s truth. Notice how the writer prizes God’s laws above gold.
2. Pray for Illumination: Before you open your Bible or face a decision, pray: “Holy Spirit, clear my mind of my own biases and show me Your objective truth.”
3. Community Verification: Truth is rarely found in isolation. God gave us the Church “as a pillar and buttress of the truth” (1 Timothy 3:15). If you think you’ve found a “new truth” that no other mature Christian agrees with, be very cautious.
4. Obedience is the Key to Understanding: This is often overlooked. You often understand the truth after you obey it.
   “If anyone’s will is to do his will, he will know whether the teaching is from God…” — John 7:17 Sometimes you won’t know if a biblical principle is true until you actually step out in faith and do it.