How Do We Know We Are Right?

"But you have an anointing from the Holy One, and you have all knowledge."
-- 1 John 2:20

Naturally, John did not mean to say believers are omniscient! None of us know everything there is to know! However, when we look at the context of this verse a very significant teaching emerges. First, believers are anointed with the Holy Spirit! We have God's Spirit inside of us, joined together with our spirit. We are in constant fellowship with God because His Spirit is upon us! Second, God's Spirit reveals truth to us so we can know God and stay in fellowship with Him.

There are many heretical teachings circulating the world, many of which are found inside churches. How can we be sure of the Gospel in which we believe? How can we know we have THE truth? How can we have confidence in our salvation when there are so many competing views and religious ideas out there? The Answer: Our confidence is found in the Holy Spirit of God! We are not responsible for discovering the truth concerning God and His Gospel. God has chosen to reveal the truth to us through His Holy Spirit. We are not dependent upon our own fallible self! We are not dependent on what we can discover to be true! It is God's Spirit which leads us to Himself, convicts our heart of the truth concerning Him and enables us to accept Him as our Savior and Lord. We can have confidence in the truth we believe because we know this truth wasn't something we discovered or "figured out" for ourself! God's Spirit made His truth known to our heart. We are convicted, assured, and confident in the truth God's Spirit continually confirms and teaches to us.

We may be at different points in our understanding of some of the finer points of our faith but all true believers in Christ have genuine faith because of the Holy Spirit which keeps us in the truth concerning God. I know the truth because God has chosen to reveal the truth to me and keep me firmly planted in it. John wants believers to remain confident in the faith they profess; such confidence is found when we depend upon the Spirit of God for what is true!

James