You fasten on the belt of truth when you make the decision to trust the God's Word to answer every question and settle every issue.
Stand therefore, having fastened on the belt of truth…
Ephesians 6:14 (ESV)
God’s Word is Truth
When Jesus spoke of the last days, He warned His disciples first of all, “Take heed that no one deceives you.” (Matthew 24:4) In these end times, deception will increase. How do Christians protect themselves from being deceived? We need to know what truth is and where to find it.
The Holy Spirit reveals that God’s Word is truth and that all Scripture is inspired of God. The Bible is our source of truth.
John 17:17 “Sanctify them by Your truth. Your word is truth.”
Psalm 119:160 The entirety of Your word is truth, and every one of Your righteous judgments endures forever.
2 Timothy 3:16 All Scripture is given by inspiration of God, and is profitable for doctrine, for reproof, for correction, for instruction in righteousness.
2 Timothy 2:15 Be diligent to present yourself approved to God, a worker who does not need to be ashamed, rightly dividing the word of truth.
Truth is a Person, Actually, Two.
Jesus declared that He is the truth and that the Holy Spirit is the Spirit of truth.
John 14:6 Jesus said to him, “I am the way, the truth, and the life. No one comes to the Father except through Me.”
John 16:13 “However, when He, the Spirit of truth, has come, He will guide you into all truth; for He will not speak on His own authority, but whatever He hears He will speak; and He will tell you things to come.”
According to John 1:1, Jesus is "the Word" of God. Because He is the Word, we cannot separate the person of Jesus from the words He spoke on earth. He and His Word are one. What He said then He would say again today. As God, Jesus never changes. He said, "Heaven and earth will pass away, but My words will by no means pass away." (Matthew 24:35) The words He spoke in the Bible are just as true and relevant today. They transcend time, technology, and man's ever-changing culture.
Fastening on the Belt of Truth
Fastening on the belt of truth means taking the Bible (especially the New Testament) as your source of truth and guide for life. The Bible is God’s inspired, infallible Word, and you put on its truth when you allow its wisdom to answer every question and direct your steps.
Trust in the Bible is not based on a vague, blind faith that some have and others don't. It comes by acknowledging the multiple lines of evidence (linguistic, historical, geographical, scientific, archaeological, and prophetic) that point to the accuracy of the Bible. See my post, "Nine Reasons Why Intelligent People Trust the Bible."
Many Are Unsure if the Bible Is True
People often wonder how I can be so sure the Bible is true. Sometimes, they think I am dogmatic because I am convinced. But I was not always sure. I was initially skeptical about the claims of Christianity and was as full of doubt as others are.
Learning to believe God's Word is a process. My trust in the Bible has increased over a lifetime of prayer, learning, observing, trial and error, studying, dealing with adversity, and hearing sermons as others spoke into my life.
But back at the beginning when I had more questions than answers, I did three things: (1) I read the Bible for myself. It's dumb to have an opinion about something you know nothing about. (2) I made an effort to educate myself about the Bible and its claim to be reliable. (3) I tested the Word to see if it proved true in my experience. After putting in the work, studying the Bible, and testing it in the tough times of my life, I've come to the conclusion that God is good and His Word is true.
Equally important, however, is the witness of the Holy Spirit that comes when you read the Word for yourself. The Holy Spirit speaks within your spirit and impresses you that Scripture is true. The Bible says that He, the Spirit of truth, will guide you into all truth. (John 16:13, 1 John 2:27) Do you want to know what is true for all eternity? Ask the Holy Spirit to guide you.
We Need an Inner "Amen" More Than Head Knowledge
Knowing truth is much more than acquiring head knowledge. The Holy Spirit can reveal material or academic facts that impact your mind. But He is a specialist at imparting a deep inner "knowing" that arises in your spirit, which is the core of your being.
This spiritual intuition is like a hunch or a gut feeling that what you are reading or hearing is true. When you hear God's Words, something deep is stirred within you. It's like having the Holy Spirit say "Amen" on the inside. (You are more than a body with a soul made of your mind, will, and emotions. Your spirit is the third part of your being, by which you perceive God.)
It's much easier to understand the Bible after you invite Jesus into your heart and are born again. In the born again experience, your spirit is re-created by God and made alive to Him. God's Spirit takes up residence in your spirit. Then, if you ask God to help you understand the Bible, His Spirit will impart the understanding.
Though you may be unfamiliar with the customs of Bible days, the words of Jesus and the apostles feel right, sink deep into your heart, and make sense. The Holy Spirit imparts a powerful inner "knowing" that God's Word is true, and this gives believers great confidence toward God.
How to Become Certain about God and the Belt of Truth
This inward certainty that Christians have is frustrating to those who have never experienced it. They say, "How can you know that? How can you be sure?" Why are people unsure? It's because they have not yet experienced the Spirit of God speaking through peace in their hearts. And why is that? There's a good reason.
God is a perfect gentleman and does not force Himself on anyone. He gave you free will and does not invade your space to teach you about Himself without your invitation. If you crave to know about Him, you must ask Him to reveal Himself. Just say, "God, teach me about yourself, Jesus, and the truth of the Bible." Make an effort to seek Him and be open. Be humble enough to ask those who know more than you do.
Tighten the Belt of Truth to Stand Strong against Deception
Once you discover the truth of God’s Word, fasten it tightly around your life. Belts have a clasp for a reason, so the belt does not come undone and your pants fall off. Adam and Eve had God’s Word of truth in the garden: Do not eat the fruit, or you will surely die! But they didn't buckle it securely.
Then, Satan came along and persuaded them that it was okay to eat the fruit and that they would not die. As he kept talking, their belt of truth finally slipped off. First, they let go of God's Word. Then, they disobeyed and ate the fruit. As God warned them, they died—first spiritually, then physically.
Satan is a professional liar and deceiver. He is the originator of all lies. (John 8:44) He lied to Adam and Eve, and he will lie to you. As the ruler of this world's system, he has filled the earth with deception through misleading philosophies, false religions, and moral lawlessness. The worldly culture lies to you every day. They say that evil is good, and that good is evil. They call darkness light, and light darkness. The Bible says he deceives the nations. (Revelation 20:3, 8)
Satan realizes how faith in the Bible protects people from his deception, so he attacks its credibility. If he can belittle and discredit it to the point where people despise it, he has won the battle for men’s souls and enshrouded them in darkness.
Knowing Your Bible Helps You Discern Truth from Error
Once you have accepted the Bible as truth, you can discern the enemy’s lies and know truth from error. Whatever disagrees with or contradicts the Word is a lie and a deception. We wage spiritual warfare when we cast “down arguments and every high thing that exalts itself against the knowledge of God.” (2 Corinthians 10:5) The knowledge of God is found in the pages of the Bible.
What freedom comes when we no longer flounder in the cultural muck of moral confusion but know right from wrong! (That’s a “sin” in today’s culture. Ugh!) (John 8:31-32, Isaiah 5:20)
We Live in a World of Lies
Embedded in our culture are half-truths, twisted truths, and outright lies put there by God’s enemy. As we grew up, we partook of the world’s music, movies, television, video games, books, etc. These things brainwashed us into thinking ungodly things are “okay.” Reading the Bible reveals what we need to root out of our minds and replace with godly thinking. Only the light of God’s truth can get us on the right track and keep us there.
A World in Darkness
Imagine living in a world of complete darkness. If you walked, you stumbled because you could not see what was in front of you. If somebody threw something in your direction, you would not duck because you could not see it coming. You would tumble over the cliff’s edge before you knew it was there. You could not see the faces of your loved ones and would be blind to the beauty created by light—the sunrises, sunsets, and magnificent vistas—because the darkness covered and hid everything.
But what if someone arrived in the land of darkness with millions of candles that allowed people to see? Candles would become the most prized possessions because they kept people from stumbling or falling over cliffs and allowed them to see their loved ones.
The Word of God shines the light of a million candles in this spiritually dark world.
God’s Word Is Light in the Darkness
God’s Word is the only light in this world’s moral and spiritual darkness. The psalmist said,
“Your Word is a lamp to my feet and a light to my path.” (Psalm 119:105)
“The entrance of your Words gives light; it gives understanding to the simple.” (Psalm 119:130)
Isaiah wrote, “To the law and to the testimony! If they do not speak according to this Word, it is because there is no light in them.” (Isaiah 8:20)
Peter wrote, “And so we have the prophetic Word confirmed, which you do well to heed as a light that shines in a dark place, until the day dawns and the Morning Star [Jesus] rises in your hearts.” (2 Peter 1:19)
Jesus said, “I am the light of the world. He who follows Me shall not walk in darkness, but have the light of life.” (John 8:12)
Give the Word First Place
A necessary part of wrapping the belt of truth around your waist is giving God’s Word first place in your life. You must “be diligent to present yourself approved to God, a worker who does not need to be ashamed, rightly dividing the Word of truth.” (2 Timothy 2:15)
Do you have a daily time for Bible reading and devotions? If not, why not? All that prevents you from sliding back into the world is your knowledge and application of Bible truth. (John 8:31-32)
Receiving the Love of the Truth
We must learn to love the truth so it can protect us from deception. We must love the truth even when we don’t like it, such as when it corrects our flesh. Paul taught us to receive the love of the truth so Satan’s counterfeits and lies do not deceive us.
2 Thessalonians 2:9-12 The coming of the lawless one is according to the working of Satan, with all power, signs, and lying wonders, and with all unrighteous deception among those who perish, because they did not receive the love of the truth, that they might be saved. And for this reason God will send them strong delusion, that they should believe the lie, that they all may be condemned who did not believe the truth but had pleasure in unrighteousness.
You become a lover of the truth when you wrap the Bible’s wisdom around your life and won’t let it go. You may say, “Oh, but I do that.” None of us loves the Word strongly enough for these last days. You must LOVE it with all your heart, mind, soul, and strength!
Tie the Word around your life. Hold fast to its traditions. (2 Thessalonians 2:15) Meditate in it morning and night. (Joshua 1:8, Psalm 1:2-3) Let the Word of Christ dwell in you richly. (Colossians 3:16) Walk in the love of God.
“But I Have My Truth”
But someone always says, “You have your truth, but I have my truth.” It’s time to pop that bubble. There is no such thing as a private truth. A personal viewpoint, opinion, or belief does not rise to the level of truth unless it applies universally in all times and places. The Bible’s truth meets that test. Personal opinions do not unless they align with the whole counsel of God, the Bible.
Truth existed in God before He created man, before any human existed or thought a thought. His truth is eternal and will continue after heaven and earth pass away.
God’s Word of truth stands like a stable and secure lighthouse amid the pounding waves of human thought. When we fasten on the belt of truth, His eternal Word protects us from Satan and his deceptions in this world. Like a great light, God’s truth dispels the darkness of spiritual and moral ignorance.