How to Know the Truth

How can we know the truth? Jesus is constantly confronted and questioned about truth. In John 7, He gives 5 reasons that He is trustworthy.

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How to Know the Truth

Good Morning. Have you ever felt unsure about what to believe? That would probably be everyone. When it comes to Jesus, there are endless opinions and lots of people claiming to speak for God, and it’s been that way for 2000 years now. How can we really know the truth? This morning, I want to walk through an eyewitness account of what Jesus says about himself, our Gospel lesson recorded by St John, chapter 7:14-24, and see what Jesus says about the truth, and how it is revealed in Him.

As John 7 begins, Jesus has walked straight into the hornet’s nest—into the Temple at Jerusalem during the Feast of Tabernacles. It was late enough in Jesus’ ministry that Jerusalem was a city full of people arguing about who He is, with a temple full of leaders who want Him dead.

Despite that, He walks right up and starts teaching and is immediately confronted by the temple leadership. And in this lesson, Jesus gives us five solid reasons to believe His claims.

The first reason is the divine source of His teaching. The people are astonished. They say, ¹⁵ How is it that this man has learning, when he has never studied? Jesus never went to their rabbinical schools. He’s never quotes other rabbis, which is what any respectable rabbi would do. Which is what I do with my peers if I try to make a case for something biblically.

Because the worst thing you can say in support of your Biblical argument is, “I was reading the Bible and came up with this idea that no one else in the history of the church ever had, and I am sure it’s right, and everyone else is wrong.”

Despite the fact that Jesus quoted no one, He spoke with a unique authority. But He doesn’t claim to be self-taught. Instead, He says something profound: ¹⁶ My teaching is not mine, but His who sent me. In other words, “I didn’t make up. It’s not my personal opinion. It’s from God the Father Himself.”

That’s why when Jesus spoke, his audience said, “No one ever taught like this.” Because it wasn’t man’s teaching. It was God’s. So, the first reason to believe Jesus is simple but profound: His teaching is from Heaven. 

But what if you’re not sure whether you can believe? What if you’re wrestling with doubts? Jesus gives us a second reason to believe in verse 17:

If anyone’s will is to do God’s will, he will know whether the teaching is from God or whether I am speaking on my own authority.

 Jesus promises that if a person genuinely desires to do God’s will, they will know the truth of His teaching. The real key to knowing it’s not how smart you are, it’s how willing you are to seek it, it’s about whether your heart is humble enough to obey. Because, if someone is not interested in doing God’s will, no amount of argument or debate will ever penetrate their heart.

As we talked about last week, sin is a heavy task master. Sin is very seductive in how it calls us away from God. Coming to Christ isn’t about getting what you want; it’s about wanting to do what God wants for you. And the good news is that He wants you to have a clean heart and new spirit.

A person convicted by the Holy Spirit learns to begin to hate the weight of sin and its consequences. How Heavy is Your Sin! It should pin you to the ground. In verse 17, Jesus promises that if your will is to seek God, you begin to see His truth better and better daily. But you have to want to.

A third reason we can trust Jesus is his humility, and Jesus desire to honor the Father, even above Himself. Look at verse 18:

The one who speaks on his own authority seeks his own glory; but the one who seeks the glory of Him who sent him is true, and in him there is no falsehood.

Some false teachers can be easy to spot—they’re always pointing at themselves. They crave attention, power, fame, applause. It’s about the importance of their ministry. Jesus came with no fanfare, no money and no fancy 3-piece suits. He came to glorify the Father, not himself. He laid aside His rightful glory, became a servant, and humbled Himself to the point of death on a cross.

What other religious leaders did that? What so-called “messiah” lays aside all glory and gives all honor to God—even when it costs Him everything? Jesus humility (the third reason) also ties into the fourth reason, because in not trying to gain applause for himself, Jesus does something most modern preachers are afraid to do. He exposes sin. He names it. He puts it right on the table. Verse 19:

Has not Moses given you the law? Yet none of you keeps the law.

Jesus is speaking to people who prided themselves on keeping the law. These were the religious elite. But Jesus pulls back the curtain and says, “You don’t keep the law at all. In fact, you’re trying to kill me—which is a direct violation of the commandments you claim to honor.”

The gospel doesn’t come to pat you on the back. It comes to tell the truth. Jeremiah 17:9 says the human heart is deceitful and desperately wicked, and these people didn’t even know their own hearts. And the truth is—we are sinners. All of us. Even our best days fall short. We are rebels, not rule-keepers. And that’s why we need a Savior.

Jesus tells you the truth about yourself, your sinfulness. But He also came to do something about it.

The last reason Jesus gives for believing in Him are His deeds. Look at verse 21: I did one deed, and you all marvel at it.

What deed is He talking about? Back in chapter 5, Jesus healed a man who had been crippled for 38 years. It was an undeniable miracle. It was compassion for a man in lifelong suffering. But He did it on the Sabbath, and the leaders lost their minds. They called it a violation of the Sabbath law.

Now here, in chapter 7, Jesus points out their ridiculous hypocrisy. He says, “You’ll circumcise babies on the Sabbath, but you’re angry at me for making a whole man well?” It’s absurd. The miracle should have been enough proof that it was from God. The compassion God had on a lifelong crippled man should have softened their hearts. But instead, they hardened their hearts, because they wanted rebellion.

Jesus didn’t just talk about truth—He lived it. He embodied it. He walked among us healing, restoring, casting out demons, raising the dead, and forgiving sinners. His works were righteous, even when it cost him followers.

If you want to know the truth, Jesus says you will, but it may be painful. And the clear first step is to see that Jesus is the Way, the Truth, and the Life, and to listen for His voice. There is no middle ground. You either believe Jesus is who He claims to be, or you don’t. You either follow Him, or you reject Him.

But here’s the good news: if you want to do the will of God—if you are weary of sin, if you long to know truth, Jesus came for you.