Willingness - A Key To Knowing Truth

Posted by Rev. Mark Slay

Satan is the hater of all truth. He has been permitted to come into this earth, and he does everything in his power to prevent men from finding out the truth. He can blind people so that they won't perceive truth with their spirit. There are 3 realms that you live in: the spirit realm, the physical realm, and the intellectual realm. They are separate and unique entities, but together in their 3 parts they make up you. You could mentally understand everything I'm saying in your head, but not accept it in your heart.

"But their minds were hardened; for until this very day at the reading of the old covenant the same veil remains unlifted, because it is removed in Christ."     II Corinthians 3:14

Notice he said that their minds were hardened. When we think of the mind, we automatically think of the mind located in our heads. But remember, there is another mind - the mind of your spirit. The mind of your spirit can think thoughts totally independent of the mind in your head. Some may call it your conscience.

"For the word of God is living and active and sharper than any two-edged sword, and piercing as far as the division of soul and spirit, (they can't be the same thing or you wouldn't be able to divide them) of both joints and marrow, and able to judge the thoughts and intentions of the heart (spirit)."   Hebrews 4:12

You may ask, "Can it take God's revelation to be able to discern between what comes out of your head and what your heart means?" Absolutely. It's the Word of God that helps us discern the difference not only between our own thoughts, but also the intentions or thoughts of others. So, you've got these two sets of thoughts, and the thoughts in the heart are the most important thoughts to the Lord. The psalmist David said, "Thou desirest truth in the innermost part." When the Bible talks about the mind, it isn't always referring to the intellect.

"And even if our gospel is veiled, it is veiled to those who are perishing, in whose case the god of this world has blinded the minds of the unbelieving...   II Corinthians 4:3&4

In our modern day culture, we instantly think satan has blinded their head or their intellect. That's not so. Some of the people who don't believe in the Lord at all are some of the most intellectual people in the world. It has nothing to do with intellectual blindness or with an inability to understand intellectually. You won't see truth if you are relying on your physical mind. Romans 10:10 says, "...for with the heart man believes..." Outwardly one could be saying, "I'm willing. I want to learn." But, inwardly, their heart is rebellious or stubborn and stiffens up to the truth.

It's not about whether you went to Bible school or didn't go to Bible school. It's about the Lord revealing truth to you, and He's about to tell you how you can know truth if you want to know it. One must be willing. If someone is not willing, it wouldn't matter what you said. For instance, you could talk to some until your blue in the face about holiness but if they aren't willing to live holy then it isn't going to make a difference.

So Jesus answered them and said, "My teaching is not Mine, but His who sent Me. If anyone is willing to do His will, he will know of the teaching, whether it is of God or whether I speak from Myself."   John 7:16&17

You know why some won't accept truth? Because they just don't want it. You have to be willing to accept all parts of the gospel. There are things He has done in order to show people His reality, and they just walk right past it and ignore it because they are very comfortable with who they are, where they are, and what they're doing. Hebrews 11:6 says, "He is a rewarder of those who seek Him", not a penalizer. Abandon your will and align yourself up with the Word. When you line yourself up with the Word, things improve and get better.