Lord says, " If any man will do His will, he shall know of the doctrine, whether it be of God, or whether I speak of myself."
The difficulty of finding out " what is truth " in religion is a common subject of complaint among men. They point to the many differences which prevail among Christians on matters of doctrine, and profess to be unable to decide who is right. In thousands of cases this professed inability to find out truth becomes an excuse for living without any religion at all.
The saying of our Lord before us is one that demands the serious attention of persons in this state of mind. It supplies an argument whose edge and point they will find it hard to evade. It teaches that one secret of getting the key of knowledge is to practise honestly what we know, and that if we conscientiously use the light that we now have, we shall soon find more light coming down into our minds. — In short, there is a sense in which it is true, that by doing we shall come to knowing.
There is a mine of truth in this principle. Well would it be for men if they would act upon it. Instead of saying, as some do, — " I must first know everything clearly, and then I will act," — we should say, — " I will diligently use such knowledge as I possess, and believe that in the using fresh knowledge will be given to me." How many mys- teries this simple plan would solve ! How many hard thing would soon become plain if men would honestly live up to their light, and "follow on to know the Lord!" (Hosea vi. 3.)
It should never be forgotten that God deals with us as moral beings, and not as beasts or stones. He loves to encourage us to self-exertion and diligent use of such means as we have in our hands. The plain things in religion are undeniably very many. Let a man honestly attend to them, and he shall be taught the deep things of God.