08 Oct How to Be Set Free by the Truth
In last week’s blog, when Shorty jumped off the roof of a barn with boards tied to his arms, and ended up lying on the ground in pain, he was brought face to face with the fact that what he had believed wasn’t true. He thought he could fly, but he couldn’t.
There are also times in our lives when we come face to face with the fact that something we believe is not true. Just because we believe we can jump off the roof unharmed, doesn’t make it true. Just because we believe (“fill in the blank”), doesn’t necessarily make it true. And, conversely, just because we believe something is not true, or not possible, does not make it so.
The good news is, we can change our beliefs.
Three Keys to Changing Our Beliefs
- We must know the truth
Jesus said, in John 8:32, “You shall know the truth and the truth will set you free.” As we have said before,
to the degree that we do not know the truth, we are vulnerable to ignorance and deception.
We may be inadvertently bringing troubles into our lives by believing false information or by not believing the truth about certain things. So, if we are in hard circumstances, our first course of action is to learn more about the truth that speaks to our circumstances. This could include:
- Reading the Bible
- Studying the Bible
- Attending regularly a Bible-teaching church
- Reading books, studying online, consulting a mentor or counselor, but also
- We must accept the truth
Sometimes we know the truth, but we don’t really accept it, embrace it, to the point of being prepared to act on it:
- We may be afraid – that if we act on it, something unpleasant will happen to us.
- We may be selfish – we simply don’t want to do what we should.
But if we do not act on truth, it is the same as if we didn’t know the truth. If we believe that it is in our best interests to obey God (which it always is), we obey. If we do not believe, we do not obey.
There are times when we must simply grab ourselves by the nape of the neck and choose to do the scary thing, even though our emotions may be screaming not to. I can imagine that jumping out of a plane to sky dive the first time would be like that. And sometimes it’s like that in obeying God.
But, God either is who He says He is, or He is not. He either will do what He said He will do, or He won’t. If not, there is no hope. If so, we jump; we act on the truth because we truly believe it!
So, there is another necessary step in truly changing our beliefs so that we accept and act upon truth.
- We must reinforce the truth with repetition
Sometimes we simply believe, and therefore act upon, what we have heard most often, not realizing it isn’t true.
A BBC article* titled, “How liars create the ‘Illusion of truth,’” says, “Repetition makes a fact seem more true, regardless of whether or not it is.”
Of course, this will work against us if it is falsehood that is being repeated. As Nazi Joseph Goebbels is reputed to have said: “Repeat a lie often enough and it becomes the truth.”
However, we can flip this principle on its head, because it will work for us if it is truth that is being repeated.
Neuroplasticity tells us that the brain always changes in the direction of what is put into it. So, the more we repeat the truth, the more the brain will believe it is true, and change in the direction of truth.
That is why, I believe, the Bible tells us to…
- guard what we think about (Proverbs 4:8)
- only dwell on positive things (Philippians 4:8)
- meditate on the Bible day and night (Psalm 1:1-3)
As we guard our mind and dwell and meditate on truth, the truth will seem more and more true to us, changing our perception of reality at a very deep level, leading us to trust God more completely and follow Him more fully.
Conclusion
Until a truth is reinforced until the brain accepts it, the truth will not set us free.
As Dr. Caroline Leaf says in her book, Switch on Your Brain, “When you understand the power of your thought life, you truly begin to get a glimpse of how important it is to take responsibility for what you are thinking. Whatever you think about the most will grow, so the more you think a particular thought, the stronger it grows. You can’t just apply a thought once and think change has happened.“
So, when we know the truth and when we reinforce the truth until the brain accepts it and we are changed by it, then, we will be set free by the truth. (John 8:32)
For some helpful tips on knowing and reinforcing truth from the Bible, if you haven’t done so already, download my free 15 minute video Master the Bible So Well That the Bible Masters You.
*http://www.bbc.com/future/story/20161026-how-liars-create-the-illusion-of-truth
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