The devil and the demons with him know God far better than mortal men know him. Frequently, when Jesus drew near to demon-possessed people, the demons would cry out, "We know who thou art, the Holy One of Israel!" or "Let us alone, thou Jesus of Nazareth! Art thou come to torment us before the time?" No man could have persuaded a demon to crucify Jesus. They trembled at his presence. But men did not know who Jesus was. And, not knowing who he was, they spat in his face and cursed his name. In fact, many of Jesus' contemporaries believed that he had been cursed by the Almighty (Isa. 53:4). So, while demons believed and trembled, men, thinking they were doing God a service, tortured and murdered the Prince of Life. It was man who condemned Jesus in order to maintain his own traditions. "Verily", wrote the sweet Psalmist of Israel, "every man at his best state is altogether vanity" (Ps. 39:5).

In order to understand what was happening in the story of Jesus, it is absolutely essential to know that those who condemned and crucified him believed it was the right thing to do. If one thinks that the Pharisees and other elders in Israel were purposely and knowingly opposing their Lord, he is likely never to learn God's truth. Caiaphas, "being the high priest that same year", believed that it was in Israel's best interest that Jesus should die (Jn. 11:49-54). Pilate, although he personally found "no fault" with the carpenter's son from Nazareth, thought that he was being politically wise to turn him over to the will of the mob (Jn. 19:12-16). The elders of Israel were not the scum of the earth. They were the best that earth had to offer. Jesus came to those who among all men were most likely to recognize righteousness when they saw it. The fact that those devout men of Israel, to whom the commandments and oracles of God had been entrusted, failed to believe the One whom God had sent, is proof enough of the depravity of the human soul.

"Every man is right in his own eyes," wrote wise Solomon, "but God weigheth the spirits." Man's spiritual condition is so pathetic that he can persuade himself to believe that his spiritual condition is not so pathetic. Man is so wrong that he thinks he is right. He is so blind that he thinks he sees. This is why Jesus did not believe those who claimed that they believed him.

Every man, in himself, is a liar, even when he attempts to tell the truth. Truth is not of man. He must receive it from God, or there is no truth in him. Every man is a thief, even when he tries to be honest. He possesses not one iota of honesty in his soul, apart from what God may bestow upon him. Man is an evil doer, even when he tries to do good. "Why callest thou me good?" asked Jesus. "There is none good but one, that is, God" (Mt. 19:17). Jesus credited his Father in heaven with every right thing which inhabited his being. In his flesh, as in ours, there was "no good thing."

Man is a fool, even when he tries to be wise, and maybe especially when he tries to be wise. Christ, "the wisdom of God", is the only wisdom there is. Man is cruel, even when he attempts to show mercy. He doesn't know how to use so holy an instrument. In all things, we desperately need the guidance of God or we fail. It is not that we might go wrong without God; rather, without God, we are already wrong, and hopelessly so.

It is a fearful thought to contemplate, that what one is teaching and doing could possibly be impeding the cause of the Lord he claims to serve. Yet, such is the case with mulitudes of would-be followers of Christ today. "For such are false apostles, deceitful workers, transforming themselves into the apostles of Christ" (2Cor. 11:13). They think they are following Christ, but they are following instead an imagination of their own hearts. The Scriptures are replete with examples of men who believed they were serving God, when, without the help of the Spirit of God, they were actually serving a god they imagined to be. Such men, wrote Paul to young Timothy, "are proud, knowing nothing." "False teachers", Peter would later write, "who bring in damnable heresies" and "are not afraid to speak evil of dignities." Child of God, pray.

How is one to know, if we admit that we cannot judge such things in ourselves, when God has forgiven our sins? Is it really that we must "take it by faith"? But how does one know his faith is any good? No, my dear friend, God is kinder than to leave us to our own worthless opinions. He has provided, and we so very much needed, concrete evidence from heaven. That evidence, that witness, is the holy Ghost. Peter described what happened to one group of sincere, repentant souls in the city of Caesarea with these words, "And, God, which knoweth the hearts, bare them witness, giving them the holy Ghost, even as he did unto us" (Acts 15:8). The baptism of the holy Ghost is God's witness that one has repented and has been forgiven of sin. Without this witness, our claims are as worthless as they have always been. Friend, if you truly want God's way, you can rest assured that God knows your heart and will guide you all the way to His eternal rest. If, however, your heart's desire is only to possess an appearance of righteousness so that men will praise you, you need never expect to receive God's witness: the baptism of the holy Ghost.

God never gives the holy Ghost by accident. If a man receives the baptism of the Spirit, it is only because that individual's faith and obedience to Christ have pleased God. If someone has not yet received the baptism, it is because his obedience and faith in Jesus is not yet complete. If you have surrendered your life to Jesus, yet have not been given God's witness that your obedience is complete, let me encourage you to ask, seek, and knock until your answer comes. God knows your heart and your struggle. He is eager to help, as you know by now, and He is "ready to forgive." God knows your heart. Men will not understand your giving your all to Jesus. Men don't even understand themselves. But God knows. And it is His favor that matters.

Men can tell each other, "You are born again", but that doesn't make it so. Men can take other men into their number and tell them, "Now you are in the body of Christ", but that doesn't make them members of the body of Christ. Men can think they are doing God's work, yet be undermining every good thing Jesus died for. Only God is never deceived. And only His witness is worth pursuing. Every religion on earth is based upon men telling other men that they are right standing with God. The truth is, no man is right with God until God says so, regardless of who else says what. The way Jesus died for was for God Himself to bear witness as to who is born again by "giving them the holy Ghost." As John wrote, "It is the Spirit that beareth witness, because the Spirit is truth." We can trust the Spirit of God to be right.

But now, how do we know who has received this witness and who has not? Has God done everything else for us, and then left us to our ignorant selves to determine that most important point? No! How did Peter and those with him know that Cornelius and his friends had received the Spirit? "For they heard them speak with tongues, and magnify God" (Acts 10:46). Don't be stalled in your spiritual growth by well-intentioned men who feel it is their responsibility to tell you that you are born again. Ask yourself, "How do they know?" Only God knows the heart. Even if they claim to base their opinion of you on Scripture, will you be satisfied with their understanding of the Scriptures instead of the living witness of God? No man, no group of men, no angel, not even the Bible itself, is ordained of God to tell men that their sins have been washed away. God has reserved that authority to Himself, for He alone knows the hearts of men. He knows, and has taught us, that it is not enough that a sin-blackened heart be white-washed with men's approval and praise. It must be washed white by the blood of the Lamb. And when that great event occurs, God is faithful to give both that person and others a trustworthy witness, in order that we may confidently glory in what God has done, rather than glorying in what we think.