John 4:42
And they were saying to the women, “It is no longer because of what you said that we believe, for we have heard for ourselves and know that this One is indeed the Savior of the world.”
Why do you believe Jesus was the Son of God? What proof do you have? I was saved at the age of seven. I am thankful that my parents considered it important to teach me about Jesus. I am thrilled that I was able to grow up in a Christian home, surrounded by godly individuals who were able to lead me into my current relationship with Christ. They taught me that Jesus was the Son of God. He died on a cross to pay for my sins. I was told that there is an enemy of my soul, seeking to disrupt my relationship with God. Because my parents believed it, I was taught that Christians go to heaven after they die; unrepentful sinners go to hell. There is a Spirit living inside of me. He is a part of the trinity. This Holy Spirit will encourage me when I’m down and convict me when my actions are ungodly. I will forever be grateful to my parents and Christian mentors for teaching me these truths. As an individual, though, there would come a day in which I would have to search these beliefs out for myself.
Unfortunately, this didn’t happen until I was a sophomore in college. Only after encountering theories and beliefs I had never heard before, did I began to evaluate my own personal beliefs. John chapter four records a similar process; it took place among the Samaritans. Jesus had stopped by a well to rest along a journey, but while there, He revealed His deity to a local woman. Verse 39 says that at first, many of the townspeople believed because of her word. After Jesus had spent two days in the town, however, the Bible says that they believed no longer because of her testimony, but because they had heard for themselves.
The truth of this story is simple. It is perfectly acceptable for us to believe in Christ because of the witness and testimony of others. This is, after all, how the gospel was intended to work. At some point, however, there is the need to search the Word of God for ourselves. We cannot live forever on the testimony of our friends, pastors, or parents. As the apostle Paul puts it, we must one day give up the “baby milk” that we live on and strive for the “solid food” of the Word (1 Corinthians 3:2). The sooner this happens, the better!
Where are you in your walk with Christ? Have you reached the point in which you can claim to possess a belief system of your own? Why do you think Jesus is the Son of God? Is it because your parents, pastor, or best friend made a really good case for it, or is it because you have personally researched it out and experienced His work in your own life?