Truth and Testimony
“Pilate saith unto him, What is truth?” (John 18:38). We come full circle with this question, going back to our discussion on the opening page of this website–how can one really know what is true and what is not true? If we can answer this question, we can rest assured that we cannot go wrong. Joseph Smith said, “If we start right, it is easy to go right all the time; but if we start wrong we may go wrong, and it will be a hard matter to get right” (Joseph Smith, History of The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints, 7 Vols. 6:303). So it is.
In that case, we’d better make sure we start right, especially with spiritual things. Our salvation depends on it.
So how do we start right, and how do we know that we are starting right? We can’t 
always trust our physical senses. What we see may be a mirage; what we touch might not be what we think it is; what we hear may just be a ringing in our ears, or worse: it could be just a lie. No, we cannot always trust our physical senses and, unfortunately, neither can we always trust other men and women to give us complete and accurate information. But this is actually not as bad as it seems, for true knowledge does not come by physical means but such things are “spiritually discerned” (1 Corinthians 2:14).
Because true knowledge is “spiritually discerned,” we must go to God as the Source of all knowledge. He knows everything (2 Nephi 9:20). He is willing to teach us if we seek Him (1 John 3:22). And best of all, He “cannot lie” (Titus 1:2). Indeed, God is the infallible, perfect Source of Truth that we must seek out if we are to ever really know anything of value, let alone gain salvation.
Because “A testimony is a spiritual witness given by the Holy Ghost” (True to the Faith, “Testimony”), a testimony is something we not only want, but something we need. For “Knowledge of divine and spiritual things is absolutely essential for one’s salvation (Bible Dictionary, “Knowledge”) and “this is life eternal, that they might know thee, the only true God, and Jesus Christ, whom thou hast sent” (John 17:3).
It is therefore not enough to just hear someone else tell us that, “Jesus is God,” or 
that “Jesus Saves,” or that “God lives.” We have to say it ourselves. But we can’t really say it if we don’t really know it, and we must know for ourselves, lest we become as one of the five virgins that did not have any oil in their lamps when they needed it most (Cf. Matthew 25:1-13).
In other words, we do not need to take anyone else’s word for it. In fact, we shouldn’t take anyone else’s word for it, and as the Parable of the Ten Virgins teaches, there will come a day when we literally can’t take anyone elses word for it. We can and must find out for ourselves, and we can do this only through the grace of God and by the power of the Holy Ghost:
“And when ye shall receive these things, I would exhort you that ye would ask God, the Eternal Father, in the name of Christ, if these things are not true; and if ye shall ask with a sincere heart, with real intent, having faith in Christ, he will manifest the truth of it unto you, by the power of the Holy Ghost. And by the power of the Holy Ghost ye may know the truth of all things” (Moroni 10:4-5).
Think for a moment about a question you wish you knew the answer to. It could be that you wonder if Jesus really died for your sins. Maybe you are sincerely wondering if Joseph Smith was a prophet of God or if The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints is “the Lord’s kingdom once again established upon the earth, in preparatory for the second coming of the Messiah” (Book of Mormon, Introduction).
Or, your question may be unrelated to religion. Yet, “by the power of the Holy Ghost ye may know the truth of all things” (Moroni 10:5). I am a witness to that. You can ask God any question in the name of Jesus Christ and you, if you have faith, will receive an answer. It may not be right away: sometimes, the Lord says, “I will try the faith of my people” (3 Nephi 26:11). Yet the answer will come. That is how I personally know for myself that Jesus died for the sins of the world and was resurrected on the third day. Because of the power of the Holy Ghost, I know that Joseph Smith is a prophet of God. I know without any trace of doubt whatsoever that The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints is “the only true and living church upon the face of the whole earth” (Doctrine and Covenants 1:30). By the grace of God I have learned many other things that I would not know otherwise, for which knowledge I am exceedingly grateful. God answers our questions because He loves us. He wants us to be happy, and “is ever ready to instruct such as diligently seek [Him] in faith” (Joseph Smith, History of The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints 1:126-127).
The Savior said, “If any man will do his will, he shall know of the doctrine, whether it be of God, or whether I speak of myself” (John 7:17), and Paul declared: “But as it is written, Eye hath not seen, nor ear heard, neither have entered into the heart of man, the things which God hath prepared for them that love him. But God hath revealed them unto us by his Spirit: for the Spirit searcheth all things, yea, the deep things of God” (1 Corinthians 2:9-10).
