“If we receive the witness of men, the witness of God is greater.” 1 John 5:9
Often when pressing the claims of Christ upon men and urging them to believe the gospel, I have had them seek to parry by declaring that they could not believe, as they were honest doubters. I suppose there is such a thing as an honest doubter, but I dislike the expression when that which men profess honestly to doubt is the infallible Word of the living God. Tennyson has written, “There is more faith in honest doubt, Believe me, than in half your creeds.”
I am not so sure that Tennyson was correct; certainly not if it is a question of doubting the truth of the gospel. I would not like to go home and tell my wife something and have her say, “Well, my dear, I am trying to believe you, but, honestly, I doubt you. I believe there is more faith in honest doubt than in being too sure you are not trying to put one over on me.”
A lady said when I had explained the way of life as clearly as I knew how and shown her some plain, definite passages from the Holy Scriptures, such as John 5:24 and Matthew 11:28, “Well, I am trying to believe.”
“Trying to believe whom?” I inquired. “It is God who has spoken in His Word. What do you mean by saying you are trying to believe Him?”
She saw her sin and her mistake and exclaimed, “Oh, I did not realize what I was saying. Yes, I can and I do believe what God has declared.” And her soul entered into peace.