What do we do when good, faithful, God-fearing Christians disagree about what Scripture teaches?
I pose this question in light of recent articles about the timing of the "gathering together" of the living and the dead saints to be with Jesus, often referred to as the rapture. The reality is this, there are a number of interpretations on this event which differ, some even significantly, from one another and there are undoubtedly wise and faithful saints who hold to these differing positions.
So how should we as individuals settle on what we believe? Should we defer to the Bible teacher who we respect the most? Should we adopt the position held by our pastor? Should we hold to the view that we have been taught down through the years? Should we embrace the most prominent and widely accepted view? Should we read books about the varying views and then embrace the one that seems most right to us? In short, no. None of the reasons mentioned above are sufficient for us to base our belief upon.
So what do we do? Praise God, the answer isn't complex. We must simply pray for God to give us wisdom (James 1:5), ask the Spirit to guide us into all truth (John 16:13), read the Bible knowing that God's words are the sole authority and that the answer is found within it (Psalm 119:105), and keep doing these things with expectation and perseverance until God reveals what we need to know (Luke 11:5-13). Easy peasy, right? Well...maybe it isn't easy, but it is simple.
While I am grateful for the access that we have to Bible teaching through various means, this ready access also makes it easy for us to bypass doing the hard work of Bible study and interpretation for ourselves by simply reading or listening to what someone else has worked to consolidate into a concise format. By doing this, we deprive ourselves of the joy of walking with the Spirit of truth and we disgrace God by desiring the answer to our questions more than we desire being in His presence, laboring to know Him, and being led according to His will and timing.
Paul reveals in Galatians 1 that when Jesus saved him, he did not go to consult with the more mature Christians of his day until he had first consulted with God himself...for three years! "15 But when he who had set me apart before I was born, and who called me by his grace, 16 was pleased to reveal his Son to me, in order that I might preach him among the Gentiles, I did not immediately consult with anyone; 17 nor did I go up to Jerusalem to those who were apostles before me, but I went away into Arabia, and returned again to Damascus. 18 Then after three years I went up to Jerusalem to visit Cephas [Peter] and remained with him fifteen days. 19 But I saw none of the other apostles except James the Lord’s brother."
What motivated Paul to get alone with God and not to go and get the answers from men? What motivated him was that he preferred to learn directly from the source, "11 For I would have you know, brothers, that the gospel that was preached by me is not man’s gospel. 12 For I did not receive it from any man, nor was I taught it, but I received it through a revelation of Jesus Christ. "
Would Paul have learned faster if he had asked his questions to the other apostles? Probably. Would Paul have learned better if he had studied under the apostles? Undoubtedly, no. Paul learned from the greatest teacher and according to His will and time frame. And look at the results...Paul never wavered in his faith and was faithful unto death. Paul knew what he knew and was willing to confront anyone with it. Why? Because he was trained by God and not by man! What he learned, HE learned, not someone else who learned it and then told him what he ought to think..
I urge you brothers and sisters, go to the source (John 4:7-15)! Though it may take longer and be harder (it might actually not take long or be hard at all), it will take root and will last. I'm not advocating that we cannot trust godly people to teach us God's Word rightly, but I am advocating that we ought to prefer for God himself to teach us.
"33 Teach me, O LORD, the way of your statutes; and I will keep it to the end. 34 Give me understanding, that I may keep your law and observe it with my whole heart." - Psalm 119:33-34
Pastor Jeremy
