The GOAL of our gifted mutual ministry to one another is not only MATURITY, but the STABILITY of the church. Of course, they go together. Mature believers are very stable because they are grounded in "the faith" and because they KNOW Christ, the unchanging One, intimately.
"...So that we may no longer be children, tossed to and fro by the waves and carried about by every wind of doctrine, by human cunning, by craftiness in deceitful schemes." Ephesians 4:14
Maturity is marked by increasing stability. Stability is characterized by a freedom from the influence of the shifting waves and winds of popular doctrine. There ARE men and women out there who claim to teach God's Word when it is really their latest effort to gather a crowd or publish another book. There are cunning, crafty, deceitful impostors out there. From those who find guarantees for physical healing and material wealth in every verse of the Bible to those who paint vivid, detailed pictures of the end times and post-rapture scenarios to those who endue their application of Scripture with equal authority TO Scripture, there have always been and will be to the end - teachers who seek followers and who gather the "children" of the church in their wake.
I remember being tossed around quite a bit as a new believer by a group who claimed to have special insights and prophecies from the Lord. They were recording these prophecies in a book so that the Lord's message could go out to His people as the end times unfolded. I did not have enough solid understanding of "the faith" from the Scriptures to take a doctrinal stand. The gentleman who uttered most of these prophecies was to be a great end times leader as the Lord's plan unfolded...but he died before any of it happened. It STILL hasn't happened. Why? It was NOT from the Lord.
Since that time I have learned, BY GOD'S GRACE, and by the ministry of gifted members of the body, that stability is found in, and only in, the Word of God. HIS WORD will not pass away (Matthew 24:35). His Word is truth (John 17:17). His Word is SUFFICIENT for all He calls us to believe and to do (2 Timothy 3:16,17). BUT, that Word must be understood rightly and handled carefully and confirmed by others who respect and handle it so.
ONLY by gaining a progressively broad and deep understanding of the Word of God can we form a GRID for discernment of what is true and false. Only by a strong systematic understanding of all the Bible teaches can we detect nuances of change that can have devastating impact down the road. And ONLY as the members of the body relate to one another is a truthful and truth-based way can we develop this strong grid of "the faith" so that we mature from childhood and gain a firm foothold in the truth.
If your brother is wrong in his understanding of God's truth, help him get it right! Do it in love and gentleness, but don't leave him in the dark or the shadows!
Subscribe to:
Post Comments (Atom)
No comments:
Post a Comment