“The meek will he teach his way” (Psa 25:9)
Can we trust any outside sources in our quest for truth, sources found outside of orthodoxy, the professed church?
How are we to be sure of any of them?
The Lord states that we are to “try the spirits” to test the doctrines from whomsoever they emanate, to prove for ourselves (by the Word of God) whether they speak for God or for the evil one. The problem here is that most do not try the spirits FOR THEMSELVES, as to determine the validity of these sources, but rather they blindly accept the views and opinions of others (viz., family, friends, fellow church members, and heaven forbid social networks, forums and etc.), and in so doing they may be losing out on the very truth they seek.
Now we are not suggesting that one should spend all their time investigating every teacher and every teaching, to do so would take up all their time, time which should be devoted to the Lord and the study of his Word. Following such a course one would only find themselves “blown about by every wind of doctrine” (every new teaching or doctrine, whatever excites their pallet at the time), “ever learning (new things), but never able to arrive at the truth”. (Eph 4:14; 2 Tim 3:7)
The truth is never to be found except in and through the divinely appointed channels, and those channels are of the Lord’s choosing, not men.
However, one must not live in fear, for it is “the fear of man which brings the snare” (Prov 25:29), which traps one from inquiring for themselves, from proving for themselves and thus hindering them from reaching the truths they seek. It was “the neglect of the principle of individual judgment which brought upon the church the snare of the great apostasy.” Men began to rely too much upon Popes and the clergy for their faith.
Many have been too quick to judge outside sources, that is those emanating from outside of orthodoxy, not so much by the doctrines or teachings they expound (much of which they have never proven nor disproved for themselves), but by the character of the channel or individual with which these doctrines come. This is another stumbling stone preventing many from coming to the truth.
A great many experiences this in their own homes. The Lord calls them and opens their eyes to the truth, and it is only natural that they would wish to share this truth to their loved ones, but as is often the case there is little or no reception. The reason for this is that those intimately close or acquainted with us are generally familiar with all our particular faults and difficulties and as such are unable to see the Lord choosing us as his mouth piece. Likewise (as is the case with myself) not having at the beginning first become fully acquainted with the truth and thus able to properly articulate it to others we tend at first to mix things up a bit, jumping from one subject to the next in our haste to tell all that we have learned and in process we only succeed in confusing out listeners.
We ourselves being new to the truth, are mere “babes in Christ”, “unskilled in the words of righteousness” (Heb 5:13), and are not yet ready to preach the truth to others and so we mess things up and “soil the waters” thus inhibiting us from any future efforts in this area. The only hope we have now is that we might provide some literature which they might take up an examine for themselves, and possibly gain some interest. Even if this should in the future lead to someone else being the spokesman for these, we would still be happy.
Bear in mind what we had learned from 1 Cor 1:26-29 viz., that God has not chosen the great or learned, but rather the meek, the humble, those neither prominent nor influential in the world to preach the truth. So don’t become discouraged.
So, what is the lesson, the key point we have learned from all this?
It appears to be that contrary to what we have come to understand, those whom we feel would be the best ones qualified for the ministry, for the work of preaching and teaching the Word these are not necessarily the same ones as those the Lord sees best for the job. We naturally would choose those who appear of a good character and who are educated in the study of the scriptures, having attended seminary or some other religious institution, and who have shown an ability to speak and or articulate the word of God to others. A good orator or writer being a prerequisite.
Now this may be the case when it comes to preaching the “doctrines and precepts of men” as are taught in the professing church, but not when it comes to preaching the Word of God, as the Lord states: “My thoughts are not your thoughts, nor are your ways My ways,” says the Lord.” (Isa 55:8)
The Lord reads the heart, he knows what truly motivates the individual desiring to work in his service and so he is able to pick the right individuals for the job. It matters little to him if they are not learned or educated in one of the great schools of men, in fact this is a deterrent, for the doctrines and teachings of men are in constant conflict with the doctrines of Christ, thus a stumbling block to overcome. This work may require a lot of effort on the part of the individual, should they be considered. Impossible, no! not for God, and not if they truly love Him and are prepared to empty themselves of what they think they know. Nevertheless, He would rather that they come to him in meekness and in humility like little children, empty of any preconceived ideas ready to be taught of him, and as such would have them enrolled in the “School of Christ”. This school however does not have a four-year degree or any honorary doctorate to confer upon the individual, and will require a life time to graduate. This school is entered only after one has made a full surrender or consecration to the Lord. (Rom 12:1; Psa 50:5) These the Lord is please to anoint to preach his word.
Continued with next post.
Can we trust any outside sources in our quest for truth, sources found outside of orthodoxy, the professed church?
How are we to be sure of any of them?
The Lord states that we are to “try the spirits” to test the doctrines from whomsoever they emanate, to prove for ourselves (by the Word of God) whether they speak for God or for the evil one. The problem here is that most do not try the spirits FOR THEMSELVES, as to determine the validity of these sources, but rather they blindly accept the views and opinions of others (viz., family, friends, fellow church members, and heaven forbid social networks, forums and etc.), and in so doing they may be losing out on the very truth they seek.
Now we are not suggesting that one should spend all their time investigating every teacher and every teaching, to do so would take up all their time, time which should be devoted to the Lord and the study of his Word. Following such a course one would only find themselves “blown about by every wind of doctrine” (every new teaching or doctrine, whatever excites their pallet at the time), “ever learning (new things), but never able to arrive at the truth”. (Eph 4:14; 2 Tim 3:7)
The truth is never to be found except in and through the divinely appointed channels, and those channels are of the Lord’s choosing, not men.
However, one must not live in fear, for it is “the fear of man which brings the snare” (Prov 25:29), which traps one from inquiring for themselves, from proving for themselves and thus hindering them from reaching the truths they seek. It was “the neglect of the principle of individual judgment which brought upon the church the snare of the great apostasy.” Men began to rely too much upon Popes and the clergy for their faith.
Many have been too quick to judge outside sources, that is those emanating from outside of orthodoxy, not so much by the doctrines or teachings they expound (much of which they have never proven nor disproved for themselves), but by the character of the channel or individual with which these doctrines come. This is another stumbling stone preventing many from coming to the truth.
A great many experiences this in their own homes. The Lord calls them and opens their eyes to the truth, and it is only natural that they would wish to share this truth to their loved ones, but as is often the case there is little or no reception. The reason for this is that those intimately close or acquainted with us are generally familiar with all our particular faults and difficulties and as such are unable to see the Lord choosing us as his mouth piece. Likewise (as is the case with myself) not having at the beginning first become fully acquainted with the truth and thus able to properly articulate it to others we tend at first to mix things up a bit, jumping from one subject to the next in our haste to tell all that we have learned and in process we only succeed in confusing out listeners.
We ourselves being new to the truth, are mere “babes in Christ”, “unskilled in the words of righteousness” (Heb 5:13), and are not yet ready to preach the truth to others and so we mess things up and “soil the waters” thus inhibiting us from any future efforts in this area. The only hope we have now is that we might provide some literature which they might take up an examine for themselves, and possibly gain some interest. Even if this should in the future lead to someone else being the spokesman for these, we would still be happy.
Bear in mind what we had learned from 1 Cor 1:26-29 viz., that God has not chosen the great or learned, but rather the meek, the humble, those neither prominent nor influential in the world to preach the truth. So don’t become discouraged.
So, what is the lesson, the key point we have learned from all this?
It appears to be that contrary to what we have come to understand, those whom we feel would be the best ones qualified for the ministry, for the work of preaching and teaching the Word these are not necessarily the same ones as those the Lord sees best for the job. We naturally would choose those who appear of a good character and who are educated in the study of the scriptures, having attended seminary or some other religious institution, and who have shown an ability to speak and or articulate the word of God to others. A good orator or writer being a prerequisite.
Now this may be the case when it comes to preaching the “doctrines and precepts of men” as are taught in the professing church, but not when it comes to preaching the Word of God, as the Lord states: “My thoughts are not your thoughts, nor are your ways My ways,” says the Lord.” (Isa 55:8)
The Lord reads the heart, he knows what truly motivates the individual desiring to work in his service and so he is able to pick the right individuals for the job. It matters little to him if they are not learned or educated in one of the great schools of men, in fact this is a deterrent, for the doctrines and teachings of men are in constant conflict with the doctrines of Christ, thus a stumbling block to overcome. This work may require a lot of effort on the part of the individual, should they be considered. Impossible, no! not for God, and not if they truly love Him and are prepared to empty themselves of what they think they know. Nevertheless, He would rather that they come to him in meekness and in humility like little children, empty of any preconceived ideas ready to be taught of him, and as such would have them enrolled in the “School of Christ”. This school however does not have a four-year degree or any honorary doctorate to confer upon the individual, and will require a life time to graduate. This school is entered only after one has made a full surrender or consecration to the Lord. (Rom 12:1; Psa 50:5) These the Lord is please to anoint to preach his word.
Continued with next post.
