Results 1 - 3 of 3
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Results from: Answered Bible Questions, Answers, Unanswered Bible Questions, Notes Ordered by Verse | ||||||
Results | Verse | Author | ID# | |||
1 | Joe, how do you know truth? | Rom 10:17 | Reformer Joe | 20463 | ||
Bill: "Sanctify them in the truth; Your word is truth." --John 17:17 I am quite sure that I will find out in Heaven that I was wrong on a lot of things. And ultimately, on issues which the Bible has touched on, it will indeed be a matter of not following Scripture. It is not Scripture that is unclear, but our interpretation of it which errs. Even removing the question of false teachers (and teaching should always be tested), one's interpretation can be influenced by vestiges of sin oin our lives, by the environment we live in, by our education (or lack thereof), by animosity toward individuals/churches/systems which have "burned" us in the past, etc., etc. That's why it takes careful study, a reasoning mind, a listening ear, and reliance upon the Holy Spirit to discern truth. Yes, the Holy Spirit is our teacher (John 14:26), but that does not imply that we are always the best learners. God will accomplish His purposes in my life, but He has more than one arrow in His quiver which he uses to bring that about. Scriptural truth is not a quick study, and God never said that growing in knowledge of the truth would be some easy 3-step procedure. It is not a "clean" process, either, where all truth on every Christian issue is settled in our minds upon conversion to Christianity. So how do I KNOW that I am being taught truth? I prefer to say that I am convinced that I am being taught truth, but here are a few reasons which I consider to be strong evidence: 1. It is internally consistent. 2. It takes into account the whole counsel of God's Word, rather than building a theology out of three verses and twsiting the rest of Scripture to fit the model. 3. It explains reality (e.g. human nature). 4. There is a long, unchanging historical tradition which has held the same views, a tradition made up of men used by God in very mighty ways throughout the last 2000 years. 5. God's Spirit testifies within me to the truth. Having examined other world views and theologies, they don't meet the preceding qualifications. Some of these others may meet one or two, but never all of these that came right off the top of my head just now. Personal searching of the Scriptures as well as listening to both sides of such debates has settled my mind on the important issues. I am always open to hearing new arguments from those who hold opposite views; I just have not found any to be terribly compelling thus far. Therefore, I consider what I hold to be truth; and like Martin Luther, unless one can show me from Scripture or from reasonable deductions from Scripture where I am wrong, I will consider myself adhering to truth. That having been said, there are some issues which have not been settled in my mind; and even the ones that are settled at times are not of such a nature as to be called heresy. However, heresy does exist, and God has called on us to identify it and expose it as the false teaching that it is. He has not left us with some "cosmic guessing game" as far as most of the examples you brought up in your post. I also know that you hold very strong positions yourself on a lot of the issues you mentioned. So, turning the question back to you, how do you KNOW what truth is? --Joe! |
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2 | Joe, how do you know truth? | Rom 10:17 | Bill Mc | 20486 | ||
Joe, This is my opinion (as is everything that I write, I'm sure you would agree):) God is truth. Truth is God's viewpoint. Unlike your criteria, I do not consider human nature reality. Human nature is born fallen and should not be considered reality. God is true reality. If we want to know the truth, we must consult God. He and His Word are the embodiment of truth. God, through His Word, is the primary revealer of truth. He did not leave us without an Interpreter. Christ said that when the Holy Spirit comes, He will lead us into all truth, which, obviously, always leads us back to God. I believe in interpreting the Bible by asking and then trusting the Holy Spirit to show me the mind of God behind the words. 'Who has known the mind of God? No one except the Spirit.' 'We have the mind of Christ.'- it's available to us because He lives in us. That is one of the primary reasons He dwells in us. He takes the things of Christ and makes them known to us. To do this, I try to let the scripture say what is says without 'reading' my meanings into it. I use other related scripture to ensure consistency. I try to interpret verses in light of the context, of the chapter, the book, and the whole Bible. I try to interpret scripture in the plain sense of the scripture making allowances for idioms, historical settings, literary devices (hyberbole, parables, poetry, etc.) I then compare my 'interpretation' against what my pastor believes, what other SS teachers believe, what some of my commentaries say (Believer's Bible Comm and various study Bibles, Ryrie, Nelson, NIV, NASB, etc), other books in my library. I also put my interpretation up before other forum members to get their opinions. I do have a few friends who know Greek to help me with passages that are, to my understanding, ambiguous. But, over the years, because I did not use these techniques, and simply trusted and believed everything I was told, here are some things that I used to hold to simply because that is what I was taught: You don't have the Holy Spirit if you don't speak in tongues. God will heal everyone if they have enough faith. God wants you to be rich. "If you don't send me X amount of money, God will take my life." "If you send me X amount of money, God will repay you 10-fold." Christians can lose their salvation. There is no way to know for sure that you are saved until you die. Not all of your sins are forgiven, only the ones you confess. True worship is lifting your hands and being slain in the spirit. If you have any sin in your life, God cannot use you. If you take communion and forget a sin, God could strike you dead. Being a good Christian is keeping the 10 Commandments. Every one of these statements have scripture to back them up. Those choice is eventually mine to make. I alone am responsible to God for my interpretation or my belief system. In light of the fact that all teachers have their 'pet' scriptures (even me), ultimately, I have to weigh everything and decide for myself who I listen to. And, ultimately, I have to trust that God can cut through all this 'garbage' that I have collect over the years to reveal Christ alone as my hope of glory. In Christ, Bill Mc |
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3 | Joe, how do you know truth? | Rom 10:17 | Reformer Joe | 20491 | ||
Bill: You wrote: "Human nature is born fallen and should not be considered reality." The fallenness of human nature was what I was referring to. The reality is that humanity is not basically good nor morally neutral. Most other religious viewpoints (and many claiming to be Christian) do not agree with that. Therefore, the Bible does accurately reflect the observable reality of the depravity of man. As far as the horrible teaching you received, I understand completely. It's very much the same garbage that my wife heard through her formative years. And while they may have cited a Scripture passage to support their false teachings, it certainly would have been out of context. No one with a working, thinking KNOWLEDGE of Scripture would allow themselves to believe prosperity doctrine, for example. If they did, then poor, shipwrecked, beated, and imprisoned Paul was just to blind to realize the bountiful Christian life he was missing! That is why I am so adamant that we be using our brains when we study Scripture. Too many people substitute skimming or light reading for studying and probing with an alert mind the depth and wonder of the Bible, or else they try and find verses which support their pre-conceived notions or wishes, ignoring the passages which rule out their views. What happens in such situations is that any kooky idea that pops into their heads suddenly becomes a revelation of the Holy Spirit! After all, they couldn't have some up with such an interpretation on their own, could they? ;) By the way, I would be interested to know which verse they used to support being slain in the Spirit... In any case, may I suggest that you do not err toward the opposite extreme of rejecting any teaching which may challenge your views as you hold them now. For just as teachers can be false, so can our own interpretations of Scripture. I have worked in countercult apologetics for a decade now. Trust me when I say I know what it is like to dialogue with people who unquestionably accept what any church official says to them. However, I have seen the other side of the coin where people have the attitude of "this is what this passage means to ME" or "the Spirit has shown me the truth of what I believe, so that settles it." Such people make the error of refusing any correction whatsoever. The Word properly preached is a corrective for false thoughts, theology, and to point out to us things we never even have thought about in our own studies. Likewise, a thorough familiarity with Scripture will help us be discerning when confronted with teaching, which may or not be in error. That's why God gives us this dynamic, this "checks-and-balances system" so that we do not go to either extreme: 1. uncritically accepting everything from the pulpit or 2. pridefully thinking that we come to all knowledge and truth as individuals in isolation from the church. Neither practice is biblical. --Joe! |
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