A couple of weeks ago I recounted a conversation that included the following ideas: counseling can/should be conducted with a little bit of the Bible as opposed to a lot; and, that man's opinions are somehow the same as a pastor, teacher, counselor in a local church rendering a particular interpretation of Scripture.
To start, if we claim to be Christ followers and are submitting our lives under the authority of (a) Jesus Christ and (b) His Word (the Bible, both Old and New Testaments), does that not require us to give our full allegiance to Jesus Christ? Jesus, when referring to money, makes it clear that man cannot serve two masters. Is this not also true when referring to a world view or perspective on life? To say that one can be a believer and then teach others with a Bible + something else theology is to be disloyal, disobedient, and, in some cases, heretical. Either you are submitted to Jesus and His Word or you are not. This is an indictment against us all at some point or another I am sure as we constantly work to filter those teachings which are of this world and those which are sound and in accordance with God's Word.
Secondly, man's opinions are irrelevant to biblical teaching or counseling, if one is truly counseling and teaching biblically. If one is counseling, teaching or preaching biblically the following can/should be expected: he/she is submitted, fully, to Christ and His Word; he/she seeks to discern what the Bible says through an intensive study of the original languages (Greek/Hebrew); he/she prays seeking God's instruction through the Holy Spirit to rightly discern what God's Word says; he/she measures God's Word against God's Word to see how other verses or passages address the question/issue/teaching at hand; he/she tests their understanding against other believers who exhibit a responsible handling of God's Word; he/she may consider the writings of others specific to the issue/verse/passage at hand to further consider the plausibility or implausibility of their conclusions; he/she subjects their conclusions to the question of whether that conclusion glorifies God and is true to the whole counsel of Scripture. The point, then, is to avoid merely giving one's own opinion and to understand and expound upon what God's Word truly says and what it means for our lives today.
Man's opinion, after all, is what put humanity in the position to need a Savior (see Genesis 3 and the fall of man, "Did God really say...?"). Therefore, we need to seek God's truth and avoid worldly, human wisdom at all costs (see 1 Corinthians 1:18-2:16).
Subscribe to:
Post Comments (Atom)
No comments:
Post a Comment