I’ve become aware that a number of the doctrinal details
that I’ve always assumed were true have, in fact, been unsupported in
Scripture. God being a grumpy old man, quick on the “Smite Button” is one of
them.
Discovering such error makes me question an awful lot of my
doctrine. What else have I believed that is not true?
Not the basics, of course: Jesus is the Son of God, who died
for me; that stuff is settled. But so much of the rest, the “not critical”
doctrines, I have to test them all; I can no longer trust the “Everybody knows
that!” declarations about doctrine. I'm figuring out that “Everybody” has been wrong before! Imagine that!
And it’s inevitable: in the process of testing what really
IS true, I cannot help but stumble across what really is NOT true. Sometimes it’s
pretty easy to tell: that just smells bad (think Westboro Baptist
“ Church ” ). Some doctrine is best suited for
fertilizing the petunias.
But sometimes we’ve gotta look pretty closely. This is where
we really have to rely on Hebrews 5:14: “But solid food is for the mature, who
by constant use have trained themselves to distinguish good from evil.” The
clear implication is that without constantly using “solid food,” we’ll never be
trained to distinguish good (καλός, “sound,
whole, nourishing, magnificent”) from evil (κακός,
the root of “kaka,” the stuff we fertilize petunias with). In other words, unless
we jump in and test stuff, we’re unable to tell good, nourishing spiritual food
apart from plant fertilizer. It's NOT alright with me if I can't tell prime rib from sewage.
Therefore, you’ll find me testing things, and some of it will be on this page. I do
this publicly for two reasons: a) those who wish to train themselves are
invited into the process with me, and b) to reveal my reasons to those who want
a foundation for the hope that I’m walking into (a la 1 Peter 3:15).
Some will say (and have forcefully said!) that those of us
who ask questions must do it in a place or in a way where new believers can’t
see, lest they be confused or misdirected. To which I answer, a) how else will
they learn, b) who am I to decide that they do not have the right to learn?
If I may be so bold: the one person on this planet who is
responsible for your spiritual growth is YOU. It’s NOT your pastor, your
parents, your favorite conference speaker, or me! We can (and must!) help equip
you, encourage you, provide you resources. But it is you who will be accountable
before the Lord for your growth.
So MANY believers are already getting this and taking up
that responsibility. If that’s you, GOOD FOR YOU!
If you’re not taking personal responsibility for your spiritual growth yet,
please hurry up: you’re living in a fantasy, and the real world is calling you;
Heaven is calling! We’re calling! We need you!
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