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Which "interpreter" of the Bible to believe? Easy- believe none! (Written to person going by the handle "Big Mac" at CyberSight) And yes, that includes me! 1 John 4:1 Beloved, BELIEVE NOT EVERY SPIRIT, BUT TRY THE SPIRITS WHETHER THEY ARE OF GOD: because many false prophets are gone out into the world. Acts 17:11 These were more noble than those in Thessalonica, in that they received the word with all readiness of mind, and SEARCHED THE SCRIPTURES DAILY, WHETHER THOSE THINGS WERE SO. John 5:39 SEARCH THE SCRIPTURES; for in them ye think ye have eternal life: and they are they which testify of me. 40 And ye will not come to me, that ye might have life. Now my question is, are you going to go off half-cocked and think that I said unequivocally not to believe any preacher at all period? You see, the problem is, people jump to conclusions. For example, your statement- "Ah!… So you do agree with me. Excellent!" Now Big Mac, that is NOT exactly what I said. I gave some very clear qualifications to what manner or extent to which I SOMEWHAT agreed with you. Please note again some key words that I said- "I agree with you *TO AN EXTENT*" and "Satan himself gives us a prime example of using the scriptures to *TRY TO* prove anything you want" But by your response, one would think I totally agreed, and you felt I had conceded to your point. When in fact, nothing could be further from the truth. Here is something you said to which I was EMPHATICALLY disagreeing with- "I'm sure he believes just as strongly as you that he is right, and no doubt he could use your bible just as effectively to prove it." You could only make such a comment if you felt, through the example I gave, that Jesus didn't show Satan how that another verse of scripture negated the temptation to jump off a pinnacle, when He said- "It is written again, Thou shalt NOT TEMPT the Lord thy God." Now did or didn't Jesus, by the scriptures, refute Satan's "interpretation" of a scripture that says- "He shall give his angels charge concerning thee: and in their hands they shall bear thee up, lest at any time thou dash thy foot against a stone." The bottom line here is- Who searched the scriptures for the WHOLE mind of God, and who ran off with an interpretation from ONLY PART of God's word on the subject? Jesus set an example for searching God's word for His whole mind on a subject. Satan set an example for running off with an interpretation based on PART of God's word. If you think that running off with only part of God's word on a subject is ACCEPTABLE, would you like it if I did that with YOUR words? If I did, here is what I could get out of your words- You said- "you… convince me that I should listen to you over all others. (…I WAS in the market to recant my apostasy against the Christian faith…!" -Big Mac Is that what you said? Those were, after all, YOUR words! Would I be right, or justified in interpreting you to have said this? Of course not! And yet, it IS possible for me to do that, as it is "possible" for anyone to do such with the word of God. And THAT is what I was saying in my last post to you- yes, a person can TRY or ATTEMPT to prove any doctrine they want, but that doesn't mean that they have proven it, or that the WHOLE WORD OF GOD agrees with them, or can't be shown to prove that doctrine wrong. When someone takes away PARTS of God's word, and claims to have a correct interpretation, simply doesn't mean that they DO have a correct interpretation. When you LISTEN TO WHAT GOD IS SAYING, and HARMONIZE ALL that God says on a subject, THEN you have a correct interpretation. And bottom line, it is up to all of us to be sure WHICH is the true and complete word of God, based, not on what WE think, and not on what any preacher says, but what can be SEARCHED and found and determined to be so. Acts 17:11 These were more noble than those in Thessalonica, in that they received the word with all readiness of mind, and searched the scriptures daily, whether those things were so. According to Jesus, the one's who will do that, are the one's who are ALSO truly willing to seek HIM for answers, rather than leaning on their own understanding… John 5:39 Search the scriptures; for in them ye think ye have eternal life: and they are they which testify of me. 40 And ye will not come to me, that ye might have life. Prov 3:5 Trust in the LORD with all thine heart; and lean not unto thine own understanding. 6 In all thy ways acknowledge him, and he shall direct thy paths. 7 Be not wise in thine own eyes: fear the LORD, and depart from evil. 8 It shall be health to thy navel, and marrow to thy bones. Col 2:8 Beware lest any man spoil you through philosophy and vain deceit, after the tradition of men, after the rudiments of the world, and not after Christ. Now, AFTER one has heard an interpreter, ONLY IF AND WHEN they have gone and VERIFIED WHAT WAS SAID according to the scriptures, only then can they biblically have confidence in putting some trust in a preacher. 1 Tim 3:1 This is a true saying, If a man desire the office of a bishop, he desireth a good work. 2 A bishop then must be BLAMELESS… 1 Tim 3:8 Likewise must the deacons... 10 …let THESE ALSO FIRST BE PROVED; THEN LET THEM USE THE OFFICE of a deacon, being found blameless. 2 Tim 2:15 Study to show thyself approved unto God, a workman that needeth not to be ashamed, RIGHTLY DIVIDING THE WORD of truth. I trust my pastors more than I have ever trusted anyone in this world. However, I still, TO THIS DAY, PROVE EVERYTHING THEY SAY. And in fact they still request that we prove what they say. (As do I, though apparently not enough around here) For two reasons- A) Only God is perfect, and B) When you search the scriptures and find them to be telling the truth, then your trust is not based on blind faith, but on a sure foundation of truth. On the other hand, if they haven't been teaching the truth, one will save their soul from being deceived, because if the blind follow the blind, they both will fall into a ditch. It simply comes down to the fact that there are two types of people-Those who will hear only what they want to hear no matter what you tell them, and those who are not satisfied with any thing less than the full truth! 2 Th 2:10 And with all deceivableness of unrighteousness in them that perish; BECAUSE THEY RECEIVED NOT THE LOVE OF THE TRUTH, that they might be saved. 11 And for this cause God shall send them strong delusion, that they should believe a lie: 12 That they all might be damned who believed not the truth, but had pleasure in unrighteousness. In the Final Analysis, that is the true dividing line between sinners and saints- those who were willing to believe a lie WILL, and those who have an unquenchable thirst for truth WILL find it. Mat 5:6 Blessed are they which do hunger and thirst after righteousness: for they shall be filled. So, I really do mean trust no one. However, one can begin to trust those whom have been, past tense and present tense, proven to speak the truth according to the scriptures. And yet, even then, their words should be proven by the scriptures, and are not to be taken blindly. If they are telling the truth, you trust them with your eyes wide open, if they aren't telling the truth, you will save yourself from following the blind, blindly. Big Mac, I have NEVER asked, nor expected you or anyone else to listen to, or to trust me above all others. I feel you are simply reading bad experiences that you have had with others into what you perceive I am saying, because I have never said any such thing. In fact, the reason I quote scriptures all the time for what I am saying, is because I don't want anyone to accept what I am saying, but what is written in the word of God. In fact, if I had MY way, I would quote scripture alone around here, and not my words at all. But when I've tried that around here, people seem to really go ballistic on me! So again, I am saying, believe no *interpreter* but believe the scriptures ONLY! Rom 3:4 God forbid: yea, LET GOD BE TRUE, BUT EVERY MAN A LIAR; as it is written, That thou mightest be justified in thy sayings, and mightest overcome when thou art judged. God bless! |