Read It For Yourself

Two verses that have weighed heavily on my mind recently are 1 Timothy 4:16: “Watch you life and doctrine closely. Persevere in them, because if you do, you will save both yourself and your hearers,” and 2 Timothy 4:3, “For the time will come when men will not put up with sound doctrine. Instead, to suit their own desires, they will turn their ears away from the truth and turn aside to myths.” These verses have stuck with me recently as there have been several strong debates occurring within the Christian community with regards to some core beliefs. Unfortunately, many people turn to authors, commentators, and religious leaders to explain to them what the Bible says, instead of reading the Bible for themselves. There is nothing wrong with going to church, listening to a preacher, or reading a book in an attempt to better understand a Christian doctrine. The danger comes when we only do those things, and not actually read God’s word for ourselves. By relying on other fallible human beings to explain the Bible to us, we open ourselves up to their interpretation of the Bible. This becomes particularly dangerous when you stumble across a “believer” who has twisted scripture to say what he wants it to say, excusing sin or purporting a more comfortable faith than what the Bible preaches. This is exactly the type of preacher or teacher that 2 Timothy 4:3 is speaking of when it warns believers to be aware of teachers who change scripture to “suit their own desires.”

Granted, there are some periphery doctrines of the Christian faith that can be confusing, but the core of what Christians believe in is plainly read in the Bible. The question I have, then, for those that try and reinterpret scripture to suit their own desires is: Why is it so important for you to accept the Bible? If you disagree so strongly with a particular teaching of the Bible, why try and make the Bible say what you want it to say? Why not just disagree with that doctrine, or disavow the Christian Bible all together? I think I know the answer, because we all want to believe that we are okay in the sight of God, and we want God to be a comfortable God for us. It is the struggle between our sinful natures and God’s truth. By calling oneself a Christian, we are accepting the fact that our faith is built upon the Bible. By rejecting a specific doctrine or portion of the Bible, we are admitting that we cannot trust at least one part of God’s Word. If we can’t trust one part, then what is to say we cannot trust the whole thing? Thus, people do interpretive gymnastics to make scripture more palatable for ourselves and non-believing friends. To be honest, I don’t always like what the Bible has to say. But my dislike does not come from the Bible being wrong or intolerant; my dislike stems from the Bible shining a light on my sin, showing me where I need to improve, and also explaining to me that Jesus is the only Savior – something that scares me because I have non-believing family and friends. The Bible also teaches forgiveness, love, and peace, but not at the expense of holiness.

My encouragement to you, then, is to sit down and read the Bible for yourself. Read Matthew chapters 5-7, Jesus’ famous Sermon on the Mount, and see what Jesus himself said about several issues that are still prominent today. Or, take some time to read John chapter 3, and read Jesus’ teaching on salvation, heaven, and hell. It is great to have questions about the faith; I encourage them. But I also encourage you to search the Bible first for answers, then, when questions arise regarding something you’ve read, seek wise counsel, not popular counsel, to help you decipher the truth.