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Is Someone Telling
You What To Believe?
MP3
I remember a television cartoon character from my childhood, who when
told something or given some procedure or answer to a question, would
respond with, "Dat sounds logical." He was clearly a little dizzy
and no matter how crazy or improbable the utterance, this would be his
response. Well, much time has gone by and I have put away childish
things, yet I am still hearing some giving this type of response to
false doctrines, pet theories, tangent thinking and just plain crazy
ideas.
This situation arises when one hears or reads something and chooses to
accept or embrace it without taking the steps to prove it.
Reference my notebook piece on the "Slick
Argument". Slick arguments are slick because they sound
logical and easily acceptable. It is only when one removes the
slick veneer that they see the deception and evil.
In all this end time religious confusion and resistance to the truth
being preached, the accusation is levied that we are being told what to
believe. Someone contacted me just the other day charging that
Garner Ted Armstrong was the agent telling me exactly what to believe.
I wasted no time telling this individual that I never chose to believe
anything just because Mr. Armstrong said it was so. Indeed, both
he and his father before him constantly instructed the public to never
believe them but to read our own Bibles. That has been my
procedure from the beginning. This is what my Bible says to do.
Prove all things; hold fast that which is good. Abstain from all
appearance of evil. –1 Thessalonians 5:21-22
It would be evil and appearance of evil to just accept a thing without
proving it first. The Word of God is authority of truth.
There is none other.
To the law and to the testimony: if they speak not according to this
word, it is because there is no light in them. –Isaiah 8:20
This and the "true minister" scriptures [Matthew 7:15-20] state that
ministers are speaking truth if they are in close adherence to
scripture. We can only identify false ministers and false
doctrines IF we are immersed in the Word of God.
There is no need to be skeptical or to openly distrust every minister
you encounter. Follow the example of the Bereans:
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. –Acts 17:11
They received the word with all readiness of mind, but THEN searched the
scriptures daily to see whether these things were so. Anyone
searching the scriptures daily is immersed in the Word of God.
Breaking into a portion of scripture where God states that He gave the
church ministers [among other positions] for the perfecting of the
saints, we read...
That we henceforth be no more children, tossed to and fro, and carried
about with every wind of doctrine, by the sleight of men, and cunning
craftiness, whereby they lie in wait to deceive; But speaking the truth
in love, may grow up into him in all things, which is the head, even
Christ: –Ephesians 4:14-15
If we speak truth in love [possible only if we are immersed in the Word
of God], we are in the process of becoming like Christ. We become
like Christ by letting only Him and His Father tell us what to
believe.
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