For precept must be upon precept,
precept upon precept; line upon line,
line upon line; here a little, and there
a little. (Isaiah 28:10)
How do we learn, as new Christians, what is the will of God? What does He expect from us? Well, we find the answers in the Word of God, the Holy Bible. But
many people say things like, "The Bible was just written by men, how can we believe that?" Or "The Bible is too hard for average people to understand!" Or, "That was written thousands of years ago, how can it apply to us today?"
It's very simple, really. We take it one little bite at a time. Precept upon precept. We cannot expect to understand the entire Bible by reading through it once or twice, or even ten times. We learn one thing at
a time, and then build on that. Begin by acknowledging that we are all sinners, but believe beyond a doubt that Jesus Christ came to save sinners like us.
Add in the unshakeable belief that the Holy Bible is true from cover to cover, and contains God's instruction to us.
All scripture is given by inspiration of God, and is
profitable for doctrine, for reproof, for correction, for
instruction in righteousness: That the man of God
may be perfect, thoroughly furnished unto all good
works. (2 Timothy 3:16-17)
Too many people just learn a couple things and then leave it at that. That almost always results in faulty theology. Each and every time we read the Bible,
we need to ask ourselves, "How does this fit in with what I already
understand about the character, the will, and the ways of God?"
Even after reading and studying Scripture for many, many years, we can still learn more about God's character and His plan.
This is building one little bit at a time, precept upon precept.
Scripture will never contradict itself. The belief that it is contradictory, or mistaken in some area, leads to faulty doctrine. Faulty doctrine is dangerous. It leads to wrong toughts, words, and actions.
For instance, some of the prevailing ideologies of our time are:
- God is love, and He would never send anyone to a fiery hell.
- God wants His children to be happy and prosperous.
- All religions lead to heaven if you are devout and faithful.
- If you do enough good things, it outweighs the bad you may have done.
- "Once saved, always saved" means I can do whatever I want.
- It doesn't matter what you call him, we all worship the same God.
- I can't help it, this is just how God made me.
Far too often, people learn just enough to be dangerous. It's like getting a vaccination: A vaccine isn't the true disease, it just gives you enough of a
dose that you don't get the real one. Many have been "vaccinated" with just enough Scripture to keep them from getting the real thing. They have a RELIGION,
instead of a true RELATIONSHIP with the one true God.
Don't let bad theology lead you straight into hell. Read and study God's word for yourself. Take it one precept at a time, and let it speak to you as God intends.
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