In 1986, one of the songs high on the charts was entitled, Why Does It Have To Be (Wrong or Right) by Restless Heart. The question came up in the song because a couple was deciding whether or not to have an affair and wondered why it had to be black or white or why you had to hurt one to love another. The singer could not understand why there had to be any issue at all. That philosophy is just a repackage of what was practiced back in the sixties when people followed the ¡§free love¡¨ and ¡§if it feels good do it¡¨ gurus so there is nothing new under the sun.
That type of questioning of morality and authority that desires to walk in gray areas or considering all areas open and free is not to be unexpected among the Lost or unbelieving. That sad thing is that has crossed over into the Church and we find that it is open season on all doctrines, rules, traditions or whatever you wish to call them. Indeed, I fear that the ¡§emerging¡¨ church movement for all its talk of liberty is really a submerging into chaos and maybe a form of the error Peter discusses in 2 Peter 2:19.
I have always said that if tradition is truth, treasure it and if tradition is just tradition then trash it but I fear that many go to excess and are guilty of our favorite saying in college about throwing the baby out with the bath water. I am not called a Maverick for nothing but there is nothing inherently wrong with ¡§organized religion¡¨ since in Scripture we are given officers and told to do things in decency and order while maintaining sound doctrine and good works. It takes a bit of organization to do all that. It doesn¡¦t just happen. Have there been errors and even abuses? Certainly there have been such things, but just because people misuse a system or symbol or whatever does not make the thing in itself worthy of trashing. Redemption or restoration to its true form may be necessary but be very careful what you kick to the curb.
I have been deeply distressed for decades over the apathy of Christians when it comes to doctrines and associations. We just glad hand everyone and think that in the age of grace a profession of salvation is all we need to work and worship together no matter what doctrine is taught or who the other person hangs out with.
Interestingly enough in secular law if Johnny hangs out with Billy and Billy hangs out with a gang or the mob Johnny is going to be a suspect if Billy gets into trouble. He may be innocent but he will be questioned because since he and Billy are friends he may know something or may have been a co-conspirator. If he and Billy are supposed to be going to a movie together but Billy says he needs to make a stop to pay off a bet but is actually buying crack Johnny will be arrested if it was a sting because he is in the wrong place with the wrong pal. He may be proven innocent and set free but his reputation will be damaged anyway. He may also lose other friends that didn¡¦t know he hung out with Billy until they saw it on the News. Like it or not you can become guilty by association. A man is known by his friends. It may not be fair but it is what it is.
I have found that it is tough enough to be perfectly sure of your friends who at least give verbal assent to the same doctrines and beliefs that you have because there are false brethren and folks that learn the language in order to get gain. It gets even crazier when you start dealing with people who say they are Christians but when you start delving in past the ¡§basic¡¨ doctrines you find all kinds of craziness, heresy and even find that the terms they used had totally different meanings to them.
That is why we must always make our terms perfectly clear and keep our associations tight but not so tight that we are so independent we don¡¦t associate with anyone but those in our local church. That is how folks get talked into trips to Guyana and drink spiked Kool-Aid„µ. Yet, we can¡¦t just throw open our arms and accept everyone that says they are one of the brethren. Doctrine is extremely important.
Now when we say doctrine there is a strong tendency in our age to divide doctrine into essential and nonessential doctrine. The operative concept in the essential part is, what is the minimum you must believe to be a saved or a biblical Christian? Salvation is of utmost important for dying but doctrine was given for living and it is of utmost importance for life. If God took the time to inspire a prophet or apostle to speak to an issue then I don¡¦t want to relegate that issue to nonessential status. Unfortunately when we do that we really say is that it is not important or even useful and we put in some little cubby hole and either forget it completely or speak about it from time to time like an item of trivia in a party game. I am afraid that God finds these things far more important than to have such a classification or use.
Matt 5:17-20
17 Think not that I am come to destroy the law, or the prophets: I am not come to destroy, but to fulfil.
18 For verily I say unto you, Till heaven and earth pass, one jot or one tittle shall in no wise pass from the law, till all be fulfilled.
19 Whosoever therefore shall break one of these least commandments, and shall teach men so, he shall be called the least in the kingdom of heaven: but whosoever shall do and teach them, the same shall be called great in the kingdom of heaven.
20 For I say unto you, That except your righteousness shall exceed the righteousness of the scribes and Pharisees, ye shall in no case enter into the kingdom of heaven. (KJV)
Jesus was going to fulfill every jot and tittle of the law. There was no part that was nonessential to Him. It all mattered. Verse 19 is a gauntlet slapped in the face of such thought and teaching. Break and teach others to break even the least commandment and you will be called least in the kingdom whereas keep them and you shall be called great. Hmmm, they sound somewhat essential to me. Yes, these folks are in the kingdom but their position is contingent on what they do with least commandments as well as the greatest of commandments. We make grace sloppy by our teaching but it isn¡¦t and we need to tighten things up.
Matt 23:23-24
23 Woe unto you, scribes and Pharisees, hypocrites! for ye pay tithe of mint and anise and cummin, and have omitted the weightier matters of the law, judgment, mercy, and faith: these ought ye to have done, and not to leave the other undone.
24 Ye blind guides, which strain at a gnat, and swallow a camel. (KJV)
Some like to use this passage to decry all rules and standards as being hypocritical and legalistic. They talk about majoring on the major rather than majoring on the minor. It would appear they are right at first glance but what they forget is the part that while the Pharisees forgot the weightier matters they were right to tithe the mint and anise. He told them to do both. He didn¡¦t say worry about the essentials like law, judgment and mercy but don¡¦t worry about the nonessentials like tithing herb leaves. Nope, he said to do both. Both were essential. Even though we are doing this a bit backward because we try to emphasize what we think is major and ignore the so-called minor is the error not similar? There was no gray area here. It was black and white wrong and right.
Isa 5:20-21
20 Woe unto them that call evil good, and good evil; that put darkness for light, and light for darkness; that put bitter for sweet, and sweet for bitter!
21 Woe unto them that are wise in their own eyes, and prudent in their own sight! (KJV)
Verse 21 puts us back in the days of the Judges when everyone did that which was right in his own eyes. No one wants to submit to authority anymore be it legislative, academic, parental or Biblical. We all want our freedom, which really means we want to be in bondage to the flesh in most cases.
To be able to call evil good and good evil it might be good to know which is which at the start but therein is the rub. Outside of a few key issues the Church at large wants to be open-minded, tolerant and ¡§gracious¡¨ with doctrinal error and sin. They want to walk in semi-darkness or gray areas instead of seeking the full light. This passage clearly indicates that God is of the opposite opinion. He knows what is good and what is evil. He expects us to know as well. Black and white, wrong and right is not what our culture might desire but it is the will of God for us to tell them.
Heb 5:12-14
12 For when for the time ye ought to be teachers, ye have need that one teach you again which be the first principles of the oracles of God; and are become such as have need of milk, and not of strong meat.
13 For every one that useth milk is unskilful in the word of righteousness: for he is a babe.
14 But strong meat belongeth to them that are of full age, even those who by reason of use have their senses exercised to discern both good and evil. (KJV)
The problem is that even among Church leadership we seem to have a lot of well educated but immature Christians. They should be teachers by reason of their education or age in Christ but they have to go back to the first principles for remedial training. They are unskillful in the Word because they have not exercised their senses. Therefore they cannot discern good from evil. Sadly, many have even forsaken the milk being content with a pacifier or a form of godliness. They have developed a taste for the fake and dislike the taste of fresh milk and have no teeth or stomach for a good Scriptural steak. Is it no wonder that they are sickly, sallow and shallow saints?
They have need to be taught again but who shall teach them since even the seminaries have forsaken meat and milk and instead offer up meals from imitation or rotted manuscripts? They in their own prudence and wisdom have tossed away God¡¦s Grade A Premium beef and substituted greasy fatty pork riddled with parasites making those that eat from their menu nauseous when someone tries to feed them the truth. That we are in an age of apostasy is no real surprise. They can¡¦t know right from wrong for they have foggy minds and cataract eyes from their poor diet and bad recipe books.
I King 3:9-12
9 Give therefore thy servant an understanding heart to judge thy people, that I may discern between good and bad: for who is able to judge this thy so great a people?
10 And the speech pleased the Lord, that Solomon had asked this thing.
11 And God said unto him, Because thou hast asked this thing, and hast not asked for thyself long life; neither hast asked riches for thyself, nor hast asked the life of thine enemies; but hast asked for thyself understanding to discern judgment;
12 Behold, I have done according to thy words: lo, I have given thee a wise and an understanding heart; so that there was none like thee before thee, neither after thee shall any arise like unto (KJV)
What delighted the Lord most about Solomon¡¦s prayer was that he wanted understanding to be able to discern good from bad that he might properly lead God¡¦s people. Can we who are leading God¡¦s flock be we Pastors or teachers dare ask for less? Is not the warning that we who are teachers shall stand the stricter judgment not incentive enough for us to make sure that we know good from evil? It is not only ourselves that we hurt by trying to play the gray area game or walk the tolerant tightrope but how many will we send to Hell or make ineffective because we do not speak with authority as the oracles of God but rather as the scribes and Pharisees that had more questions than answers and twisted the truth to fit their desires? They liked gray areas and tolerance as well and they are in Hell.
Deut 5:32-33
32 Ye shall observe to do therefore as the LORD your God hath commanded you: ye shall not turn aside to the right hand or to the left.
33 Ye shall walk in all the ways which the LORD your God hath commanded you, that ye may live, and that it may be well with you, and that ye may prolong your days in the land which ye shall possess. (KJV)
II Ki 22:1-2
1 Josiah was eight years old when he began to reign, and he reigned thirty and one years in Jerusalem. And his mother¡¦s name was Jedidah, the daughter of Adaiah of Boscath.
2 And he did that which was right in the sight of the LORD, and walked in all the way of David his father, and turned not aside to the right hand or to the left. (KJV)
In the Old Testament we are commanded to not turn to the right or the left from any of the ways of God. There are no nonessential doctrines in that decree and no room for tolerance and gray areas. It was be right or else. If that was expected of people that did not have the Holy Spirit indwelling them or had all the revelation of God how much more should we be seeking the exact and complete will of God in all things? While we cannot keep the law nor are required to do so for salvation would the Holy Spirit lead us into anything contrary to the will of God or His character? I think not.
James 1:16-17
16 Do not err, my beloved brethren.
17 Every good gift and every perfect gift is from above, and cometh down from the Father of lights, with whom is no variableness, neither shadow of turning. (KJV)
James is telling us that God is not fickle or changeable. There is no variation with Him. His yea is yea and His nay is nay. There is no gray area with him. The moon is a fairly good example of this. The moon is all light on one side and all darkness on the other. It has no gray area. Whatever area that God has shed His light on has no shading or shadow. There is no darkness in Him and gray is a mixture of light and dark. Yea, we might be looking through a glass darkly but if we really want to know if an issue is light or darkness we can know. After all, we have His Word, His Spirit to lead us into all truth and the mind of Christ. What is our problem? Most of the time we don¡¦t really want to know. We become Pharisees and twist it the way we want or become Sadducees and just deny it completely.
God does not have two standards for His house. Paul said in 1 Corinthians 11 that there was no such other custom for the Church on that topic. There was nothing to contend about. It is written, so let it be done. The theme or commands in the Epistles never changed for any of the Churches. What was meant for one was meant for all which is why Paul instructed the Colossians to read the epistle from Laodiceans. It helped them to spot the phony letters that were being circulated by comparing the ones they knew were from Paul. He didn¡¦t tell one group to eat blood and then prohibit someone else. One Lord, one faith, one baptism, one rule for all was the teaching given.
How many minds does Christ have? Why does one have liberty to do things and the other not? The way some teach it Christ is schizophrenic or has multiple personalities. Romans 14 and 15 are often used to teach such a concept of ¡§doubtful¡¨ things so that one can smoke if they have faith and the other not if they don¡¦t. You can pick the issue in your neighborhood but it still comes down to a father telling his son to go out and get drunk but forbids his daughter to even drink one drink. It is an absurd teaching when you look at it in that context. That is the trouble we get into when we want to walk in gray and have no discernment between right and wrong or good and evil.
The problem is that those passages don¡¦t really teach that. He said not to spend time arguing about things but Paul told the pork eaters or those who ate meat used in the pagan temple but sold in the marketplace that they were right. The key was making your brother stumble. Don¡¦t do it. In the end, he says that the stronger brother was to give up his liberty in order not to offend and make the weaker brother stumble. You don¡¦t hear that preached much as that is one of the last things that American Christians want to hear. They will fight for their liberty unto death but will not die to self that they may be truly free!
Titus 1:9-11
9 Holding fast the faithful word as he hath been taught, that he may be able by sound doctrine both to exhort and to convince the gainsayers.
10 For there are many unruly and vain talkers and deceivers, specially they of the circumcision:
11 Whose mouths must be stopped, who subvert whole houses, teaching things which they ought not, for filthy lucre¡¦s sake. (KJV)
You must be able to discern good and evil if you are going to rightly divide the Word and to hold fast to it. When you know sound doctrine you are to use it to shut the mouths of those teaching false doctrine just because it brings them more money. Of course it does. Preach what people want to hear and the funds will flow. Some of the biggest churches in the land do not preach any doctrine or they preach false doctrine. Why?
2 Tim 4:2-5
2 Preach the word; be instant in season, out of season; reprove, rebuke, exhort with all longsuffering and doctrine.
3 For the time will come when they will not endure sound doctrine; but after their own lusts shall they heap to themselves teachers, having itching ears;
4 And they shall turn away their ears from the truth, and shall be turned unto fables.
5 But watch thou in all things, endure afflictions, do the work of an evangelist, make full proof of thy ministry. (KJV)
Titus 2:1 But speak thou the things which become sound doctrine: (KJV)
Welcome to the world of the 21st Century. There all sorts of Mars Hill dwellers out there and the Internet has made the hill virtual as well as topographical. People want to hear what they want to hear. You can believe anything you want because you can find a preacher or church out there that will teach it to your order. They aren¡¦t Burger King„µ but you can have it your way! If you can¡¦t find one just start one and you will draw a crowd eventually and they will pay to feel good! But as we see in Titus we are under commandment to stick to sound doctrine not the popular doctrine.
One successful fellow said that he would not preach doctrine. Well, the meaning of doctrine is teaching or instruction so in spite of what he says he is preaching doctrine though it appears that he doesn¡¦t know the meaning of the word. The question is what kind of doctrine is he teaching? Is it false or sound, wrong or right?
Why does it have to be wrong or right? Because God created the reality we live in and He has set natural and spiritual laws into place. We live better and longer when we are obedient to these laws then if we do not. He calls the shots. We are the created not the Creator. He has said that all His Word is important or essential and that we must be able to teach sound or healthy doctrine so that we can discern between good and evil, wrong and right so that we can lead His people and lead others to Him.
Maybe you are out there lost and deceived by false doctrine and muddling about in gray areas. Come to the Light of the World and allow Him to make your need of salvation manifest or clear as He puts the searching beam of His Word on your life revealing your sin and condition. He can take you out of darkness and bring you into the glorious kingdom of His light and love. Please let Him do so!
My Brother and Sister, has your walk in grace been sloppy? Have you just ignored the Word on some issues because you thought them nonessential or just minor things? Sometimes God tests your obedience and love in little things. One lady was seeking the filling of the Spirit and could not seem to get through to God. She had a rhinestone hairpin that she really liked. Once she felt that the Spirit was telling her to get rid of that hairpin. She thought it was a silly idea and ignored it. After all, it was just a little thing. She prayed and begged for a new sense of God¡¦s power in her life and to be filled but to no avail. One day she was at her dressing table and the again thought of throwing the hairpin away came to her. This time she said, ¡§Lord if this is your will, so be it.¡¨ When she threw it in the trashcan her prayer was answered. It was such a little thing, but it was enough to block fellowship for there was just enough pride in that hairpin or the way she looked wearing it that had to be done away with before the Holy Spirit could have complete control? What is in your life that is holding Him back from filling you? Let it go and let the Spirit flow. You¡¦ll be very glad that you did!
