Doctrinal Balance

THE SPOTLESS AGENDA: 015

Doctrinal Balance

By far, the greatest problem in the ministry of the gospel is the practice of overemphasizing portions of Scripture above others often in the best interest of the teacher and not God. This phenomenon is referred to as doctrinal imbalance.

For instance, must the Christian ask the Father for wisdom or not? 

According to James (1:5), you may ask the Father for wisdom and he will give it to you freely and bountifully. But in the writings of Paul (Ephesians 1:8 particularly), we see that the Christian is filled with wisdom and prudence, hence, does not have to ask the Father for what he already has in fullness.

So where lies the problem?

Understand that the problem does not lie in the text of Scripture but in the interpretation of the text. All Scripture is God-breathed, hence they are true and consistent. So when you interprete biblical texts in a way that makes the Scriptures seem to contradict themselves, then you make yourself unskilled teacher of the word.

What then?

According to the New Testament, the Christian is filled with wisdom and prudence, however, as we grow up spiritually, we also increase in our application of the divine wisdom and prudence.

James is saying that you can ask the Father for deeper insight into the right application of the divine wisdom and prudence that's already in you. Not that the Father should bless you with wisdom because you do not have it, but rather, the Father should bless you with greater insight into the right application of his divine wisdom and prudence that's already in you. 

Some African countries have several gold mining fields but they are not among the richest countries in the world. Why? Because they lack the skills and expertise to process the gold into varied consumable ends. Likewise you may be filled with divine wisdom and prudence but may lack the skill and expertise to deal with the problem at hand. In such instances, you have to ask the Father for more insight to be able to perfectly control the situation at hand.

Some teachers of the word disdain asking the Father for wisdom whilst others emphasize asking the Father for wisdom. What then is the balance? Ask the Father for deeper insight to be able to perfectly apply the divine wisdom and prudence that's already in you.

#TowardsASpotlessChurch

Comments

  1. Sage WordJune 6, 2022 at 2:05 AM

    The Spotless Agenda is a move towards a spotless church. Study, reason and question (srq) Scripture in order to find evidence of the truth. Remember, this is achievable only through the Holy Spirit.

    ReplyDelete

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