Independent Baptist Connection
Doctrine
"There are those who try stomping doctrine into people. They do what they can to jam it down your throat without letting you chew it. Their efforts cause a lump to drop in the spiritual stomach where it remains undigested for long periods of time. Don’t they have eyes to see or ears to hear? No one can doubt their sincerity as they follow the path they think God has led them on."
There are many Christians both inside and outside of the church that feel like they are innocent "victims" of the force feeding of Bible doctrine. Either they don't like the doctrine or they feel it isn't the most important element of sound Bible teaching. That brings up a question.
What is more important? Is it the doctrines we try to digest or is it walking the walk God wants us walking each day?
Somehow it seems there is a lack of balance. You can’t know how to walk if you don’t know the way God wants you to walk.
“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
Doctrine is important! This includes the teachings that should go out to all nations according to Matthew 28:19-20. The doctrines include the what, the how to, the why of God’s Word.
Many people attend church and hear countless messages on what we should believe. Once taught the basics, many would say these members have been indoctrinated. That’s usually as far as churches go. Members learn what the Bible says about baptism, the Lord’s Supper, worship and other important facts about the Word.
In addition to that, though, there should be a word of caution. It’s wonderful to know what you believe. There are countless men and women among Baptist ranks that don’t know what they really believe. Even more of them have no idea why they believe as they do.
Can I go beyond that? If a Christian doesn’t know why he believes something, neither does he carry a conviction about what he believes. This is more than a matter of saying I believe something because my pastor said it or my teacher taught it. Until we can learn to focus on the why as well as the what, we place ourselves in danger of changing our beliefs simply because someone else told us to.
Here’s another area that hurts many church members. How often does a church member leave after the morning service and say something like this:
“That was a great sermon. I wonder what it meant? I mean, what does it have to do with me? How is this going to put food on my table or help me go through the problems I have at home and on the job?”
Is the teaching so doctrine focused that it loses its practical value? Was an application made?
Yes, doctrine is profitable and the only true source for good doctrine is God’s Word. Scripture is good for more than doctrine though.
Paul told Timothy the ultimate goal of doctrine was more than just teachings for the sake of teachings. It had a greater purpose than sharing the “what” every Christian should believe. How many believers know what they believe?
Understanding only the “what” proves itself a possible foundation for failure. God’s Word is more than the old cliche, “ours is not to question why, ours is but to do or die.”
Church members look to their pastors to know what to believe and that’s a good idea. If that fails, they often do little more than glance at the Word itself. God knows more about what we should believe than we do. It rejoices the Lord when we become perfect (mature as believers) and thoroughly furnished unto all good works. It seems you can’t have one without the other. The good works are present when maturity also exists.
What often goes without notice, though, is the reason why the Lord gave us doctrines or teachings in the first place. Do you see what Paul is saying here?
There are many aspects of application given in the above verse. The first one is reproof. All Scripture is profitable for reproof, according to Paul. In other words, it is like a proof or evidence that leads to the conviction of the soul. Without knowing how a doctrine relates to the rest of our lives, how can we be convicted of doing that which is wrong? I know God’s Spirit is the One who brings conviction but that doesn’t leave the human element out of the equation. Preachers should do all they can to help listeners understand why the doctrines taught are so important. What difference do they really make?
No one believes in teaching doctrine more than I do. I did it for new church members and visitors for 15 years. Some of the students went on to become pastors, missionaries and people who began serving the Lord faithfully for many years after that. Many of them remain faithful to the Lord and His church several years after taking the course. What made it work so well? One day I learned that it wasn’t only the “what” that was important but the “why”.
When a person of influence enters the picture, a person who has built entirely on the whats of the Bible can be persuaded to believe differently. However, when a person clearly understands why he believes what he does, he develops a conviction about it. Unless what a person believes is rooted and grounded in Scripture, he develops preferences but not convictions. I’m sure you know that convictions are not easily shaken but preferences change. It’s more the convictions that lead to maturity than it is just the facts of belief. This is hard to put into words. Those who have experienced it know what I mean. They have all experienced first hand how all Scripture becomes profitable for reproof. Every Christian has a set of preferences as well as convictions. Please understand that knowing what the Bible says is vital to the Christian life but we should also try finding out why.
God’s Word is also profitable for correction. Strong’s identifies this as an improvement of life or character. Without understanding the connection between God’s Word and the situations we face in daily life, improvement takes longer. God’s Word will not return to Him void regardless of how clearly it’s explained. But by making the teaching practical and applying it to situations we face each day, preachers become better tools in the hands of the Master Teacher.
Now you have the key to instructing in righteousness if you didn’t already have it. The focus of my own ministry changed many years ago. It was once focused on the what. God so impressed on me the need to explain (as best I could) the reason why God said what He did, that it changed my focus. That process also showed me that I don’t always know why God said what He said. I still accept His Word as completely true and reliable.
I found myself driven by why. Why is it important we believe God? Why should we believe the doctrines taught in the Bible? Why should we only accept the Bible as the inspired Word of God? Why? Why? Why?
For the Bible teacher, is it only a matter of stomping doctrine into people? How can teachers and preachers keep this from being true in their own ministries?
There are some that enjoy jamming God’s Word down your throat without letting you chew it. I don’t enjoy swallowing my food whole. Many things taste better when I get the opportunity to chew them up and taste them. Some things taste better than others. In my travels around the globe, I’ve eaten some nasty things. I still ate them though because I was hungry and needed food. I smiled and complimented the cook even though I received emergency warnings from my digestive system.
This is where the spiritual taste buds come in. The taste (good or bad) comes from making the teaching practical and applying it to daily life the best way we can. A quick look at the media reveals many pastors that have a great talent for doing this and I thank the Lord for the ones who speak the truth.
God wants us balanced. If you teach, don’t forget the practical application for your student no matter his or her age. If you’re a student, don’t forget to ask yourself why you feel the way you do about God and His Word. When the lesson or sermon is over, don’t forget about it until next week. Think about it and hide God’s Word in your heart that you might not sin against Him.
There are many Christians both inside and outside of the church that feel like they are innocent "victims" of the force feeding of Bible doctrine. Either they don't like the doctrine or they feel it isn't the most important element of sound Bible teaching. That brings up a question.
What is more important? Is it the doctrines we try to digest or is it walking the walk God wants us walking each day?
Somehow it seems there is a lack of balance. You can’t know how to walk if you don’t know the way God wants you to walk.
“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
Doctrine is important! This includes the teachings that should go out to all nations according to Matthew 28:19-20. The doctrines include the what, the how to, the why of God’s Word.
Many people attend church and hear countless messages on what we should believe. Once taught the basics, many would say these members have been indoctrinated. That’s usually as far as churches go. Members learn what the Bible says about baptism, the Lord’s Supper, worship and other important facts about the Word.
In addition to that, though, there should be a word of caution. It’s wonderful to know what you believe. There are countless men and women among Baptist ranks that don’t know what they really believe. Even more of them have no idea why they believe as they do.
Can I go beyond that? If a Christian doesn’t know why he believes something, neither does he carry a conviction about what he believes. This is more than a matter of saying I believe something because my pastor said it or my teacher taught it. Until we can learn to focus on the why as well as the what, we place ourselves in danger of changing our beliefs simply because someone else told us to.
Here’s another area that hurts many church members. How often does a church member leave after the morning service and say something like this:
“That was a great sermon. I wonder what it meant? I mean, what does it have to do with me? How is this going to put food on my table or help me go through the problems I have at home and on the job?”
Is the teaching so doctrine focused that it loses its practical value? Was an application made?
Yes, doctrine is profitable and the only true source for good doctrine is God’s Word. Scripture is good for more than doctrine though.
Paul told Timothy the ultimate goal of doctrine was more than just teachings for the sake of teachings. It had a greater purpose than sharing the “what” every Christian should believe. How many believers know what they believe?
Understanding only the “what” proves itself a possible foundation for failure. God’s Word is more than the old cliche, “ours is not to question why, ours is but to do or die.”
Church members look to their pastors to know what to believe and that’s a good idea. If that fails, they often do little more than glance at the Word itself. God knows more about what we should believe than we do. It rejoices the Lord when we become perfect (mature as believers) and thoroughly furnished unto all good works. It seems you can’t have one without the other. The good works are present when maturity also exists.
What often goes without notice, though, is the reason why the Lord gave us doctrines or teachings in the first place. Do you see what Paul is saying here?
There are many aspects of application given in the above verse. The first one is reproof. All Scripture is profitable for reproof, according to Paul. In other words, it is like a proof or evidence that leads to the conviction of the soul. Without knowing how a doctrine relates to the rest of our lives, how can we be convicted of doing that which is wrong? I know God’s Spirit is the One who brings conviction but that doesn’t leave the human element out of the equation. Preachers should do all they can to help listeners understand why the doctrines taught are so important. What difference do they really make?
No one believes in teaching doctrine more than I do. I did it for new church members and visitors for 15 years. Some of the students went on to become pastors, missionaries and people who began serving the Lord faithfully for many years after that. Many of them remain faithful to the Lord and His church several years after taking the course. What made it work so well? One day I learned that it wasn’t only the “what” that was important but the “why”.
When a person of influence enters the picture, a person who has built entirely on the whats of the Bible can be persuaded to believe differently. However, when a person clearly understands why he believes what he does, he develops a conviction about it. Unless what a person believes is rooted and grounded in Scripture, he develops preferences but not convictions. I’m sure you know that convictions are not easily shaken but preferences change. It’s more the convictions that lead to maturity than it is just the facts of belief. This is hard to put into words. Those who have experienced it know what I mean. They have all experienced first hand how all Scripture becomes profitable for reproof. Every Christian has a set of preferences as well as convictions. Please understand that knowing what the Bible says is vital to the Christian life but we should also try finding out why.
God’s Word is also profitable for correction. Strong’s identifies this as an improvement of life or character. Without understanding the connection between God’s Word and the situations we face in daily life, improvement takes longer. God’s Word will not return to Him void regardless of how clearly it’s explained. But by making the teaching practical and applying it to situations we face each day, preachers become better tools in the hands of the Master Teacher.
Now you have the key to instructing in righteousness if you didn’t already have it. The focus of my own ministry changed many years ago. It was once focused on the what. God so impressed on me the need to explain (as best I could) the reason why God said what He did, that it changed my focus. That process also showed me that I don’t always know why God said what He said. I still accept His Word as completely true and reliable.
I found myself driven by why. Why is it important we believe God? Why should we believe the doctrines taught in the Bible? Why should we only accept the Bible as the inspired Word of God? Why? Why? Why?
For the Bible teacher, is it only a matter of stomping doctrine into people? How can teachers and preachers keep this from being true in their own ministries?
There are some that enjoy jamming God’s Word down your throat without letting you chew it. I don’t enjoy swallowing my food whole. Many things taste better when I get the opportunity to chew them up and taste them. Some things taste better than others. In my travels around the globe, I’ve eaten some nasty things. I still ate them though because I was hungry and needed food. I smiled and complimented the cook even though I received emergency warnings from my digestive system.
This is where the spiritual taste buds come in. The taste (good or bad) comes from making the teaching practical and applying it to daily life the best way we can. A quick look at the media reveals many pastors that have a great talent for doing this and I thank the Lord for the ones who speak the truth.
God wants us balanced. If you teach, don’t forget the practical application for your student no matter his or her age. If you’re a student, don’t forget to ask yourself why you feel the way you do about God and His Word. When the lesson or sermon is over, don’t forget about it until next week. Think about it and hide God’s Word in your heart that you might not sin against Him.
