How Not To Become a Pharisee

Ever met a smart Alec? Do they grate on the nerves or what! Now, I have nothing against a brilliant person. Wisdom, knowledge, and an excellent spirit are gifts from God. If we think we lack them, we can ask to receive them- so they are not bad in themselves (James3:13-17).

In case you missed the hidden disclaimer, here is it: I love knowledgeable people. In fact, I believe that gaining knowledge of God through The Bible is indispensable for a believer. That said, since we have been emphasizing the importance of personal Bible study, I thought to sound a note of warning.

As you gain more knowledge and insight by the help of The Holy Spirit, know that:

1.       It is not for you to gather more weapons to blast other less-knowledgeable Christians to smithereens. If you do that, you are speeding down Pharisee lane- sandals, long curved finger and all.

2.       We do not study so that we can be more divisive, and argue unnecessarily about doctrines. Some of the ones we argue about are not the weightier matters of salvation.

3.       We do not study to gloat. Whichever way you look at it, that is just childish- in every sense.

4.       We do not study so that we can bring out our hammers of judgement at the speed of light.

These four features can help you pick out one Pharisee from a crowd of 5,000 waiting for Jesus to serve bread and fish.

We know that refraining from gloating in our knowledge does not come naturally to the fallen human nature. Apostle Paul acknowledged that ‘knowledge puffs up’ BUT love builds up (I Corinthians 8:1). So friends, for your good knowledge not to be evil spoken of, I suggest two things. I’m not Einstein you know, so I copied these suggestions (sometimes verbatim) from The Bible.

1.       To your knowledge, add self-control. In other words, never miss an opportunity to keep your mouth shut. I forget the name of the wise guy who said this but Peter said it first. I personally struggle with showing off when I know something and I know it bothers on pride. Since God resists the proud, what is the point of being very knowledgeable about God if He is going to resist me anyway? These commentaries throw more light on how to add self-control to knowledge.

2.       Let knowledge produce love in you. Truly knowing The Word should make us deeply compassionate for the unsaved, not judgmental. It should deepen God’s love in us.

This is the point of everything: The more we know God, the more we love Him; the more we love Him, the more His love in us coat our daily lives and spreads to people we relate with- sinner or saint.

Does this mean we should hide God’s light in us? No. God forbid. We are a city set on the hill that cannot be hid but there is a way to go about it.

The Love of God. Self-control. Those two things should prevent us from evolving from sincere God-chasers to judgmental Pharisees. 

Grace to you.

Have you ever struggled with showing off that you know so much or getting argumentative? what did you do that helped you deal with it?  Kindly share in the comments section.

Picture from biblicalproof.wordpress.com

A Fair Way to Judge Doctrines and Teachings

Hopefully, you accepted the invitation to do a personal study of The Bible and find out for yourself what it says. In doing this, you may have stumbled on verses that seem to contradict your current beliefs or doctrines. If you haven’t, huge congratulations! Perhaps you have been fed with the undiluted word of God. If you have, that’s another matter-especially if they are things you feel strongly about. 

Test all spirits: 1 John 4:1

Regardless of how you feel, remember that God’s word trumps that of any man. Let that thought guide you. 

I recently had a discussion with a friend, an amazing guy who started an internet radio station with N200 for the sole purpose of getting the good news to all nations. He commented that he had not been getting feeds from this blog in his mail box so I tried to bring him up to date. When we talked about doctrines that divide the Body of Christ rather than unify Her the way Jesus wants and prayed, he shared with me something he learnt from Zac Poonen.  

According to him, Zac Poonen said whenever he has to evaluate a a teaching or a doctrine, he asks four questions:

1.       Did Jesus teach it?

2.       Did Jesus do it?

3.       Did the apostles teach it?

4.       Did the apostles do it?

If the said suggestion does not hold up based on any of these, Poonen says he may not be able to state categorically that you have fallen into a sin but he can definitely let you know that he isn’t interested in tagging along.  Simple. If we really believe that The Bible is the only inerrant word of God, this makes perfect sense. Doesn’t it?

My Thoughts

I have been trying to think if it is possible for a true doctrine to fail all four tests. I couldn’t come up with anything except the issue of pastors and private jets. But that isn’t something I’m willing to get in a debate for at the moment.

This guide seems fool proof to me. The next time you are been fed ‘The Word’ from 1^st Opinions, filter it in the light of these 4 points. If it doesn’t hold up, you might want to check again.

In all, remember that the letters kill, and The Spirit gives Life. God answers prayers so if we turn to Him in truth, He is able to make us know what we need to know. Amen

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