August 20, 2006

“Examine the Scriptures”

By Steve McReynolds

How did you arrive at what you believe about the return of Christ? Do you remember? Did your investigation include a thorough study of the Bible? All of the following scenarios are a good start, but on the whole inadequate:

1. “I heard it at a seminar, and it sounded very believable.”

2. “My pastor believes it strongly, and I trust him.”

3. “Most people I know believe that way, so it’s probably right.”

4. “I read it in a book; I didn’t see the need to check it out with the Bible.”

All of these may be good places to start, but not necessarily good places to finish.

In studying what the Bible has to say about the return of Christ an excellent place to spend your time is…in the Bible. Rocket science, I know. But it is tragic how ill-acquainted Christians can sometimes be with their own Bible. Interestingly, the less a person knows what the Bible says, often, the more dogmatic they are about what they believe.

If you haven’t studied the Bible yourself, you depend upon the work and preparation of others for all of your knowledge. But your laziness could be theologically “fatal.” When Paul and Silas attempted to persuade the Thessalonian Jews that Jesus was the Messiah in Acts 17, they ran him out of town, not because they compared what he was saying to the Scriptures, but because…well, because he was just wrong!

“1 When they had passed through Amphipolis and Apollonia, they came to Thessalonica, where there was a Jewish synagogue. 2 As his custom was, Paul went into the synagogue, and on three Sabbath days he reasoned with them from the Scriptures, 3 explaining and proving that the Christ had to suffer and rise from the dead. "This Jesus I am proclaiming to you is the Christ," he said. 4 Some of the Jews were persuaded and joined Paul and Silas, as did a large number of God-fearing Greeks and not a few prominent women. 5 But the Jews were jealous; so they rounded up some bad characters from the marketplace, formed a mob and started a riot in the city. They rushed to Jason's house in search of Paul and Silas in order to bring them out to the crowd…10 As soon as it was night, the brothers sent Paul and Silas away to Berea. On arriving there, they went to the Jewish synagogue. 11 Now the Bereans were of more noble character than the Thessalonians, for they received the message with great eagerness and examined the Scriptures every day to see if what Paul said was true. 12 Many of the Jews believed, as did also a number of prominent Greek women and many Greek men (NIV).

The Thessalonians did not check to see if what Paul and Silas said was in line with the Scriptures. The Bereans did, and they were commended.

Unfortunately, we can be like the Thessalonians. Much of what we believe has simply taken root. It’s just what we believe. We stopped studying to see what Scripture says. We’re comfortable with it. Here are some faulty characteristics of the Thessalonians, whom the Bible condemns in this case:

1. They valued being popular over finding the real truth.

2. They were so arrogant as to think their beliefs were not open to question.

Let’s look at the first flaw. They were not primarily focused on Paul’s reasoning, but rather on being popular with the people. “They were jealous,” it says. That’s interesting. Why doesn’t it say, “They were confused,” or “They disagreed with Paul’s and Silas’ logic?” That’s because the Thessalonian Jews weren’t really focused on their logic. They weren’t on a search for truth. If Paul and Silas were right, they didn’t want to know about it. “Right” theology wasn’t the priority; recognition was. Second, they were arrogant. This is clearly shown, by their rash behavior. Arrogance doesn’t have time to examine another opinion: “Why should I check it out? I already know I’m right.”

Unfortunately, in teaching on the return of Christ I have found these two characteristics in people far too often. Some people begin arguing with me and never even open their Bible. Is this an example of a genuine attempt to find the truth? This is closed-mindedness, I’m afraid. In such exchanges, usually more “heat” is generated than “light.” Others, however, commit the first fault—they value popularity over the real truth. “What will others say, if I change my views?” That’s called peer pressure, and it isn’t limited to just teenagers. It extends to adults, if we’re honest.

I think God calls on us to search out the truth in the Scriptures, with careful consideration to what the Church has taught, “because no one should be an island.” However, if that search leads us to question the view that happens to be popular in our day or in our circles, or causes us to have to reconsider what we have always believed, we should follow Paul’s instruction:
“Do your best to present yourself to God as one approved, a workman who does not need to be ashamed and who correctly handles the word of truth” (2 Tim. 2:15, NIV).