I Could Be Wrong

Those who really know me well know that I'm a man of conviction, especially when it comes to matters of faith and religion. I know what I believe and more importantly, I know WHY I believe it. 

And I truly believe that this is the way God wants us to be...

"For we are not writing any other thing to you than what you read or understand. Now I trust you will understand, even to the end" (2 Cor. 1:13).

"Examine yourselves as to whether you are in the faith. Prove yourselves. Do you not know yourselves, that Jesus Christ is in you? - unless indeed you are disqualified" (2 Cor. 13:5). 

"by which, when you read, you may understand my knowledge in the mystery of Christ" (Eph. 3:4).

"Therefore do not be unwise, but understand what the will of the Lord is" (Eph. 5:17).

"Take heed to yourself and to the doctrine. Continue in them, for in doing this you will save both yourself and those who hear you" (1 Tim. 4:16). 

"Be diligent to present yourself approved to God, a worker who does not need to be ashamed, rightly dividing the word of truth" (2 Tim. 2:15). 

 "But sanctify the Lord God in your hearts, and always be ready to give a defense to everyone who asks you a reason for the hope that is in you, with meekness and fear" (1 Pet. 3:15).

"These things I have WRITTEN to you who believe in the name of the Son of God, that you may KNOW that you have eternal life, and that you may CONTINUE to believe in the name of the Son of God" (1 John 5:13). 

God doesn't want us to be ecumenical or half-hearted! Jesus didn't die for us so that we could be filled with uncertainty or doubt. The good Lord didn't expend so much time and energy on the revelation, inspiration and compilation of the New Testament scriptures only to find out that we, His humble servants, could not and cannot possibly understand or know His will for our lives and for our churches.

We are to be men and women of conviction...at least in matters where God has expressed His will.

Having said that, I am also human. As a human, I am fallible. I am capable of being short-sighted, of making mistakes, of misunderstanding the Scriptures, and I am certainly capable of being wrong. With this in mind, I always try to keep an open mind. Maybe I've missed something. Maybe I'm overthinking something. Maybe you know something that I don't, or have seen something in the Scriptures that I haven't seen.

You see, there is a difference between confidence and arrogance.

Someone who is confident believes that they are right. They've done the research, have studied, and have come to certain conclusions that they believe are true (i.e. convictions).

Someone who is arrogant, however, not only believes that they are right, they believe that they cannot possibly be wrong. Such an attitude is condemned throughout Scripture, especially in Proverbs. God desires that we be confident, but He loathes arrogance! We must always be willing to listen to what others have to say.

Even Paul said, "For I know of nothing against myself, yet I am not justified by this; but He who judges me is the Lord" (1 Cor. 4:4). The Bereans in Acts 17:11 were "more fair-minded than those in Thessalonica, in that they received the word with all readiness, and searched the Scriptures daily to find out whether these things were so." Both of these examples teach us that while we ought be assured that we're right, we ought to always remain humble enough to reconsider and reexamine the tenets of our faith...to recognize our own fallibility and to be open-minded to what others have to say.

Yes, I am a man of conviction. Most of you know this about me.

But at the same time, I am very aware of the line that can be crossed from confidence and conviction to arrogance and closed-mindedness. I have thought and prayed so much about this. And I pray often to God that He will keep me humble, and that when my faith is challenged, I will not clam up or revert to traditionalism or ritualism...but to a fresh study of the Scriptures.

Could I be wrong in my belief that baptism is essential for salvation? Could I possibly be wrong in using Scripture to condemn the practice of denominationalism? Could I be wrong in saying that it's sinful to incorporate instrumental music into church worship? Could I be wrong in condemning church-sponsored social and recreational activities? Could I be wrong in my view of divorce and remarriage? Could I be wrong in my view of the return of Christ? Could be entire approach to Scripture (hermeneutics) be off-base? These are all issues that I have discussed and debated with others over the years. 

Yes. It's possible. I could be wrong in any number...or in ALL of these areas.

Two young Mormon "elders" came by my house yesterday. I told them - and I meant this with all sincerity - that I wanted to learn more about the Mormon faith, and that if they could prove to me that Mormonism offers the true path to God and salvation, that I would become a Mormon. I've said the same thing to Jehovah's Witnesses in the past. And to Catholics, and others.

Am I contradicting my former claim to conviction? I don't believe so. I have convictions in all of these areas and will continue to preach those convictions. But hey, if I'm wrong and you can show me how or where I'm wrong, please do so; you'd be my friend and I'd be so thankful if you'd love me enough to correct me or to deepen my understanding of God's precious Word.

I read verses like these two and I tremble...because I do not want my Lord to say this of me:

"These people draw near to Me with their mouth, and honor Me with their lips, but their heart is far from Me. And in vain they worship Me, teaching as doctrines the commandments of men" (Matthew 15:8-9).

"Not everyone who says to Me, 'Lord, Lord,' shall enter the kingdom of heaven, but he who does the will of My Father in heaven. Many will say to Me in that day, 'Lord, Lord, have we not prophesied in Your name, cast out demons in Your name, and done many wonders in Your name?' And then I will declare to them, 'I never knew you; depart from Me, you who practice lawlessness" (Mt. 7:21-23). 

I am always asking the people I speak with, correspond with and study with to put their trust in Christ, not in their feelings, or their families, or their traditions, or in the majority opinion. I always ask people to be open-minded and to reconsider what they believe. 

I'd be a hypocrite if I didn't do the same.