One of the critical functions of a church leader is to teach "sound doctrine."
What is sound doctrine and is one view "sounder" than another? How does a leader discern what is true from what is error?
On today's show we talk about how a leader can discern true doctrine from false in a discussion that will definitely NOT be what you expect!
On Today's podcast, I mentioned our free eBook on Why Social Media is Vital To Sharing The Good News.
Transcript of Today's Show
As church leaders, we have been commissioned by Christ to equip our congregations to do the work of ministry according to Ephesians 4: 11-16. This word equip incorporates teaching, mentoring, training, supplying – whatever it takes to bring those in our care to a place of spiritual maturity and effectiveness.
A big part of that is feeding them sound doctrine. Jesus charged Peter to feed the sheep of God. (John 21:15-17) Peter called upon all leaders to feed the flock and be examples to the congregation in I Peter 5:1,2. Paul charged his protégé Timothy to give his attention to doctrine and teaching in I Timothy 4:12-17. He warned leaders wolves that would come into congregations bringing false doctrine that would lead many astray.
So this is serious stuff. As ministers, one of our critical functions to make certain that our teaching squares with Christ’s mission and purpose. In essence, we need to know we are feeding people what is biblically sound from both the pulpit and through the example we demonstrate.
So, what does sound doctrine look like?
If you look at the general landscape of Christianity throughout the world, you have the catholic church, eastern orthodox, Presbyterian, Methodist, Lutheran, Brethren, Congregational, Amish, Mennonite, Baptist, southern Baptist, church of God, assembly of God, Pentecostal, charismatic, independent, non-denominational…and the list goes on.
All of these denominations typically divide up as either Calvinistic or Arminian. Calvinists tend to be cessationist and Arminians tend to favor charismatic behaviors, generally speaking. Which is correct doctrine?
Here’s the thing: You can have perfect doctrine and yet be wrong before God.
Much of what the Pharisees and scribes taught was biblically sound, yet Jesus reserved his most stinging rebukes - for them. He even went so far as to say in Matthew 23:2,3: The teachers of religious law and the Pharisees are the official interpreters of the law of Moses. So practice and obey whatever they tell you.
So, is it possible to get your doctrine right, but miss God altogether? And what does false doctrine actually look like? Is it merely the lack of biblical orthodoxy?
I mean, the scribes and the Pharisees appear to have gotten the good housekeeping seal of approval from Jesus on what they taught, but in the next sentence he warned his disciples to stay clear of them.
In Luke 12:1, Jesus told his followers: Notice what he said: Beware of the leaven of the Pharisees, which is hypocrisy. In other words, in determining false doctrine, it is not merely dotting I’s and crossing t’s. You need to go deeper and look at the fruit of what is being taught.
The Pharisees and scribes produced disciples which is clear from Mark 2:18, but their disciples were legalistic and arrogant. Their doctrine produced followers who looked and acted like them. This legalistic arrogance would eventually crucify Christ. So, their doctrine wasn’t just wrong, it was straight-out evil.
I think we would all have to agree that any doctrine, any preaching, any expounding of scripture that leads to the denigration or devaluing of Jesus is false by its very nature. But there is more to identifying false doctrine than hunting d
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