Resolving Doctrinal Differences

One thing that I’ve learned as a pastor is that the exegetical approach to Bible teaching will provoke questions from those who attend your Church.  It really should not be a surprise because God has said things that are hard for us to grasp.  Look at the number of denominations that make up the spectrum of what we call the “Christian” Church.  These exist because we have disagreements, not about what the Bible says but about what it means.  That is the major influence on how Pastor’s teach and also on the word choices made by the Translators of our English Bibles.    

My responsibility as a pastor is to accurately present what the Bible says.  Hopefully, I can do that without injecting my preferential meanings to the text.  Those who are listening are responsible to verify what they are hearing matches up with what they are reading.  Because every Christian is responsible for their own beliefs.  Which means each of us must read the text for ourselves and have a sound methodology for resolving differences in interpretations.

My experience has been that most people go with comparing what different Pastors and Bible teachers say and then choose the one they like the best.  The problem with that approach is one Pastor might be correct in his teaching and the other wrong, but both could also be wrong.  In the former case you have a 50/50 chance of being right.  In the latter you are left with choosing the doctrinal error that sounds the best to you.  In other words, you would be 100% wrong. 

The Bible is the only touch stone we have for verification of spiritual truth.  It is the rationale behind 2 Timothy 2:15 Be diligent to present yourself approved to God, a worker who does not need to be ashamed, rightly dividing the word of truth. Paul wrote that under the supervision of the Holy Spirit who knows all about human nature.  Paul’s letters have the authority of the Holy Spirit backing them up and yet the Spirit knew what future generations would do with the Scriptures. 
 
In Acts 17:10-11 He, the Spirit of God, gave us an example of what 2 Timothy 2:15 means.  Acts 17:10-11 Then the brethren immediately sent Paul and Silas away by night to Berea. When they arrived, they went into the synagogue of the Jews. 11 These 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.

Paul and his team were not troubled in the least by the Bereans checking out what they had taught against what the Scriptures actually said.  That is the model for every Christian to follow.  It is after all your personal destiny that is at stake.  Speaking for myself as a Pastor, I am pleased when people double check my teaching against the Text of the Bible.  And there have been more times than I like to admit that I’ve had to correct a long held understanding to the Bible that was wrong.  
​
When you stand before the Lord saying “but that was the way my pastor taught it” won’t get you a pass.