Is Doctrine Just Head Knowledge?
Is doctrine just head knowledge? No! Understanding Christian doctrine is a vital component for a believer’s life. Hank Hanegraaff says, “Essential Christian doctrine is the North Star by which the course of Christianity is set.”1 To know what you believe and why you believe can greatly benefit the Christian and it can never be considered merely a cerebral exercise that simply fills a person’s mind with just facts and figures—cold dull content organized categorized and labeled in nice little boxes. Such an idea is pure foolishness. So what is so important about learning doctrine anyway?
Understanding Christian doctrine liberates the soul. A person who sins against God is a slave to sin, but Christ says, “If you continue in My word, then you are truly disciples of Mine; and you will know the truth and the truth will make you free” (John 8:31-32). There have been so many occasions wherein I would be told some legalistic prescription tagged with a proof text by another Christian, only to find it does not pan out when examined under the light of Scripture. I take this to be similar to what Martin Luther faced in his own attempts to reform the abuse of the Roman Catholic indulgence. Luther came to understand that the Scriptures taught one is justified by faith before God and this is solely an act of grace. One does not earn nor deserve their salvation. This stood in antithesis to the Roman Catholic indulgence, which involved peasants giving what little money they had to the Church so one could secure time from the fires of Purgatory to cleanse the venial sins of one’s self or somebody else. When one comes to the Scriptures, and understands the truth, the truth shall set that person free.
Christian doctrine is also a high stakes game. One can reap many rewards for having sound Christian doctrine, but when one adopts false teaching, the consequences can be devastating. Jim Jones is a prime example. He proclaimed an attractive message of racial equality and fought for social reformation, but then declared himself divine. His message was two slices of truth between a spiritually cyanide laced lie. He deceived many individuals, and 909 of them paid the ultimate price when this false prophet called them to follow him in the ultimate test of loyalty. Our beliefs have consequences.
The problem is not just the false messiahs outside the church, but there are also doctrinal challenges within the walls of the church. The prosperity gospel not only appeals to the greed of individuals, but it leaves those who adopt it in a world of hurt. They are deceived into thinking that faith is a force, that words are containers of that force, and that through faith filled words both God and man can use positive confession to get whatever they desire. Sadly, some pay the ultimate price in simply using positive confession to invoke a miraculous healing, all the while ignoring their symptoms and forgoing any medical attention.
These words of Paul are to be taken to heart: “In all things show yourself to be an example of good deeds, with purity in doctrine, dignified, sound in speech which is beyond reproach, so that the opponent will be put to shame, having nothing bad to say about us (Titus 2:7-8). Followers of Christ will greatly benefit in the study of the Scriptures so that they might have the rewards of a robust doctrine. Moreover, they are to take heed to the real dangers of bad doctrine. In the cacophony of false teaching that reverberates in the world, it is only with a strong grasp of Christian doctrine that comes through the study of the Scriptures can one be able to discern the voice of God.
Truth is so obscured nowadays and lies so well established that unless we love the truth we shall never recognize it —Balise Pascal, Pensees.
Happy New Year!
1. Hank Hanegraaff, “Memorable Keys to Essential Christian D-O-C-T-R-I-N-E” (Charlotte, NC: Christian Research Institute, 2009).
Understanding Christian doctrine liberates the soul. A person who sins against God is a slave to sin, but Christ says, “If you continue in My word, then you are truly disciples of Mine; and you will know the truth and the truth will make you free” (John 8:31-32). There have been so many occasions wherein I would be told some legalistic prescription tagged with a proof text by another Christian, only to find it does not pan out when examined under the light of Scripture. I take this to be similar to what Martin Luther faced in his own attempts to reform the abuse of the Roman Catholic indulgence. Luther came to understand that the Scriptures taught one is justified by faith before God and this is solely an act of grace. One does not earn nor deserve their salvation. This stood in antithesis to the Roman Catholic indulgence, which involved peasants giving what little money they had to the Church so one could secure time from the fires of Purgatory to cleanse the venial sins of one’s self or somebody else. When one comes to the Scriptures, and understands the truth, the truth shall set that person free.
Christian doctrine is also a high stakes game. One can reap many rewards for having sound Christian doctrine, but when one adopts false teaching, the consequences can be devastating. Jim Jones is a prime example. He proclaimed an attractive message of racial equality and fought for social reformation, but then declared himself divine. His message was two slices of truth between a spiritually cyanide laced lie. He deceived many individuals, and 909 of them paid the ultimate price when this false prophet called them to follow him in the ultimate test of loyalty. Our beliefs have consequences.
The problem is not just the false messiahs outside the church, but there are also doctrinal challenges within the walls of the church. The prosperity gospel not only appeals to the greed of individuals, but it leaves those who adopt it in a world of hurt. They are deceived into thinking that faith is a force, that words are containers of that force, and that through faith filled words both God and man can use positive confession to get whatever they desire. Sadly, some pay the ultimate price in simply using positive confession to invoke a miraculous healing, all the while ignoring their symptoms and forgoing any medical attention.
These words of Paul are to be taken to heart: “In all things show yourself to be an example of good deeds, with purity in doctrine, dignified, sound in speech which is beyond reproach, so that the opponent will be put to shame, having nothing bad to say about us (Titus 2:7-8). Followers of Christ will greatly benefit in the study of the Scriptures so that they might have the rewards of a robust doctrine. Moreover, they are to take heed to the real dangers of bad doctrine. In the cacophony of false teaching that reverberates in the world, it is only with a strong grasp of Christian doctrine that comes through the study of the Scriptures can one be able to discern the voice of God.
Truth is so obscured nowadays and lies so well established that unless we love the truth we shall never recognize it —Balise Pascal, Pensees.
Happy New Year!
1. Hank Hanegraaff, “Memorable Keys to Essential Christian D-O-C-T-R-I-N-E” (Charlotte, NC: Christian Research Institute, 2009).
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