The Mind of Christ in His Word: Part 2 (5)

These were more fair-minded than those in Thessalonica, in that they received the word with all readiness, and searched the Scriptures daily tofind outwhether these things were so. Acts 17.11

A community project
Developing sound doctrine is not the work of isolated individuals. Since we all tend to read the Scriptures through a particular lens – our background, learning, experience, and biases – and since we are naturally inclined to find in Scripture whatever reinforces our biases, we need an approach to deriving sound doctrine from Scripture that can keep us from drifting away from the thing we seek because of some faulty interpretation or unrecognized personal agenda.

Deriving sound doctrine from Scripture is a work of the whole Church – present and past. Only as we come together over the Word of God, submitting to the Spirit of Christ, can we expect to avoid the pitfalls of whatever may distract us from sound doctrine. The believers in Berea desired to know whether what they were being taught by Paul and his companions could be relied on as sound doctrine, so they searched the Scriptures daily. This would have been an act of communal conversation and discussion, since it’s likely the only available Scriptures were to be found in the local synagogue.

We can follow their example in taking up the work of sound doctrine. Luke’s concise comment about the Jewish believers in Berea offers four guidelines for the work of sound doctrine, four disciplines in which we must participate if we are to learn the true teachings of Scripture and use these to renew our minds against doctrinal revulsion and other spiritual ills.

Four disciplines
Note first that we cannot do sound doctrine apart from the Word of God. We must be willing both to receive teaching from the Word of God and to go to the Scriptures and search through them as the Spirit leads. The Scriptures are the touchstone of sound doctrine. Reading, studying, meditating, and being taught the Word of God are thus indispensable to having one’s soul readied against any threat of doctrinal revulsion.

But notice as well, in the second place, that this is not done in a merely individual way, as I have said. While each of us must develop good disciplines of Scripture reading and study, we need to come together with other believers to compare our notes, discuss our insights, and discover the applications God would have for us as a community. Only by searching the Scriptures together can we hope to find the best answers to our questions, and to make sure we’re asking all the right questions.

Along these same lines, since leaders in the Christian movement have been doing the work of discerning sound doctrine for nearly 2,000 years, we need to consult the community of our believing forebears on matters of doctrine, in order to discover how their insights and understandings can help to shape our own. In the writings of the Church Fathers, medieval scholastic theologians, Reformation pastors and thinkers, Puritan divines, and even more recent and contemporary Christian thinkers, we can find wisdom to flesh out the bones of doctrinal understanding, and keep us from veering off the path of orthodoxy.

Those who will not consult the voices of our forebears will be just that much more vulnerable to being led astray into false teaching and doctrinal revulsion.

Third, we need to work together in studying the Scripture with specific questions or concerns in mind. We may want to learn, for example, whether there is a Biblical teaching about marriage and family life (there is). So we’ll have to get together a raft of questions to ask the Bible, and assemble some useful resources to guide us in our study – such as a concordance, a Bible dictionary, and perhaps a synopsis of historical theology. We continue asking questions until all our concerns have been exhausted and all the gems of Scripture have been mined. Then we must do the hard work of synthesizing our findings into specific answers.

Since new questions will always emerge, it will be good for us to understand the broad framework of sound doctrine, and to know how to practice the skills of searching the Scripture together for answers to all our questions within that general framework.

Finally, the work of sound doctrine is an ongoing, daily duty. Even though the faith of Christ has been handed down once for all, and our forebears in the faith have hammered out the major doctrinal issues already, still, we have not learned all that has been taught, nor do we know how sound doctrine should be applied to our daily experience in every case.

So this work of seeking the sound doctrine of Scripture on all matters of faith and life is one to which we must become devoted, a spiritual discipline that we set aside at our peril, and at the great risk of falling into doctrinal revulsion over time.

For reflection
1.  How should doctrine factor into the daily life of a believer? What if it doesn’t?

2.  Suggest some ways that, let’s say, a Bible study group could work together to make sure that their efforts were guarded by sound doctrine.

3.  How might you integrate the work of developing sound doctrine as part of your daily spiritual disciplines?

Next steps – Preparation: See if you can find out what might be the main points of a general framework for doctrinal understanding. Do you think the Apostles’ Creed might be a good place to start? Talk with some other Christians about these questions.

T. M. Moore

This is part 5 of a multi-part series on the Christian mind. To download this week’s study as a free PDF, click here.

Brush up on your Christian worldview, and stretch your mind to think about life and the world as Jesus does. Our free online course, One in Twelve: Introduction to Christian Worldview, can provide the categories, terms, and framework for you to begin nurturing a more expansive Christian mind. For more information and to register, click here.

How’s your knowledge of the Bible, as to its primary themes, overall development, and Christ-centeredness? Order a copy of our workbook, God’s Covenant, and spend 13 glorious weeks working your way through the whole of Scripture, examining key themes and tracing the development of God’s precious and very great promises (click here). Or sign up for our course, Introduction to Biblical Theology, and discover the best ways of getting at, getting into, and getting with the Word of God. The course is free and online, and you can study at your own pace and depth. For more information or to register, click here.

The Lord uses your prayers and gifts to help us in this ministry. Add us to your regular prayer list, and seek the Lord concerning whether He would have you share with us. You can contribute to The Fellowship of Ailbe by using the contribute buttonat the website, or send your gift to The Fellowship of Ailbe, 19 Tyler Drive, Essex Junction, VT 05452.

Except as indicated, Scripture taken from the New King James Version. © Copyright 1982 by Thomas Nelson, Inc. Used by permission. All rights reserved.