Dilbert on divisions in the Church... maybe
Sept. 20th's Dilbert Comic is more than just a commentary on the business world. I'm thinking that sometimes I do this way too strongly. I'm thinking that the Church tends to do this, too. I'm wondering if maybe this attitude is why there are so many different denominations that don't speak to each other (still, even in this new millenium). I wonder if maybe this attitude is why people see a relationship with Christ as not really being very life-changing. Now, the "trick" is to not have this attitude, yet not go to the other extreme of accepting all beliefs as equally true; to have an open dialogue with others, while sifting everything they say through the lens/grid/world view/paradigm of what the whole Bible says (not just Jesus words or our favorite O.T. prophet).
Labels: Theology
posted by Pastor Paul at
11:47 AM
1 Comments:
I find it helps to remember that nobody believes untruth on purpose. Most people who believe things I disagree with do so not because they are evil or stupid (necessarily), but because they have what seems to them to be good reasons. Those reasons may be the result of their own learning, or simply because they've been taught by people they trust, but to the believer, the reasons are always valid.
That's why the "Let's just see what the Bible says about that, shall we?" method of apologetics doesn't work. When you take an individual belief of someone else's (heretical or not), and answer with a proof-text, all you've done is show that you know where to find a given passage in the Bible. And the BIble being as it is, there's probably a proof-text that can be used to back the other person up, as well.
The fact that the Bible says something doesn't mean that I understand it better than the next guy, who probably is at least as familiar with the scriptures as I am. If I'm going to address differences in belief, I have to start from a desire to understand why they believe it, rather than just setting out to show that it's "unbiblical."
By
Joel, at 2:13 PM
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