Satire
The Apostle Peter tells us that some things in the Bible are difficult to grasp. In 2 Peter 3:16 Peter says, “There are some things in them that are hard to understand, which the ignorant and unstable twist to their own destruction, as they do the other Scriptures.” In light of this verse, I have discovered a great way to avoid the hard teachings of the Bible. Do you want to know how as well? Just lean in. Let me enlighten you. All you have to do, with anything you don’t like in the Bible, is to claim that the Bible is unclear on that particular doctrine. It is a great way to avoid those “hard” teachings while still embracing all those “clear” teachings that you already like any ways.
Let’s consider the doctrine of hell. You may be one of those people, like myself, who see how hard of a teaching eternal torment is. Maybe you have wrestled with that teaching for years. Then, tragedy strikes. Someone close to you passes away. The final straw. Hell, for you, moves out of the “Hard” teaching category and into the “Unclear” category. As soon as a Biblical teaching gets labeled “Unclear” then sooner you can reject it.
What about marriage and human sexuality? Yeah the church may have one historical biblical interpretation about this teaching, but those old codgers didn’t live in 2016. The Bible teaches very hard things about marriage and sexuality. Wait……. I mean the Bible is stunningly unclear on marriage and human sexuality. Since the Bible is so unclear, we should not draw any lines in the sand.
Let’s consider one more Biblical doctrine. Yeah, yeah, yeah. Ephesians 1 and Romans 9. Blah, blah, blah. Election is just such a hard thing for me to accept. Wait… Actually, the Bible is actually unclear about the doctrine of election. Therefore, I will ignore it.
My friends, do you see? All that is required to ignore or reject a teaching in the Bible is for you to label the Bible unclear! It’s awesome!
End Satire
Friends, some of the hardest teachings in the Bible also happen to be some of the clearest teachings of the Bible. Just because something is hard to understand, does not mean it is unclear. The doctrine of hell is difficult, but it is not unclear. For those who desire to redefine marriage and human sexuality, the teaching of the Bible is hard. However, the biblical testimony is not unclear. The Biblical doctrine of election is one of the hardest teachings of the Bible. Again, that does not mean the Bible is unclear. The Bible clearly teaches election and human responsibility. That is hard to understand, but it is not unclear.
There is a better way. Come to the Word of God with submissive hearts rather than judgmental hearts. Don’t arrogantly try to shape the Bible into your thinking. Rather, shape your heart and mind around what the Bible clearly teaches. Let us be more eager to change ourselves than we are to try to change the Word. May it be.
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