All this will make sound doctrine hard to identify
So we see that in the last days sound doctrine will be hidden and hard to locate. It will be competing amongst all kinds of false doctrine. It will be labeled heresy and denounced by the masses. This famine for sound doctrine was prophesied by Amos long ago.
Amos 8:11-12 "Behold, days are coming," declares the Lord GOD, "when I will send a famine on the land, not a famine for bread or a thirst for water, but rather for hearing the words of the LORD. People will stagger from sea to sea and from the north even to the east; they will go to and fro to seek the word of the LORD, but they will not find it.
Do you think Amos 8:11-12 refers to a lack of Bibles? Not at all! On the contrary, it is because the word of the Lord will be competing with so many other ‘words’ that it will be difficult to find the word of the Lord. People will seek for the word of the Lord but unless they are able to identify the word of the Lord when they hear it they will not find it.
God expects us to rise beyond this situation. Consider Eph 4:14.
Eph 4:14 As a result, we are no longer to be children, tossed here and there by waves and carried about by every wind of doctrine, by the trickery of men, by craftiness in deceitful scheming;
Eph 4:14 warns us that we will encounter the trickery of men, and craftiness and deceitful scheming. We must be prepared for that and not be willing to swallow everything we hear.
Eph 4:14 also helps us to determine how spiritually mature we are. A spiritually mature person is able to identify sound doctrine whereas a spiritually immature person will be totally confused by the multitude of doctrines that exist. Therefore, learning to identify sound doctrine is an essential step towards spiritual maturity.
Every member of the church must be able to identify false doctrine and run away from it. Also, every member of the church must be able to identify sound doctrine and stand up for it in love. Only then will the church be able to grow up in all aspect to be like Christ (Eph 4:15).
To summarize, Satan is out to spread false doctrine. Many people will gladly receive false doctrine. As a result, sound doctrine will be hard to identify, and those who hold on to it will be persecuted. If we want to grow up to Christ we must be able to identify and apply sound doctrine. This is why it is important to know how to identify sound doctrine.
Therefore, the goal of this book is to explain how to ensure that you will really understand what God’s Word means, and thereby ensure that your doctrine is sound.
|