Thoughts from the Teacher

All,

The posts continue to be excellent. I am very impressed with your grappling with the material and the obvious interest you are showing in the topic. Good work. It is interesting to note that just because we have a god-fearing heart, it doesn't necessarily equate to good biblical interpretation. However, it does cause one to wonder why God would allow this? I asked the same questions when I explored church history. Church history appears to be a good example of a father allowing his children to discover truths through trial and error. From time to time he has to step in and "make things right" as in the Reformation. Looking at the big picture, God has always been in charge and that now with the enormous population on the earth, the greatest amount of Christians are alive today and have available to them solid biblical interpretation. So, it has been a bit messy, but it all has been for our benefit hasn't it? It makes you truly respect the movements of the past as each one gave us a more complete picture of what the church should be and what it is going to be. Church historians call these changes paradigm shifts. Others call them denominations. Get the picture? Let's determine to walk in these two convictions: 1. That we will keep our hearts open and broken before God for he is much bigger than our systems and dogmas 2. That we will remain teachable in the application of the truths, principles, and practices that we have learned from scripture.

Pastor David