Nepaug Bible Church - http://www.nepaugchurch.org - Pastor's Sermon Notes - http://www.nepaugchurch.org/Sermons/zz20061022.htm
SPECIAL INTERLUDE "Winning In The Battle To Discern The Truth" (2 Timothy 3:13-17 et al.)
Introduction: (To show the need .

We face a need to discern the truth in an era of great darkness:

(1) Religious misinformation is being spun to the world by the secular media: the article "Left, right and religion: A double standard," by Patrick Hynes and Jeremy Lotts in the 10/16/06 USA TODAY , a secular paper, noted that though only 7 % of voters belong to the religious left [unbiblical Liberal Theology], the secular media lets this minority's political remarks that are given "in the context of the Bible" and "moral 'values' language" go unchecked while charging right wing Christians with pushing a "theocracy" if they cite Scripture in public!

(3) Yet, even Christians face confusing misinformation in their own ranks! The 10/06 issue of The Berean Call, p. 7 warns that the web address "thebereancall.com" is an impostor site that was formed to attract believers who want Dave Hunt's ministry, and that the impostor site teaches errant beliefs. T. A. McMahon warned that their true site address is "thebereancall.org", not the impostor "thebereancall.com"!

(4) The need to discern abounds even at our local church level:

(a) Last Sunday, a Church member asked me if he was supposed to "tithe," to give 10 % of his income to the Church. He had heard a Christian radio Bible teacher tell him to do so. [However, only believers under the dispensation of the Law were to tithe, 2 Cor. 9:7].

(b) I also heard last Wednesday that another member was recently told that another one was praying for God to give her trials [when only the one to be tried is to pray for this, Rev. 3:18]!

(c) Recently, after a missionary we support heard me briefly allude to it, this servant of the Lord asked me, "Can you tell me what Calvinism and Arminianism are all about? I hear about this issue everywhere I go, but I don't know what it is!" Now, we have posted 19 lessons on our web site entitled, "Christ's Prophetic Message To Contemporary Evangelicals" that detail the theological and spiritual crisis these errant entities were predicted by Christ in Revelation 3:14-22 to raise for today's Christians, and what to do for victory in it! Yet, from this missionary's words, we see many believers in various places are ignorant of the crisis, its cause or how to gain victory in it!]

So, in light of the lack of discernment on the truths we need for today, and the confusion and uneasiness that rises with it, what advice does GOD give on finding and discerning His TRUTH?

(We turn to the sermon "Need" section . . . )

Need: "Since misinformation abounds at so many levels, what does GOD want me do to DEFINE His truth and to be SURE I have it?!"

1. God has given us believers a "Subjective Screen" for testing views and interpretations for our practical discernment (as follows):
1. God has given us believers the permanent indwelling presence of God the Holy Spirit, and He ministers to give us discernment in the spirit:
1. The instant one trusts in Christ for salvation, he is sealed by the Holy Spirit until the rapture of the Church, Eph. 1:13-14; 4:30.
2. That divine Person ministers to give discernment to every believer on whether he is heeding truth or error, cf. 1 John 2:18, 27:
1. The indwelling Spirit equips believers to discern the truth so that he does not need a teacher to discern it for him, 1 Jn. 2:27.
2. This ministry occurs for mature or immature believers, for the section on discernment in 1 John 2:18-27 is addressed to those John named as "little children" in verse 18, or paidia, John G. Mitchell, Fellowship: Three Letters From John, 1974, p. 70-71.
2. Besides the indwelling Holy Spirit's ministry of discernment, God has given spiritually gifted, credible Church leaders to give discernment:
1. Opposite the great growth of misinformation that Paul predicted would come in 2 Timothy 3:13, he wrote that Timothy was to recall what he had been taught by the reputable teachers he had heard in the Church, particularly from Paul, cf. 2 Timothy 3:14, 10.
2. This ministry of providing discernment is shown in Eph. 4:11-14:
1. Christ has given spiritually gifted leaders to the Church to minister Scripture to edify other believers, Ephesians 4:11-13.
2. As other believers heed such ministries, they cease being tossed about by the upsetting errors false teachers present, and speak the truth, mature and perform effective service, Eph. 4:14-16.
3. Then, besides the Holy Spirit and the ministries of reputable Church leaders, believers are given practical guidelines on subjectively testing views and interpretations they receive in 2 Timothy 3:14a,b:
1. First, if a questionable view or interpretation faces us, God wants us to continue to hold to the view we had previously learned, for God had sovereignly let us learn and be settled with that view as He initially wanted us to hold to it, 2 Timothy 3:14a.
2. Second, if a questionable view or interpretation faces us, God wants us to continue to hold to the view we had become strongly convinced was right prior to the arrival of the question involved, for God sovereignly let us have such a persuasion since He had initially wanted us to hold to it, 2 Timothy 3:14b!
2. God has given us believers an "Objective Screen" for testing views and interpretations for our practical discernment (as follows):
1. Though the "Subjective Screen" we just described is a valid one, it is effective only if all the people involved are upight, for leaders (Acts 20:29-30) and laymen (2 Timothy 4:10) alike can sin and have their consciences seared, and so think God teaches one belief when just the opposite is true, cf. 1 Timothy 4:1-2 and 2 Timothy 3:13!
2. So, ABOVE ALL ELSE, the believer MUST use God's "Objective Screen," His written Word, for practical discernment (as follows):
1. Paul emphasized the value of written Scripture in overcoming false teaching in 2 Timothy 3:15-17 with verse 13: the written Scriptures bear God's objectively defined, authoritative truth, and thoroughly equip the believer for every good work, 2 Tim. 3:15-17.
2. Isaiah 8:19-20 revealed that, in light of the pressure in Israel to heed demonic spirits (Isaiah 8:19), if the people did not say, "To the law and to the testimony," a phrase meaning, "[Let's get back] to the [written] Bible," they lacked even the light of dawn, or any hope of discerning God's truths with any certainty, Isa. 8:20 NIV!

Application: For victory in the battle to discern the truth, (1) may we trust in Christ as Savior to be permanently indwelt by God the Holy Spirit, the Spirit of Truth, John 3:16; 14:16-17. (2) Then, may we (a) use the "Subjective Screen" God provides, relying on the Holy Spirit, the teachings of reputable Church leaders, the teachings God let us learn before the disputed issue arose and the teachings God let us be convinced were true before the disputed issue arose! (b) However, since this "Subjective Screen" can fail us due to man's sinful weakness, may we ABOVE ALL ELSE rely on written Scripture, God's sure "Objective Screen" of the truth!

Lesson: To win in the battle to discern the truth, we must become indwelt by God the Holy Spirit, the Spirit of truth (1) by faith in Christ for salvation. (2) Then, we (a) use God's "Subjective Screen" by relying on His Holy Spirit, on the teachings of reputable Church leaders, on the truths God let us learn before the questionable matter arose and on the truths God let us be convinced were true before the questionable issue arose. (b) However, due to the capacity for this Subjective Screen to be ineffective due to man's sinfulness, ABOVE ALL ELSE, we must check WRITTEN SCRIPTURE that OBJECTIVELY STATES God's TRUTH.

Conclusion: (To illustrate the sermon lesson . . . )

A number of the issues in this message were applied in a question-and-answer event that occurred on October 5, 2006 between a member in our Church and me, and I refer to it now to illustrate how these "Subjective" and "Objective" screens work to edify (as follows):

The member called me as his pastor [heeding 2 Timothy 3:14c] to ask what 1 Corinthians 11:10 meant. That verse in the KJV reads: "For this cause ought the woman to have power on her head because of the angels." Now, "power" is better translated "authority" (NIV), and "on" comes from the Greek word, epi that there means "over" in the sense of having authority over someone else, U. B. S. Grk. N. T., 1966 ed., p. 603; Moult. & Mill., The Vocab. of the Grk. N. T., p. 232-233.]

The member was not settled on the commentaries' claim that Paul there taught the angels would be offended if women did not cover their heads in the Church!

I knew how he felt -- I have resisted this view, also! It seems impossible to me that Paul would share how the angels are offended if women don't cover their heads in verse 10 when, later in the chapter, he omits any reference to offending angels are if believers commit the capital offense of abusing the Lord's Table (1 Cor. 11:17-21, 30)!

No, as I view 1 Corinthians 11:10 in its context, what I was REPEATEDLY TAUGHT to do in 10 years of Bible college and seminary [heeding 2 Timothy 4:14a], AND what I am PERSUADED is NECESSARY after 30 MORE years of Bible study as a pastor [heeding 2 Timothy 4:14b], I see Paul laboring in verses 8-9 to show that women were created to be subject to men. He thus wrote in verse 10 that just as the angels were made to be subject to God, so women were made to be subject to men in the Church! This interpretation also fits what we read of the roles of angels as God's servants elsewhere in Scripture like Hebrews 1:13-14 [heeding 2 Timothy 2:15-17].

When I shared my interpretation with the member, he instantly and strongly affirmed my view! Why? The Holy Spirit had approved in his heart what God had led me to believe [heeding 1 John 2:18, 27]!



So, to offset the challenge of misinformation we face, may we trust in Christ as Savior, and use both God's "Subjective" and "Objective" Screens to be SURE we have His TRUTH!