Missing the forest and the trees!

Ephesians 4:1–3 Therefore I, the prisoner of the Lord, implore you to walk in a manner worthy of the calling with which you have been called, with all humility and gentleness, with patience, showing tolerance for one another in love, being diligent to preserve the unity of the Spirit in the bond of peace. 

Colossians 3:14–15 Beyond all these things put on love, which is the perfect bond of unity. Let the peace of Christ rule in your hearts, to which indeed you were called in one body; and be thankful. 

    Whenever we consider God’s Word, we must be careful how we balance the forest (Big Picture) and the trees (details) because if we are not careful we can miss both! It is debated who said, “Keep the main thing, the main thing” but long before Ford or Covey stated it, God communicated the same Truth in a different way: 

Genesis 2:16–17…“From any tree of the garden you may eat FREELY; BUT from the tree of the knowledge of good and evil you SHALL NOT EAT, for in the day that you eat from it YOU WILL SURELY DIE.” (emphasis mine)

    Adam had complete freedom with all the fruit…except one! It did not matter if he ate from all the others…NOT this one! He could even forget some of the other fruit, but not this one! Whatever else happened in the garden, the main thing was to take to heart the warning about this ONE! 

    I realize that the situation we all find ourselves in worldwide, has affected the way we have to live, yet it also seems to be impacting how we think. I cannot remember a time where I have seen so much “quarreling” among the family of God on social media. After visiting several sites that I pray for to have a positive impact on their readers, I am alarmed how intense and how much time the dialogue has become concerning "theories" created by fallen men, instead of healthy discussions on what Scripture teaches. So, I just want to challenge the “spirit” that I hear from many out there. 

    I respect every child of God’s right to a personal conviction concerning “isms” created by we fallen men. Yet, an “ism” is not Bible Doctrine. For example, we know from black & white doctrine, Salvation is a gift of God i.e., grace received through faith alone! The Word states it that clear. How that exactly works, the Word does not state. The Scriptures teach throughout that God chooses us…and we choose Him. How does that work? How does God choose? Based on what? To teach only one side exposes a dishonest spirit. How does the Trinity work - 3 & 1 at the same time? How does incarnation work -100% human, 100% Deity = 200%? The tensions drive the finite mind crazy. So we invent our own theory to try to explain how it works! One of my favorite Bible teachers once said "Every Doctrine of God in Scripture has a tension in it. When you remove that tension by trying to explain it in finite terms, you remove the Divine!" So True! Yet now, even he has moved to a position he said he could never take. In 1986 at a conference he showed exactly why he could never take the extreme position on a particular "ism".  Now he is there. I still love his teaching, but what he has shown me is that even the greatest human teacher is in the end…only a fallen human, just like I am. 

    When God does not give the answer, we are not wrong to seek a "theory" of how it works, BUT, we must leave it in that land..." theory land "...NOT Scriptural Authority. Jesus & Paul preached firmly to focus on the "main thing" and not get sidetracked into fallen human theories. They are fun to study and lovingly discuss, but they are worthless in the end...and when handled wrong, even destructive. How much Satan must love to see Christian brothers quarreling over what "so & so" said versus explaining to a lost world what God said in His Word. Jesus lived in the day where everyone was following one Rabbi or another. He did not waste His time getting into arguments about their theories. Instead, He challenged them to focus on what was really important. This kind of quarreling is what politics breed, not the Holy Spirit. We need to let the Word speak for itself and if we need to bring our "theories or "isms" to it, let's be humble and admit this is our personal conviction, not what the Scripture states. Then we can learn to dialogue, agree to disagree, and still respect each other. We remain in fellowship with each other because we agree and are united on the "Main Thing" which is what the Scripture states in black and white. No commentary needed. Please consider Acts 15.

Matthew 23:23-24 “Woe to you, experts in the law and you Pharisees, hypocrites! You give a tenth of mint, dill, and cumin, yet you neglect what is more important in the law—justice, mercy, and faithfulness! You should have done these things without neglecting the others. Blind guides! You strain out a gnat yet swallow a camel! 

Mark 7:6–8 And He said to them, “Rightly did Isaiah prophesy of you hypocrites, as it is written: ‘THIS PEOPLE HONORS ME WITH THEIR LIPS, BUT THEIR HEART IS FAR AWAY FROM ME. ‘BUT IN VAIN DO THEY WORSHIP ME, TEACHING AS DOCTRINES THE PRECEPTS OF MEN.’ “Neglecting the commandment of God, you hold to the tradition of men.” 

2 Timothy 2:23–26 But refuse foolish and ignorant speculations, knowing that they produce quarrels. The Lord’s bond-servant must not be quarrelsome, but be kind to all, able to teach, patient when wronged, with gentleness correcting those who are in opposition, if perhaps God may grant them repentance leading to the knowledge of the truth, and they may come to their senses and escape from the snare of the devil, having been held captive by him to do his will. 

1 Timothy 6:3–5 If anyone advocates a different doctrine and does not agree with sound words, those of our Lord Jesus Christ, and with the doctrine conforming to godliness, he is conceited and understands nothing; but he has a morbid interest in controversial questions and disputes about words, out of which arise envy, strife, abusive language, evil suspicions, and constant friction between men of depraved mind and deprived of the truth, who suppose that godliness is a means of gain. 

2 Timothy 2:14 Remind them of these things, and solemnly charge them in the presence of God not to wrangle about words, which is useless and leads to the ruin of the hearers. 

Titus 3:9 But avoid foolish controversies and genealogies and strife and disputes about the Law, for they are unprofitable and worthless. 

The So What: Do you find yourself doing what you can to bring unity and peace? Some “hills” are worth dying on…do you know the difference, or is every issue the same for you? If you win your argument but at the cost of the gospel…what did you win?