Can You Tell the Difference?

Read Matthew 24:23-28

Which way is the right way to go? Do we know where each road will lead us in the end? Who determines what is the "right" way? This picture illustrates situations that you and I face every single day. With every decision we are faced with we have a choice to make. Which choice is the right choice? Maybe both choices are "right" however one choice will be the best choice. How we make these decisions in our lives will determine the path we travel throughout the rest of our lives.

This brings me to a word that I believe has become nearly obsolete: the word is 'discernment.' To be a discerning person means that we will be able to "tell the difference." Let's face it, most of us Christians want things to be spelled out in black and white. For instance, some will say, "all hymns are sacred and holy and any music that is contemporary (new) is evil and unholy." While that kind of statement paints the picture in black and white terms when we examine it in the light of God's Word is simply isn't true. My contention is that statements like these promote mental laziness and biblical illiteracy because we never have to discern. We never learn to hold things up to the light of Scripture. We simply pigeon hole everything until it all fits very nicely into our neat little box.

In the Sr. High Sunday school class we've been discussing modern day cults and their teachings. I hope for those who have been in class it has become clear that we need to be discerning. We need to know what we believe and what we believe must be based on the solid foundation of God's Word, the Bible. We also need to know why we believe what we believe. Discernment is vital to any believers survival in a day where the subtlety of Satan's lies are increasing everywhere around us. In Matthew 24, Jesus says that in the Tribulation many will come claiming to be the Christ and they will do great signs and wonders to prove it. Talk about the need to be discerning! Well, I will simply submit to you that the need for discernment today is just as great. Let's learn to think Biblically! Let's learn to hold all of our preconceived convictions up to the light of Scripture and ask the question: What does the Bible say about this?

Pastor Jeff