Knowing this first, that no prophecy of Scripture is of any private interpretation, for prophecy never came by the will of man, but holy men of God spoke as they were moved by the Holy Spirit. — 2 Peter 1:20–21
I love the acronym that has been applied to the word Bible: Basic Instructions Before Leaving Earth. What a great way to label this magnificent book of truth! We know that we are called to walk in and live by the Spirit (Rom. 8:9; Gal. 5:25), but God has also given us His Word to tell where and how His Spirit will lead. The Spirit of God will never conflict with the Word of God, and no true prophecy or interpretation of Scripture will ever conflict with another portion of Scripture. When something you hear conflicts with the Word of God, the Holy Spirit in you will reject it as the will of man. Yet many today fail to do the work of the Bereans to search the Scriptures to find out if what they have heard is true. “The pastor said it, so it must be true” has never been a safe approach to understanding the Christian life. Don’t get me wrong—the pastor should be “imitatable” (new word!), as 1 Corinthians 11:1 clearly says. But let’s not forget, the preaching the Bereans were checking out was that of Paul and Silas. How much more, then, should we check out the words of the pastors and teachers among us!
I do believe we have yet to uncover all the majestic nuances of the living Word of God, but I also believe we have been given a fail-safe in this manual of instructions. For example, the Word of God says that Jesus is God and was with God in the beginning and that all things were created through Him and for Him (John 1:1; Col. 1:15–16). Therefore, if someone says Jesus was an angel, is the spirit brother of Lucifer, or was merely a great teacher among many, we know that is not true. Similarly, if someone claims to have a new revelation that is inconsistent with the balance of the Word of God, then it is not true. No prophecy of Scripture, whether fulfilled or unfulfilled, is of private interpretation. God will lead us by His Spirit and guard the way with His Word. So when you hear something that doesn’t sit well with your spirit, don’t accept it just because of who said it. Search the Scriptures and see if it is so!
Excerpt from “Body Builders” now available on Amazon.
