Referring to the topic of conversation from class last Thursday, I think
it is good and interesting to challenge ourselves with knowing doctrine, but we
also just need to remember a few things while discussing doctrines and
Calvinism. First, we need to never hold tighter to doctrine than we do to
scripture. Yes, Calvinism's Five Points (TULIP) are interesting to argue and help put
ideas in perspective, BUT Scripture remains the ultimate authority. We get our doctrine from Scripture, not the other way around. Another
thing we must remember is that before we start discussing the huge,
contradictory questions about the specifics of our faith, I think it is crucial
that we are grounded on the basic understandings of what we believe. Then we
can explore more. I am all for learning about doctrine and stretching to see
what I believe to be true, so this is awesome.
Regarding
Luther’s Bondage of the Will, I appreciate his comment when he says, “as for
people who read without the Spirit, it is no wonder if they are shaken like a
reed by every wind” (175). I agree with this claim that we need the Spirit. A
role of the Holy Spirit is to bring understanding and wisdom, so how can we
expect to understand God’s word without guidance from His Spirit?
I
commented on Darby and Natalie’s!
Great point. Sometimes when we are surrounded by so many different interpretations of Scripture we tend to sway to one side or the other, while not really taking time to go before God and see what He will reveal to us. That is the most important thing to remember when exploring human doctrine. We NEED the Holy Spirit to help guide us or we will lose ourselves in any thought, whether it be right or wrong.
ReplyDeleteOooo Sierra. You are so right. I think we all get caught up in the things separate from Scripture (like other people's beliefs, instead of the Word of God). We do this everyday, like reading "Christian" books instead of the Word and basin your beliefs off that. What we all need to do is figure out what we believe from Scripture. I agree with you!!
ReplyDeleteI totally agree! It is so important to hold scripture at the forefront of every discussion. It is so easy to get caught up in the manmade arguments about doctrine.
ReplyDeleteI love what you said about us getting our doctrine from scripture not the other way around. I think people can often get prideful and caught up in defending the doctrine that they cling to that they refuse to look passed it and actually analyze the Bible to make sure their doctrine actually lines up.
ReplyDelete