You are Mistaken!
October 14th, 2009No one likes to be wrong. We tend to bristle and jump to the defense when we are accused of being wrong. The fact is, however, sometimes we are wrong. Today, many are adamantly defending a position claiming all God requires us to understand is the basics of His Word. Beyond this all we need to do is love God and love others and whatever we do will be acceptable. We don’t have to worry about following the example of the apostles or concern ourselves with the implications of the Scriptures. Jesus, however, has taught us differently. In Matthew 22:23-33, we have an account where some Sadducees were trying to stump Jesus by showing the resurrection was impossible. Jesus told them: “You are mistaken.” He then goes on to tell them how they are mistaken.
First, they did not understand the Scriptures. The Sadducees thought they knew the Scriptures and to most, it appeared they did. Their argument looked like it was from Scripture (cf. Deuteronomy 25:5), but it was really just a hypothetical question. If they had thought more about the Scriptures, they would not have needed to ask this question. Jesus reasoned with them from Exodus 3:6, “I am the God of your father, the God of Abraham, the God of Isaac, and the God of Jacob.” At the time God spoke these words, all of these men had been physically dead for at least 350 years. Still, God says “I am” instead of “I was.” This could only mean that they were alive. Jesus considered this to be a big deal and said they were “in error” because they did not understand this fact. There was no example or direct statement in the pentateuch regarding the resurrection. Jesus condemned them because they failed to see a necessary inference based on the tense of a verb. This shows the precision with which we can study the Scriptures and should aspire to–they are from God, word for word inspired, and preserved down through the ages for us today. If we do not want to be wrong, we must make a careful study of the Scriptures.
Second, they did not know the power of God. When discussing the resurrection, the Sadducees had not considered the power of God. They didn’t see how the resurrection could possibly work, so they dismissed it. They didn’t consider that all things are possible with God. Today, many make the same mistake by considering that God is unable to preserve His word, to record His instructions accurately, to inspire the Bible in a way that all can stand and be united on it, etc. We are told the power of God to save men is found in the Gospel (Romans 1:16; 1 Corinthians 1:17-25, 2:1-5). Too many are underestimating the power of God found in the Scriptures. We need to trust that God has revealed His will to us in a way that all can understand, be saved, and be united in doctrine and faith. If we do not want to be wrong, we must realize the power of God and put our trust in Him.
Religious errors and divisions are caused by ignorance of the Scriptures and failure to understand the power of God. Only by carefully studying the Scriptures with a firm faith in the power of God and His revelations can we avoid religious error.
