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In the Word
by Chuck Livermore
The Heavenly Scholar
Date Posted: September 15, 2009
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But when His brothers had gone up, then He also went up to the feast, not openly, but as it were in secret. Then the Jews sought Him at the feast, and said, "Where is He?" And there was much complaining among the people concerning Him. Some said, "He is good"; others said, "No, on the contrary, He deceives the people." However, no one spoke openly of Him for fear of the Jews.
Now about the middle of the feast Jesus went up into the temple and taught. And the Jews marveled, saying, "How does this Man know letters, having never studied?"
Jesus answered them and said, "My doctrine is not Mine, but His who sent Me. If anyone wills to do His will, he shall know concerning the doctrine, whether it is from God or whether I speak on My own authority. He who speaks from himself seeks his own glory; but He who seeks the glory of the One who sent Him is true, and no unrighteousness is in Him. Did not Moses give you the law, yet none of you keeps the law? Why do you seek to kill Me?"
The people answered and said, "You have a demon. Who is seeking to kill You?"
Jesus answered and said to them, "I did one work, and you all marvel. Moses therefore gave you circumcision (not that it is from Moses, but from the fathers), and you circumcise a man on the Sabbath. If a man receives circumcision on the Sabbath, so that the law of Moses should not be broken, are you angry with Me because I made a man completely well on the Sabbath? Do not judge according to appearance, but judge with righteous judgment." John 7:10-24 NKJV
It is often difficult to discern correct and incorrect doctrine, but Jesus gives us a key in this passage. Discerning incorrect doctrine comes naturally when we seek God’s will. We can be easily deceived when we are preoccupied with our own desires and our own glory. We have all heard the lies that Jesus was only a glorified man and we can become God like Him if we try harder. Or we may have heard that we can bend God’s will to suit ourselves by praying according to someone’s formula. When we are judging doctrine we should ask ourselves, “Is God glorified by this tenet or is man glorified?”
Man is a glorious creature, but we must never elevate mere man equal to or above God. This is one of the primary facets of false doctrine. True doctrine always puts man in his place and God in His. And God’s will is always superior to our own. Never believe something that puts man on the same level as God. This is original false doctrine born of a snake in a garden.
Now about the middle of the feast Jesus went up into the temple and taught. And the Jews marveled, saying, "How does this Man know letters, having never studied?"
Jesus answered them and said, "My doctrine is not Mine, but His who sent Me. If anyone wills to do His will, he shall know concerning the doctrine, whether it is from God or whether I speak on My own authority. He who speaks from himself seeks his own glory; but He who seeks the glory of the One who sent Him is true, and no unrighteousness is in Him. Did not Moses give you the law, yet none of you keeps the law? Why do you seek to kill Me?"
The people answered and said, "You have a demon. Who is seeking to kill You?"
Jesus answered and said to them, "I did one work, and you all marvel. Moses therefore gave you circumcision (not that it is from Moses, but from the fathers), and you circumcise a man on the Sabbath. If a man receives circumcision on the Sabbath, so that the law of Moses should not be broken, are you angry with Me because I made a man completely well on the Sabbath? Do not judge according to appearance, but judge with righteous judgment." John 7:10-24 NKJV
It is often difficult to discern correct and incorrect doctrine, but Jesus gives us a key in this passage. Discerning incorrect doctrine comes naturally when we seek God’s will. We can be easily deceived when we are preoccupied with our own desires and our own glory. We have all heard the lies that Jesus was only a glorified man and we can become God like Him if we try harder. Or we may have heard that we can bend God’s will to suit ourselves by praying according to someone’s formula. When we are judging doctrine we should ask ourselves, “Is God glorified by this tenet or is man glorified?”
Man is a glorious creature, but we must never elevate mere man equal to or above God. This is one of the primary facets of false doctrine. True doctrine always puts man in his place and God in His. And God’s will is always superior to our own. Never believe something that puts man on the same level as God. This is original false doctrine born of a snake in a garden.
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Chuck Livermore's knowledge of the word is the result of a lifetime of study and reading. He is part of Galilee South Community Church, a multi-ethnic congregation in South Denver. He attended Wayland Baptist University and has participated in world evangelism through research of unreached peoples.
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