The 'Presumption' Syndrome - Part 1
.... In our previous postings we've discussed two ‘spiritual syndromes’ (to use the term loosely,) which cause Christians to leave Jesus out of their understanding of the Scriptures. They affect both Jews and Gentiles, and they have continued to plague us to this day. In this posting we'll introduce a third, associated syndrome that may be called the ‘Presumption Syndrome’; and unfortunately, it’s prime victim is a Bible student who is very diligent to study the Scriptures. Let's explain how the syndrome works:
.... Let’s say that a young man has just gotten saved, he’s still a new Christian, and he doesn’t yet know very much about the Scriptures. All he knows is "I trust the Lord," and he has a very close walk with the Lord because of it. By the sheer necessity of his situation he has learned to hear God’s voice and depend on Him, which is very good:
.... "For as many as are led by the Spirit of God, these are sons of God."
(Romans 8:14)
.... But in the meantime he keeps reading the Bible, and after a while he seems getting a pretty good grip on it. Again, this is a very good thing! Yet sometimes in this same process, instead of continuing his dependence on the Lord, he gradually start to lean more heavily on his own knowledge of the Scriptures for guidance.
.... For example, when he sees something that needs to be done, he would once have stopped to pray about it: "Lord, now? Is it me, or would you rather use somebody else? Do I have the complete picture? Should I do it this way, or how exactly should I go about it?" But now things have changed. Now that he knows the Bible, he simply thinks of a Scriptural to justify himself, and from there he takes the matter into his own hands: "Okay, here’s a Scripture – pow – go for it!" So in effect, he has started using his knowledge of the Scriptures to play ‘Holy Spirit’ to himself, and to lead himself in his walk with the Lord.
.... In some circles of the church, this is actually commended! So let’s compare this to Jesus Himself, our true example. His entire life was foretold by the prophets (Amos 3:7), and of course He knew those Scriptures extremely well. In fact, He was the Word made flesh! (John 1:14). He could very easily have depended on His own knowledge of the Scriptures for guidance, but here is what He did instead:
.... "For I have not spoken on My own authority; but the Father who sent Me gave Me a command, what I should say and what I should speak."
(John 12:49)
.... Even though Jesus knew the Scriptures perfectly, He kept that head knowledge subordinate to His living, spiritual walk with the Father. The relationship itself remained His priority, and the Scriptures played a role in supporting, promoting and defining the relationship.
.... For us, the practical application is similar: to walk in the Spirit and use our knowledge of the Scriptures as a sounding board, to "Test all things and hold fast what is good," as often as we feel the Lord leading us. In other words, we should compare our personal leading to the Scriptures to insure they match and verify, through this, that we've heard from God correctly (1 Thessalonians 5:21). We’ll continue this discussion in the ‘comments’ section and initiate a broader discussion in our next posting.
To proceed to the next lesson, click here
Daily Bible Reading: John 8
posted by loren at 11:27 PM
5 Comments:
As a former charismatic, I must confess that charismatics have a huge problem in this area. They have been told that if God is ‘on record’ somewhere, they don’t need to pray about it; in fact, to pray about it would be a display of unbelief!
It should be enough to demonstrate that Jesus did not conduct Himself in that way, as shown by the main posting. But let’s also consider just what charismatics are advocating by this doctrine. In essence, they are willing to settle for the arrangement, without recourse to the relationship.
Another, similar charismatic doctrine states that, instead of praying and asking God for anything, we should simply ‘proclaim’ His word and then ‘thank’ Him for it. But I once put it to a friend of mine this way:
“How would you feel if your daughter came to you, held out her hand with a smile and said, ‘Dad, I’m believing you for $5 and I thank you for it!’” Wouldn’t you feel like something was missing? Again, it’s a question of arrangement verses relationship.
By
loren, at 8/11/2005 11:37 PM
Another problem with the ‘God is on record’ approach is that it depends on your knowledge of the Scriptures. But what if you were a Christian in the second century, and in your whole life you’ve only seen four pages of Scripture? How would you navigate through life that way? The answer is that you must be led by the Holy Spirit. And so the question must follow:
“Are you so foolish? Having begun in the Spirit, are you now being made perfect by the flesh?”
(Gal 3:3)
This same problem presents itself with the charismatic cousin doctrine of ‘name it and claim it’. What happens if you only saw those four pages?
In fact, that doctrine contains a further problem because it introduces ‘additional ministry’ as a form of mediation, but that is a very complicated issue better left for a discussion in its own right. The main point is that all such doctrines presume on God (which, unfortunately, is very common in charismatic doctrine).
By
loren, at 8/11/2005 11:38 PM
If we receive a living word of instruction from the Lord, isn’t it proper to test it by the Scriptures? (1 The 5:21). Therefore we see that the Scriptures and the living word should go together. In this posting we're simply talking about the same thing from the other direction: even if we know the Scriptures, we should wait for a living word from the Lord.
In saying this, however, let’s not build ourselves into a box. If we are properly yielded to the Lord at all times, as we should be, it just may be that a Scripture comes to mind because the Holy Spirit is bringing it to our remembrance, and so the living word and the Scripture are coming to us as one (John 14:26). The place to know the difference is in our hearts, that is, in our attitude of submission.
By
loren, at 8/11/2005 11:39 PM
Charismatic doctrine tells us that ‘God is on record’, and on that basis we may simply act on His word; they believe by default that God has turned the exercise of power over to us. Yet through this presumption, rather than exercising His power, they have actually come under the power of deception -- and in this they have transgressed greatly:
“Keep back Your servant also from presumptuous sins; let them not have dominion over me. Then I shall be blameless, and I shall be innocent of great transgression. Let the words of my mouth and the meditation of my heart be acceptable in Your sight, O LORD, my strength and my Redeemer.”
(Ps 19:13-14)
Here is the fruit of that sort of ministry. Please notice how the relationship is missing:
"Many will say to Me in that day, 'Lord, Lord, have we not prophesied in Your name, cast out demons in Your name, and done many wonders in Your name?' And then I will declare to them, 'I never knew you; depart from Me, you who practice lawlessness!’”
(Matt 7:22-23)
By
loren, at 8/11/2005 11:41 PM
Brother,
Been bouncing around in my head again?
'Compassionate Confrontation' is a leading, and an order: "but, speaking the truth in love, may grow up in all things into Him who is the head—Christ—" Ephesians 4:15. It is not 'carte-blanche' to confront everyone on every issue, especially on issues contested doctrinally.
It certainly needs more than just "name it and claim it". In light of Luke 6:41 (Matt. 7:3), "And why do you look at the speck in your brother’s eye, but do not perceive the plank in your own eye?" "Speaking the truth in love" requires Divine guidance and leading.
Thanks for the reminder,
Blessings and prayers.
By
Unchained Slave, at 8/12/2005 9:53 PM
Post a Comment
<< Home