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How do I know if I can trust what someone else says about the Bible?
The answer to this is very simple – don’t! Don’t trust anyone to give you a correct interpretation of the Bible!
Now, before you get all bent out of shape, let me define what I mean by “trust” in this case. Trust = accept what they say at face value and don’t verify the information for yourself.
Don’t ever do that! Not even with someone who has proven herself to be trustworthy. And be wary of preachers and teachers who are offended when you tell them you think they may have been mistaken in something they said.
We can all make mistakes. It’s the human condition. I know I have, and I’m sure I will again. I teach my students to verify what I say about the Bible. I’m always encouraged when someone tells me that they did that, even if they tell me they think I’m wrong. I even enjoy having intelligent disagreements with someone else who’s studied the Bible. I dislike trying to argue with someone who tells me that their pastor taught them such-and-such!
I highly recommend that you take your Bible to church with you, even if your pastor provides the relevant passages in pre-printed sermon notes and/or in slides. During the message, go ahead and read the entire passage, not just the verse that’s being quoted. See if you can verify the information you’re being given. A young friend of mine recently did that to me. She was shocked when I said that David lied and eighty-five priests were killed as a direct result of that lie. She was bothered by that (since she, like many other Christians, had a false idea that David was really pretty good except for the whole Bathsheba thing). So, right then, during my message, she looked up the passages I claimed said that about David – 1 Samuel 21:1-7 & 22:6-23.
In this case she found out I was right. Other times you’ll still have doubts after you verify the information. Sometimes you’ll be convinced the teacher misspoke. Whatever the results, you are never wrong for verifying that the Word of God is being properly used.
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