I did that many years ago and have never looked back. God changed my thinking completely. So completely that I no longer thought the way many Christians today think. In fact, I thought they would be my friends because of the new me. But the most astonishing thing happened, it was the Christians who were more hostile than ever toward me.
Each believer I met wanted me to embrace their particular brand of Christianity. But when I was told things that were "specialized Christianity" but didn't seem to match with what I was reading in the Bible, I would address it openly, this was a threat to those who loved their special doctrines concocted in the minds of those they saw as the experts or those specially trained in Bible schools.
It was as though I had changed from being born again but those who had been Christians most of their lives or so they thought had never been born again. They didn't understand me or like me. What's wrong with this picture?
I wonder how many believers have experienced this. They were better appreciated when they were heathens without God, by those who claimed to be Christian.
Perhaps this explains it, the Pharisees were the educated men of God who knew the scriptures well and they were the ones who rejected Christ.
Often educated men are pompous and superior, they love their "knowledge" but are not led by the Holy Spirit. One who cannot trust Christ to lead them is trusting in men rather than the Holy Spirit.
Education and men of education are the gods of our age. Many people will not listen to someone who has not been trained in these formal schools that claim to have all the answers. Those who are led by the Holy Spirit are leaning on Christ, they need no other teachers.
Teachers can be helpful if they are led by Christ, but those who are not will be angered that Christs takes priority over them.
It was the religious leaders, the Pharisees who fought with Christ about truth. This is similar to what happens today with authentic believers, they speak the truth of God's word and those who consider themselves teachers will argue with God's Word.
Matthew 22:15-22
Then the Pharisees went and plotted together how they might trap Him in what He said. And they sent their disciples to Him, along with the Herodians, saying, "Teacher, we know that You are truthful and teach the way of God in truth, and defer to no one; for You are not partial to any. "Tell us then, what do You think? Is it lawful to give a poll-tax to Caesar, or not?" read more.
Why would we think the Pharisee types would not try to do the same to us?
John 16:13-14 "13 However, when the Spirit of truth comes, He will guide you into all truth. He will not speak on His own, but He will speak what He hears, and He will declare to you what is to come. 14 He will glorify Me by taking from what is Mine and disclosing it to you.…"
In our day we have more false teachers than we do Holy Spirit led ones. That does not mean we never listen to them, but what we must do is evaluate everything they say with the Scripture.
2 Timothy 4:2-4 "…2 Preach the word; be prepared in season and out of season; reprove, rebuke, and encourage with every form of patient instruction. 3 For the time will come when men will not tolerate sound doctrine, but with itching ears, they will gather around themselves teachers to suit their own desires. 4 So they will turn their ears away from the truth and turn aside to myths.…"
Bottom Line: Seek Christ not man!
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