Respectable Sins - Part 5

Today I am going to briefly discuss doctrinal judgmentalism. It is very easy for us to get so caught up in having correct doctrine that we can find ourselves becoming judgmental towards others who either disagree with us or who are maybe not as well taught as we are. I do not at all want you to take away from this that having and defending good doctrine is anything less than very important. However, we must be able to do this with humility knowing that however much we 'know' there will always be people out there who know more. We must have humility knowing that apart from God's grace we would know much less than we do. We must have humility knowing that it is possible for us to be wrong. We must show love to our brothers and sisters and not risk sinning by becoming prideful of our better doctrine.

I believe that this is particularly relevent to members at our church. We have been so very blessed by a pastor and elders and Sunday School teachers who take their jobs very seriously. We have been well taught. We know the Scriptures. We know our doctrine. We have taken theology classes and biblical decision making classes and parenting classes and prayer classes. It is easy for us to believe that we have arrived. It is easy for us to look down on others who are not as knowledgeable as we are.

Sisters, we do not know the Bible as well as we think we do. We do not know our doctrines as well as we should. We have taken all the right classes, but may I suggest that perhaps we have not perfectly retained every lesson taught?

Having correct doctrine matters little if we are unable to live out that doctrine. When asked, Jesus said that the most important commandments in all the Bible were to love God with all your heart, soul, mind, and strength and to love our neighbors as ourselves. We cannot believe that we love othes as ourselves if we are lookind down on them in pride over our superior knowledge.

I would like to end with a quote from John Piper in his book God is the Gospel: "Gospel doctrine matters because the good news is so full and rich and wonderful that it must be opened like a treasure chest, and all the treasures brought out for the enjoyment of the world. Doctrine is the description of these treasures. Doctrine describes their true value and why they are so valuable...And all the while, doctrine does this with its head bowed in wonder that it should be allowed to touch the things of God. It whisperes praise and thanks as it deals with the diamonds of the King. Its fingers tremble at the cost of what it handles. Prayers ascend for help, lest any stone be minimized or misplaced. And on its knees gospel doctrine knows it serves the herald."