We tend to minimize or ignore what doctrine is taught in our local churches. However, the Bible encourages us to the contrary; we must pay meticulous attention to what doctrine we are listening to. In Matthew sixteen, Jesus makes this precise point, referring to the doctrine or teachings of the Pharisees and Sadducees; these were the false teachers of the time. Matthew 16:12 tells us,
Then they understood that he did not tell them to beware of the leaven of bread, but of the teaching of the Pharisees and Sadducees. Matthew 16:12 (ESV)
The word “Teaching is the Greek word, proséchō, meaning “To have in addition, to hold the mind or the ear toward someone; to pay attention. To hold a ship in a direction, to sail towards. To hold on one’s course toward a place.”[1] From this definition, we see that a doctrine or teaching affects us in a couple of ways:
- It affects our thinking.
This has profound implications because our mindset affects our emotions. Our emotions affect our decision-making, which in turn directly impacts our lives. Notice that our minds are affected by holding our ears toward someone. Who we listen to profoundly impacts the direction of our thinking.
God uses people to influence our thinking, but He uses his Holy Spirit much more powerfully… if we let HIM! The devil uses people exclusively to carry out his agenda. There are people on this earth who carry out the teachings of demons all around the world. The Apostle Paul told us,
The Spirit clearly says that in later times some will abandon the faith and follow deceiving spirits and things taught by demons. I Timothy 4:1 (NIV)
Those deceiving spirits are among us today! As teachers of God’s Word, we must always encourage people to be sensitive to the leading of the Holy Ghost and to confirm things according to what the Bible tells us. The focus is on what God says about matters, not man. When a teacher or spiritual leader focuses on himself, that is the most significant red flag.
2. It will directly drift our lives in a particular direction.
Any direction apart from God is designed to destroy us because it is designed to take us away from the perfect will of God. There is no substitution for the will of God. This is why the Bible tells us, “Do not conform to the pattern of this world, but be transformed by the renewing of your mind. Then you will be able to test and approve what God’s will is—his good, pleasing and perfect will.” Romans 12:2 (NIV)
We are constantly at war because the world distracts us with its entertainment and unbiblical philosophies of life. This is particularly true for young people in the beginning stages of finding their identity; they are more susceptible to being victims of this philosophical foolishness.
Beloved doctrines are designed to take our lives somewhere; they are not just information. False doctrines will, 100 percent of the time, lead us to very dark places. Please pay attention to doctrines; they are vitally important.
[1] Spiros Zodhiates, The Complete Word Study Dictionary: New Testament (Chattanooga, TN: AMG Publishers, 2000).
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