A Lesson in Missing the Point

I have never been an admirer of Oswald Chambers’ My Utmost for His Highest.  My wife and I tried using it for devotions several years ago, which lasted about one week.  We could not understand the point of many readings.  Since that time, I have noted when someone makes reference to it, and the target posts are mixed in their usefulness.

Just recently in my Facebook feed I noticed a link to one of Chamber’s meditations, so I followed it and discovered the devotion was based on this part of Scripture:

Look at the birds of the air….  Consider the lilies of the field… (Matt 6:26, 28)

Immediately, we should see a problem.  While the segments are valid sentences, the context is missing.  Even Chambers’ opening sentence, while quoting more of the text, fails to give any context whatsoever:

“Consider the lilies of the field, how they grow: they neither toil nor spin”— they simply are!

The devotion goes downhill quickly from here.  In an apparent attempt to wax spiritual (perhaps we should say mystical?), Chambers proceeds along a tangential line unrelated to what Jesus was teaching.  He posits that we have a ministry and service that would be beneficial if we would go about our lives in Christ without trying to be consistent and useful (i.e., get out of our own way by “concentrating on our Father in heaven”).  His central statement is telling:

In essence, Jesus was saying, “Do not worry about being of use to others; simply believe on Me.”

The main point to this section of Matthew 6 is not worry about usefulness, but worry about worldly goods.  Jesus first tells the crowd in verses 19-24 to not hoard money or be greedy in an effort to give yourself a more secure future.  Then He follows in verses 25-34 with instruction to not be overly concerned about having too little, because the elect are ever in the Father’s care.  Are there spiritual aspects of Jesus’ teaching?  Certainly.  Just as we try to store up treasures on earth for the future, we try to store up teachers and teaching, which can lead to pride and great error.  Conversely, we should not be concerned about a dearth of instruction, because He can and will provide for our spiritual nourishment.

Rather than expounding on the passage in a meaningful way, Chambers demonstrated what can happen we someone tries to over-spiritualize, twist, or misapply Scripture for a preconceived intent.  He is not alone in this.  Since the early days of the Church, so-called Bible teachers and pastors have ridden their hobby-horses rather than deliver sound doctrine.  The people of God must be discerning, but this requires faithful men to teach them rightly.  Pray the Lord raise up such shepherds who will faithfully feed and care for the sheep.

The Messenger and Message Seem Correct, But Are They?

Among several podcasts heard and blogs read, I come across many telling of men and women claiming to receive direct revelation from God for revelation to a person or group.  These messages have characteristics deemed necessary to qualify as a Spirit-delivered utterance: vision or dream state, sensed or seemingly-audible voice, physical sensation, unidentifiable messenger, and an audacious, generic message.  The “prophet” delivers a questionable message bolstered by a mixture of Bible proof texts and theological-sounding phrases recognizable to the hearer.  If the message comes from a spiritual messenger, credence and authority are automatically assigned by both “prophet” and audience, completing the deception.  Hucksters have long used their gift of rhetoric to fool crowds, but when a message is received from a spiritual source, how can it be properly evaluated, especially when the content closely aligns with scripture?  The book of Job gives a helpful example.

Job has just completed his great lamentation against the day he was born, after which Eliphaz the Temanite responds with what he considers to be an iron-clad argument that Job must have great, hidden sins for which repentance is required.  Part of his argument involves a spiritual visitor and the message received:

Now a word was brought to me stealthily;
        my ear received the whisper of it.
Amid thoughts from visions of the night,
        when deep sleep falls on men,
dread came upon me, and trembling,
        which made all my bones shake.
A spirit glided past my face;
        the hair of my flesh stood up.
It stood still,
        but I could not discern its appearance.
A form was before my eyes;
        there was silence, then I heard a voice:
“Can mortal man be in the right before God?
        Can a man be pure before his Maker?
Even in his servants he puts no trust,
        and his angels he charges with error;
how much more those who dwell in houses of clay,
        whose foundation is in the dust,
        who are crushed like the moth.
Between morning and evening they are beaten to pieces;
        they perish forever without anyone regarding it.
Is not their tent-cord plucked up within them,
        do they not die, and that without wisdom?”  (Job 4:12-21)

Assuming Eliphaz was actually confronted by this apparition and not inventing a tale, was the messenger sent from God or another source?  We know from other biblical texts that the appearance of an angel causes fear and awe (Luke 1:12, 29; Rev 19:10), so the sensation experienced would not be uncommon for such an occasion.  Similarly, the message is consonant with a scriptural view of man in his sinful condition: before a holy and righteous God, man has no standing within himself and can do no more than cry out to the Almighty in repentance, which Eliphaz counsels afterward (Job 5:8-16).

Even with these marks of divine authenticity, there are two particular elements that should cause the reader to reconsider.  First, the spiritual messenger does not identify himself, nor does Eliphaz offer one.  A quick check of similar appearances shows that the heavenly visitor was known by all involved, and though the initial meeting caused turmoil to the recipient, reassurance and respect were offered to help the person receive what was given.  Eliphaz’ account of the visit tells us nothing was offered but fear and dread.

Second, though the message is correct in what is delivered, the messenger does not offer the hope of remedy: there is no hope of falling on the Lord’s mercy and grace.  Eliphaz offers the solution himself outside the context of the visit, but the entity had no such words.  This is not how the Most High works.  Throughout redemption history, God has offered the hope of the gospel (see Gen 3:15; Rev 21:6) and has been patient with his creation that they might come to repentance.

From what Eliphaz described, we can conclude that the messenger was from Satan.  It came to tear down Job, cause him to look inward for rescue without turning to the Lord for peace and restoration.  This tactic is used today by the enemy to lead well-intentioned preachers and teachers to deliver misguided, even damnable, messages to His sheep.  We are told to clean up our messes, when in fact the Lord would forgive them freely through the completed work of Jesus for that sin on the cross.  We are told that not enough is being done, when in fact, there is nothing more to do but live in the light of the gospel.

Be wary of correct-sounding but error-ridden teaching.  Evaluate the content with an open Bible, not an open mind.

Sunday Quiz

I found this quote on the internet and thought that this would be a good quiz question for the reading audience.

Read the quote and answer the two questions following.

1.  From what theological background is the person who made the statement?
        a)  Roman Catholic
        b)  Wesleyan
        c)  Friends (Quaker)
        d)  Lutheran
        e)  Reformed
        f)  Mennonite
        g)  Non-denominational Evangelical
        h)  Latter Day Saints (Mormon)
        i)  Eastern Orthodox
        j)  Baptist

2.  Is the statement correct?  Why or why not?




The correct answer for #1 is here and here.  Did you find it difficult because the answer could be "All of the above"?  That is not surprising.  I heard this quoted almost verbatim from a Non-denominational Evangelical as truth.

The correct answer to #2 is No.  God's word is the norm for our lives.  Most groups calling themselves Christians think that there is something beyond scripture—an immediate work of the Holy Spirit—that must constantly be leading, moving, or teaching in a discernible manner beyond what scripture tells us in order to be considered a spiritual person.  If that was true, wouldn't God have told us that would be the expectation?  Yet what we find is the constant referral to his revealed word.

Test the Prophets

And any prophet who teaches the truth, but does not live according to his teaching is to be considered a false prophet.  (Didache 11.10)

The final note is interesting in that it sets the actual walking of the Way as a test for anyone who acts as a prophet.  The correct teaching is not enough in itself, it must be backed up by the correct form of life.  The Didache has a bald statement intended as a test for the community to use to distinguish visitors in two groups: false and genuine. *

Visitors are not the only people who need to be examined: wolves, goatherds, and other self-promoters are a "dime-a-dozen."  Fellow believers, do the hard work of discernment.  Elders, do the hard work of guarding the flock.


* Thomas O'Laughlin, The Didache: A Window on the Earliest Christians, (Grand Rapids, MI: Baker Academic, 2001), 118