Trying to Trick Your Substitute

Suggested Reading: Galatians 1:6-18

Years ago, I attended two very different substitute teacher trainings. While both trainings were very different, one thing they both contained was a warning not to simply trust the students when they say, "But our teacher always lets us do this…" Instead, we were encouraged to abide by the teacher's notes whenever possible and, when in doubt, take the teacher's lack of notation as an indication of what to do. "Those kids are always gonna try to pull one over on you and make up their own rules!" We were warned. "Don't let them!"

Unfortunately, we find ourselves in similar situations far too often when it comes to what we believe about Jesus and the Bible. When giving an explanation for why Paul taught what he did, Paul explained, "I want you to know, brothers, that the gospel I preached is not something that man made up. I did not receive it from any man, nor was I taught it; rather, I received it by revelation from Jesus Christ" (Galatians 1:11-12, NIV). Paul wanted the Galatians to know that he did not simply pass on something he had heard from some other person but that Jesus himself had revealed these things to him.

Unless Jesus is personally appearing to us, the closest thing we have to such direct revelation is the Bible itself.  When we are dealing with such important things as eternal truths, we do not have the luxury of simply taking the students' word for it.  Through the centuries people have attempted to credit the Bible with saying all kinds of things that it doesn't actually say, things like, "God helps those who help themselves," or  "Money is the root of all evil" or (shocker!) that there were three wise men, and a whole host of barbaric things too numerous to mention.  Quite often, people attribute things to the Bible that not only aren't in the Bible but are contrary to the teaching of the Bible. "God helps those who help themselves," is a great example of this.  Romans 5:6 tells us, "While we were still helpless, at the right time, Christ died for the ungodly" (NIV) and gives us numerous examples of God's concern for the helpless.

"Why does this matter?" one might ask.  Because the Word of God is something that deserves so much respect, we need to be careful not to credit it with human ideas. Because sometimes, what the Bible does not say is just as important as what it does say. And because it keeps us accountable for knowing the difference between our opinion and the Word of God. Paul even made such a distinction in 1 Corinthians when writing about marriage. He wrote, "To the rest, I say this (I, not the Lord): if any brother has a wife who is not a believer and she is willing to live with him, he must not divorce her" (1 Corinthians 7:12, NIV). If Paul, writing what would become scripture, was diligent enough to make a distinction between his own opinion and the instructions of God, then we can do no less.

The next time we hear someone say, or we are tempted to say, "Well, the Bible says…" we need to check our sources. Even unintentionally, it is never a good idea to mislead people about the Word of God.

The Green Goblins of Willful Ignorance

Suggested Reading: Acts 4:5-18

In the Tobey Maguire Spiderman trilogy, Spiderman's best friend, Harry, was also the son of the first Spiderman villain, the Green Goblin. When the Goblin managed to kill himself in an attempt to get rid of Spiderman, Harry blamed Spiderman for the death. Even when Spidey shared the truth with his friend, Harry refused to let it affect his view of things. Not until Mary Jane, a girl both men loved, found herself in danger did Harry decide to accept the truth and fight at Spiderman's side to save Mary Jane.  One of the tragedies of the trilogy is the time that was wasted and the friendship that was ruined because one of its central characters refused to allow the truth to affect him.

In Acts chapter four we find another instance of this self-destructive human behavior. Jesus has already risen from the dead and ascended into heaven, and the disciples have begun teaching, preaching and healing in his name. As they are going into the temple one day, Peter and John heal a lame man and the entire city is thrown into a tumult. The high priests have Peter and John arrested and brought before them, in part because they are known as associates of Jesus, whom they condemned to execution. While deliberating how to handle Peter and John for healing a man in the name of the risen Jesus, they make an extraordinary statement. "What should we do with these men? We can't deny that they have performed a miraculous sign, and everybody in Jerusalem knows about it. But to keep them from spreading their propaganda any further, we must warn them not to speak to anyone in the name of Jesus." (Acts 4:16, NLT).

The council acknowledges that a miracle has been done. In the verses preceding, they do not contradict Peter and John when they claim Jesus has risen from the dead. But the council doesn't allow the truth of the events to affect their view of things. Previously, they believed that no one could do miracles unless God was with that person, but when Jesus and his disciples came along, preaching something they didn't like, they chose to change their definition of the miraculous rather than admit they were wrong about Jesus.

We are often guilty of this same behavior. When the facts don't fit our own view of the world, we choose to ignore or reinterpret the facts in order to preserve our own opinions. Nowhere is this more evident than in the political realm. Whether Democrat or Republican, conservative or progressive, moderate or independent, it is often very easy to ignore or disbelieve the facts that don't promote our own worldview. And we don't confine our hypocrisy to politics. We play the same game when we stake our reputation on a misinformed opinion and choose to double-down rather than admit our error. We make wild accusations based on feelings or rumors and then refuse to apologize when presented with the truth. We cling to a poorly formed doctrine and claim the Bible passage which contradicts our opinion must not really mean what it says.  But as followers of the One who called himself the Way, the Truth and the Life, we must care more for abiding in the truth than for the being seen as right.

When the facts don't fit with our opinion, we must change our opinion. We can't afford to trade the truth for a lie just to save our pride.