Since satan quoted scripture, how should we discern what is written?

[Gregory Thompson]

Since satan quoted scripture, how should we discern what is written?

Quite often I notice in biblical debates people try to end the conversation by saying they are just quoting scripture, it's not an opinion ... then again so is everyone else.

So the question remains. What are good ways of discerning good doctrines taken from the bible and also "bad seeds" alike?

 

[Maria Billingsley]

Since satan quoted scripture, how should we discern what is written?

Quite often I notice in biblical debates people try to end the conversation by saying they are just quoting scripture, it's not an opinion ... then again so is everyone else.

So the question remains. What are good ways of discerning good doctrines taken from the bible and also "bad seeds" alike?

The only way to discern is through the power of the Holy Spirit.
Blessings

 

[Unofficial Reverand Alex]

Would God leave us without an understanding of Scripture? Does it make sense that God would leave us all on our own, left to figure it out for ourselves? Even with the Holy Spirit always teaching us (John 14:26), people are led to all sorts of different interpretations. It's only sensible that God would give us some tools to help us out.

One tool lies in the beautiful history of our Church. Does salvation come from faith, works, or both? Are Father, Son, and Holy Spirit one in the same? What books & letters should be considered "inspired"? These & many more questions have already been answered by Church councils throughout the ages, led by people far better educated in Scripture & history than any of us. The question of whether or not circumcision is required for salvation is answered by the First Council of Jerusalem in Acts 15!

It also makes sense that God would give us a living voice. He gave the ancient Hebrews the Prophets, He gave the New Testament Israelites Jesus...there's no reason why he would leave us without a living voice, somebody who teaches the Church with the authority of the Holy Spirit! And who would he give this teaching authority to? Whoever "leads the flock", so to speak. The person who leads the Church as a servant of Jesus, the successor of the first person Jesus left in charge (St. Peter), is the logical choice for a living voice to guide the people; hence the long-established doctrine of papal infallibility. (More on that topic; if you want to rebuke me on this point (or if you're just interested), please read through this first: Papal Infallibility)

As for discerning on our own: It's helpful to point out that every way Jesus quoted Scripture was with trust in God; as for Satan, every way he quoted Scripture was with an intent to destroy. Jesus told us what the greatest commandment is (Matthew 22:26-30); if our interpretation of the Bible helps us serve this commandment, you should be alright.

I pray this all helps anyone who's interested. Even though there's a lot here that I'm sure will be met with argument, please don't just focus your post on tearing about the Catholic; build up whatever you think is a better alternative. The OP has an excellent point; I'm not trying to divide or prove anyone wrong, I'm just sharing what I believe to be the answer.

May God bless us all & our attempts to follow Him more closely!

 

[Gregory Thompson]

The only way to discern is through the power of the Holy Spirit.
Blessings

Great answer!

 

[Gregory Thompson]

Would God leave us without an understanding of Scripture? Does it make sense that God would leave us all on our own, left to figure it out for ourselves? Even with the Holy Spirit always teaching us (John 14:26), people are led to all sorts of different interpretations. It's only sensible that God would give us some tools to help us out.

One tool lies in the beautiful history of our Church. Does salvation come from faith, works, or both? Are Father, Son, and Holy Spirit one in the same? What books & letters should be considered "inspired"? These & many more questions have already been answered by Church councils throughout the ages, led by people far better educated in Scripture & history than any of us. The question of whether or not circumcision is required for salvation is answered by the First Council of Jerusalem in Acts 15!

It also makes sense that God would give us a living voice. He gave the ancient Hebrews the Prophets, He gave the New Testament Israelites Jesus...there's no reason why he would leave us without a living voice, somebody who teaches the Church with the authority of the Holy Spirit! And who would he give this teaching authority to? Whoever "leads the flock", so to speak. The person who leads the Church as a servant of Jesus, the successor of the first person Jesus left in charge (St. Peter), is the logical choice for a living voice to guide the people; hence the long-established doctrine of papal infallibility. (More on that topic; if you want to rebuke me on this point, please read through this first: Papal Infallibility)

As for discerning on our own: It's helpful to point out that every way Jesus quoted Scripture was with trust in God; as for Satan, every way he quoted Scripture was with an intent to destroy. Jesus told us what the greatest commandment is (Matthew 22:26-30); if our interpretation of the Bible helps us serve this commandment, you should be alright.

I pray this all helps anyone who's interested. Even though there's a lot here that I'm sure will be met with argument, please don't just focus your post on tearing about the Catholic; build up whatever you think is a better alternative. The OP has an excellent point; I'm not trying to divide or prove anyone wrong, I'm just sharing what I believe to be the answer.

May God bless us all & our attempts to follow Him more closely!

That's a great answer too. thanks for posting.

 

[alsughasoughaiuyfygh]

.

 

[Gregory Thompson]

There's a satirical forum called Landover Baptist Church which is a forum full of troll accounts who make all sorts of outlandish topics and posts. They cherry pick Bible verses to make them seem like legit doctrine and they do such a good job at it that some people even sign up and argue with them thinking it's real. The point of the forum is to satirize right winged American Christianity.

Based on this, I'd say a good knowledge of the Bible, knowing the full context behind each verse, and surrounding yourself with good, honest people is key to getting a more balanced view of scripture.

Great answer also. context and balance is important.

 

[Gregory Thompson]

One thing I frequently am reminded of in scripture when looking at scripture are virtue lists and summaries of concepts.

The fruit of the Holy Spirit is one example of a virtue list, does this theology have the character of the fruit of the Holy Spirit? one could ask.

Summary passages such as "any commandment is summed up with the brief saying" "love does not harm their neighbour" and "anything that does not come from faith is sin" help to break down a lot of the concepts since modern education systems tend to work against the work of the Holy Spirit foundationally. (meaning basic reading skills may not be enough since our thoughts are tilted against God to begin with)

 

[Jonaitis]

Since satan quoted scripture, how should we discern what is written?

Quite often I notice in biblical debates people try to end the conversation by saying they are just quoting scripture, it's not an opinion ... then again so is everyone else.

So the question remains. What are good ways of discerning good doctrines taken from the bible and also "bad seeds" alike?

Good doctrine glorifies God, edifies believers, and convicts sinners. Augustine said that unless those doctrines direct, increase, set your love and affections toward God and your neighbor, they are false.

 

[Gregory Thompson]

Good doctrine glorifies God, edifies believers, and convicts sinners. Augustine said that unless those doctrines direct, increase, set your love and affections toward God and your neighbor, they are false.

Great answer. Thank you for posting.

 

[(° ͡ ͜ ͡ʖ ͡ °) (ᵔᴥᵔʋ)]

Since satan quoted scripture, how should we discern what is written?

Quite often I notice in biblical debates people try to end the conversation by saying they are just quoting scripture, it's not an opinion ... then again so is everyone else.

So the question remains. What are good ways of discerning good doctrines taken from the bible and also "bad seeds" alike?

By using basic hermeneutical principles. These principles include:
1) Scripture is the best interpreter of Scripture.
2) Texts of Scripture must be interpreted in context (both immediate & broad contexts).
3) No text of Scripture (properly interpreted in its context) will contradict another text of Scripture. When contradictions seem to exist, it is the task of the interpreter to explain the seeming contradiction. He must never seek to do so by ignoring or denying any part of the truth that is revealed in Scripture.
4) We must derive normative theological doctrine from didactic passages that deal with a particular doctrine explicitly.
A. We must never use implicit teaching to contradict explicit teaching.
B. We must never use implications from hortatory or historical passages to contradict explicit teachings from didactic or doctrinal passages.
5) We must avoid the temptation to impose systematic theological definitions on biblical terms. In addition, we need to rid ourselves of the notion that biblical writers concerned themselves with providing solutions for theological questions that did not arise until much later in Church history. (E.g., at times, we may be guilty of giving the impression that Paul’s chief concern was to defend Calvinism against the onslaught of five point Arminianism). Though we must seek to apply biblical truth to current controversies, we must not assume that there can be a perfect match between these controversies and those the biblical writers faced.
6) We must not assume that biblical writers used terms uniformly.
7) We must realize the variety of perspectives from which the biblical writers approached the explication of God’s truth. We may understand what a passage means only when we approach it from the author’s perspective.

 

[Gregory Thompson]

By using basic hermeneutical principles. These principles include:
1) Scripture is the best interpreter of Scripture.
2) Texts of Scripture must be interpreted in context (both immediate & broad contexts).
3) No text of Scripture (properly interpreted in its context) will contradict another text of Scripture. When contradictions seem to exist, it is the task of the interpreter to explain the seeming contradiction. He must never seek to do so by ignoring or denying any part of the truth that is revealed in Scripture.
4) We must derive normative theological doctrine from didactic passages that deal with a particular doctrine explicitly.
A. We must never use implicit teaching to contradict explicit teaching.
B. We must never use implications from hortatory or historical passages to contradict explicit teachings from didactic or doctrinal passages.
5) We must avoid the temptation to impose systematic theological definitions on biblical terms. In addition, we need to rid ourselves of the notion that biblical writers concerned themselves with providing solutions for theological questions that did not arise until much later in Church history. (E.g., at times, we may be guilty of giving the impression that Paul’s chief concern was to defend Calvinism against the onslaught of five point Arminianism). Though we must seek to apply biblical truth to current controversies, we must not assume that there can be a perfect match between these controversies and those the biblical writers faced.
6) We must not assume that biblical writers used terms uniformly.
7) We must realize the variety of perspectives from which the biblical writers approached the explication of God’s truth. We may understand what a passage means only when we approach it from the author’s perspective.

Great post. Thank you for sharing.

 

[~Zao~]

The only way to discern is through the power of the Holy Spirit.
Blessings

Knowing the character of God could be added to that.

 

[Gregory Thompson]

Knowing the character of God could be added to that.

This too is important. Thanks for sharing.

Is there a particular way of knowing God's character that you would suggest?

 

[~Zao~]

This too is important. Thanks for sharing.

Is there a particular way of knowing God's character that you would suggest?

Experience.

 

[Gregory Thompson]

Experience.

I can see how that ties into the Holy Spirit answer. Great answer.

 

[Unofficial Reverand Alex]

1) Scripture is the best interpreter of Scripture.

This is an interesting concept, and it highlights the importance of Church history. Who says what qualifies as "Scripture"? That was a hot issue for 400 years, until the 2nd Synod of Rome decided on the 73 books of the Bible. Only from there could we say what was & what wasn't canonical; it's amazing how much controversy was over so many books of the Bible! James, Revelation, Song of Songs, and Ecclesiastes were met with some of the strongest controversy, but they've all turned out to be valuable additions to the Bible.

And that was a good list (if a bit heavy on the vocabulary!), thanks for sharing!

May God bless us all & all our conversations!

 

[Aaron112]

Since satan quoted scripture, how should we discern what is written?
Quite often I notice in biblical debates people try to end the conversation by saying they are just quoting scripture, it's not an opinion ... then again so is everyone else.
So the question remains. What are good ways of discerning good doctrines taken from the bible and also "bad seeds" alike?

Jesus' Sheep Listen to Jesus Voice and Follow Jesus, we will not follow another voice (actually rather run from any other voice!?)

Note also, never cause anyone to stumble by tempting them with any alcoholic drink.