Biblical Authority and Accuracy

There has been much discussion over a long period of time about the authority the Bible has in the life of an individual and the church in matters of lifestyle, belief, practice and more. The only way to propagate a morality, lifestyle, or gospel that is different than the true Christianity, one must first reject the Bible's authority. The Bible is the theological foundation for our faith (Romans 10:17), an anchor for our morality, a compass for our purpose, and a barometer for the Holy Spirit's work among us. 

"All Scripture is breathed out by God and profitable for teaching, for reproof, for correction, and for training in righteousness, [17] that the man of God may be complete, equipped for every good work." 2 Timothy 3:16-17

Let me recommend a book that is a bit hard to find, but definitely worth a read: "Biblical Authority and Christian Faith" by Richard S. Taylor (Nazarene Publishing House). Here are some passages that are worthwhile and pertinent to our understanding of the authority of the Bible:

"In actual fact we do not come to the Bible through Jesus, but we come to Jesus through the Bible. It is from the Bible-and only from the Bible- that we learn what Jesus thought and said about this or that. We have to establish the authority of the Bible first in order to be sure that we know the teaching of Jesus." (p. 14)

"The Church cannot be our authority for ascribing authority to the Bible. It can witness to its authority, and the witness is valuable; but it cannot and has never attempted to invest authority in the Bible. ... the Bible is not the product of the Church; rather, the Church is the product of the Word of God, first preached, then written." (p 14)

"To ascribe the authority of the Bible to the authority of the Church would be like a mother depending on her child to inform her of his birth date." (p 15)

"If the New Testament is inaccurate in its portrayal of the historical Jesus, then we can only speculate about Jesus. In this case we are sure of virtually nothing, and are floundering helplessly in a murky sea of subjectivism." (p 17)

"If the Bible is a reliable account of Christ and of the Apostolic Church, then it is not only our primary source of knowledge about Jesus but our primary source of Christian doctrine." (p 19)

"If it is faulty and unreliable in its picture of Jesus Christ, its claim to any kind of religious authority collapses." (p 41)

"Church history bears witness to the reliability of the Spirit's witness. In every age men and women who have approached the Bible with a humble, open, and honest mind, and whose spiritual perception was not paralyzed by continued sin or ulterior motive, have experienced the inward persuasion that the words of the Bible were in some mysterious way the words of God." (p 21)

"While the Bible may not properly be said to have been dictated by God, it nevertheless in its wholeness is a transcription of God's mind." (p 32)

"If the authority of the Scripture is merely human, and in no real sense divine, our interest in the Bible necessarily becomes academic, and our opinion about it is relatively inconsequential." (p 32)

"When we are arguing with Scripture, we are arguing with God. When we disregard or disobey or despise the Scripture, we are disregarding or disobeying or despising God." (p33)

"By infallibility is meant unfailing and unerring in disclosing God's self-revelation to man. Some would distinguish infallibility from inerrancy, but this is semantically difficult." (p 33)

Article of Faith IV of the Manual of the Church of the Nazarene, "in substance... follows the Methodist Articles of Religion of 1784: 'The Holy Scriptures contain all things necessary to salvation; so that whatsoever is not read therein, nor may be proved thereby, is not to be required of any man that it should be believed as an article of faith, or be thought requisite or necessary to salvation.' It would be very wrong to misconstrue this apparently narrow articulation of biblical authority as constituting an implication of error in the Bible of any kind. The statement must be understood in the light of the historical background. The fundamental need was to frame a statement which would guard against the Roman Catholic insistence on tradition as an adjunct and virtually coequal authority in determining dogma. The objective was not to limit inerrancy but to exclude tradition." (p 35)

H. Orton Wiley is credited with framing the phrase "inerrantly revealing the will of God concerning us in all things necessary to our salvation" in Article IV of the Church of the Nazarene's Manual. 
 "According to Paul Culbertson, Wiley explained to him that he deliberately articulated a moderate statement because he wanted 'to leave elbow room in there.'" (p34)

"Obviously the total statement limits the size of the 'elbow.' The claim of plenary inspiration would rule out serious error of any kind. The elbow then would have to be confined to the debatable question whether (1) there is such a thing as inconsequential error, and (2) whether indeed such inconsequential errors were in the original autographs." (p 36)

"Even if some room for debate about inconsequential error were legitimate, this latitude does not extend to what by an reasonable criteria would be major error. For instance, whether or not Adam and Eve were real persons (as Genesis obviously intends us to believe), whether the Fall actually occurred in a space-time setting, whether Genesis 1-11 is basically historical or mythological, whether the story of the miraculous deliverance from Egypt is to be received as embroidered legend or sober truth, whether Jesus was born of a virgin as Matthew and Luke claim, whether the Gospels accurately report the sayings of Jesus-- to mention a few items-- cannot by any stretch of the imagination be called 'inconsequential.'
If the Bible on these matters is wrong, such error would undermine the very foundations of biblical authority. The Bible's obvious assumption of the factualness of these accounts is so clearly in the very warp and woof of the literature, whether history, poetry, or prophecy, that to weed these elements out- to 'demythologize' thoroughly - would leave little Bible left. The remainder would be a feeble reed of support for historic Christianity."

What did John Wesley say about the Bible? Among other things...

"I want to know one thing- the way to heaven... God himself has condescended to teach the way: For this very purpose he came from heaven. He hath written it down in a book. O give me that book. At any price, give me the book of God! I have it! Here is knowledge enough for me. Let me be homo unius libri (a man of one book). Here then I am, far from the busy ways of men. I sit down alone: Only God is here. In his presence I open, I read his book; for this end, to find the way to heaven."
Works of John Wesley (Kansas City: Nazarene Publishing House, n.d. 5:3.)

"Concerning the Scriptures in general, it may be observed, the word of the living God, which directed the first patriarchs also, was, in the time of Moses, committed to writing. To this were added, in several succeeding generations, the inspired writings of the other prophets. Afterward, what the Son of God preached, and the Holy Ghost spake by the apostles, the apostles and evangelists wrote. - This is what we now style the Holy Scripture: this is that word of God which remaineth for ever: of which, though heaven and earth pass away, one jot or tittle shall not pass away. The Scripture therefore of the Old and New Testament, is a most solid and precious system of Divine truth. Every part thereof is worthy of God; and all together are one entire body, wherein is no defect, no excess. It is the fountain of heavenly wisdom, which they who are able to taste, prefer to all writings of men, however wise, or learned, or holy."
John Wesley from the "Preface" to Explanatory Notes on the New Testament.

"In matters of religion I regard no writings but the inspired. Tauler, Behmen, and a whole army of Mystic authors, are with me nothing to St. Paul. In every point I appeal "to the law and the testimony," and value no authority but this.
At a time when I was in great danger of not valuing this authority enough, you made that important observation: "I see where your mistake lies. You would have a philosophical religion; but there can be no such thing. Religion is the most plain, simple thing in the world. It is only, 'We love him, because he first loved us.' So far as you add philosophy to religion, just so far you spoil it." This remark I have never forgotten since; and I trust in God I never shall."
John Wesley-From An Extract of a Letter to the Reverend Mr. Law Occasioned by Some of his Late Writings .

"My ground is the Bible. Yea, I am a Bible-bigot. I follow it in all things, both great and small."
John Wesley-From the Journal: "June 5, 1766"

"All scripture is inspired of God -The Spirit of God not only once inspired those who wrote it, but continually inspires, supernaturally assists, those that read it with earnest prayer. Hence it is so profitable for doctrine, for instruction of the ignorant, for the reproof or conviction of them that are in error or sin, for the correction or amendment of whatever is amiss, and for instructing or training up the children of God in all righteousness ."
John Wesley-from Explanatory Notes Upon the New Testament: "2 Timothy 3:16."

"I am distressed. I know not what to do. I see what I might have done once. I might have said peremptorily and expressly, 'Here I am: I and my Bible. I will not, I dare not, vary from this book, either in great things or small. I have no power to dispense with one jot or tittle what is contained therein. I am determined to be a Bible Christian, not almost, but altogether. Who will meet me on this ground? Join me on this, or not at all.'"
John Wesley- Sermon #116 "Causes Of the Inefficacy Of Christianity"

"I read Mr. Jenyns's admired tract, on the 'Internal Evidence of the Christian Religion.' He is undoubtedly a fine writer; but whether he is a Christian, Deist, or Atheist, I cannot tell. If he is a Christian, he betrays his own cause by averring, that 'all Scripture is not given by inspiration of God; but the writers of it were sometimes left to themselves, and consequently made some mistakes.' Nay, if there be any mistakes in the Bible, there may as well be a thousand. If there be one falsehood in that book, it did not come from the God of truth."
John Wesley from his Journal: Wednesday July 24, 1776.

Many today who claim to be "Wesleyan" in their low view of Scripture are disingenuous at worst and in err at best. 

Here are some other miscellaneous quotes about Scripture:

"By inspiration we mean the actuating energy of the Holy Spirit by which holy men were qualified to receive religious truth and to communicate it to others without error."
H. Orton Wiley, Christian Theology (Kansas City: Nazarene Publishing House, 1941), 2:168.

"Those filled with the Holy Spirit... know the Bible is true, not primarily through the efforts of the apologists, but because they are acquainted with the Author. The Spirit which inspired the word dwells within them and witnesses to its truth."  p 42 "Introduction to Christian Theology" Kansas City, MO. Beacon Hill Press, H. Orton Wiley and Paul T Culbertson. 1946

The Bible is a great gift to us from God. May we be a people who saturate in it regularly and take seriously our walk with Christ as we live according to His Word!

Check out these other articles:

Why I Love the Church of the Nazarene

My Ordination Means Something

"Progressive Christianity" is the Real Problem

How to Lead Your Church into Apostacy

Is False Teaching Really That Bad?

False teaching is not a new thing. There have always been people who distorted truth. Interestingly, even the first generation church dealt with false teachings. To be sure there was much in issues of theology that had not been settled in any kind of technical, systematic, or even thorough way at that point in history. 

And yet the false hood was quick to come. Even in a persecuted church where people were risking imprisonment or even death, false teaching began to take root. The false teachers rarely refuted every orthodox belief and rarely encouraged sin in every conceivable way. Those spreading their falsehood would often embrace partial truth with a significant departing from only one area of truth. They would often advocate strongly for some sense of morality on some issues, but then dismiss other significant moral tenets of Christian lifestyle.

While we understand that in nonessentials we should have unity, false teachers like to reorganize biblical truth by their own cultural standards to place historic essentials or salvific essentials in the unessential category. Many do so with the homosexual practice claiming that it is unessential and "many Christians disagree on the subject." That however does not make is an unessential. Sexual morality is, in fact, an essential component to our salvation. Paul even warns us not to be deceived in 1 Corinthians 6:9-10, stating that those who practice homosexuality and those who are sexually immoral will not inherit the kingdom of God. That certainly sounds essential and salvific!

Some falsehood is borne of ignorance or misunderstanding. Some distortion of truth is borne of sensuality or lawlessness. Some is intentional and some unintentional. But the goal of the enemy is ultimately the same: to lead people astray. 

So how serious is false teaching & preaching? Serious enough that almost every book in the bible deals with it in some manner. Jesus repeatedly spoke to the issue, Paul challenged churches to reject false teaching, God rebukes churches over it, and the Old Testament prophets constantly opposed false prophets.

Below are some references to false teaching (with commentary).

Jesus warns us that there will be false christs and false prophets. They may even be accompanied by "signs and wonders." Matt 24:24 "For false christs and false prophets will arise and perform great signs and wonders, so as to lead astray, if possible, even the elect."

Jesus rebukes the scribes and Pharisees. These were religious leaders who were confronted by Jesus over both orthodox and orthopraxis issues. Matthew 23

Jesus warns about the "leaven" that so easily spreads. The teachings of religious leaders is impactful to people and spreads quickly. It is important that it be true. Matt 16:12 "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."

False teachers often receive praise from others. Luke 6:26 " “Woe to you, when all people speak well of you, for so their fathers did to the false prophets."

Who are the wolves who will come to harm the flock (church)? Those who speak twisted things. Acts 20:28-30 "Pay careful attention to yourselves and to all the flock, in which the Holy Spirit has made you overseers, to care for the church of God, which he obtained with his own blood. [29] I know that after my departure fierce wolves will come in among you, not sparing the flock; [30] and from among your own selves will arise men speaking twisted things, to draw away the disciples after them."

The mind, untethered to the revealed word of God, is prone to philosophy and empty deceit. It will follow, not Christ, but the elemental spirits of this world. Colossians 2:8 "See to it that no one takes you captive by philosophy and empty deceit, according to human tradition, according to the elemental spirits of the world, and not according to Christ."

The job of a prophet, teacher, professor, or leader in the church is to teach the doctrine passed down to them, not whatever wind of cultural philosophy is blowing. If anyone teaches a different doctrine that does not agree with the word of God, they are prideful and more. 1 Timothy 6:3-5 "If anyone teaches a different doctrine and does not agree with the sound words of our Lord Jesus Christ and the teaching that accords with godliness, [4] he is puffed up with conceit and understands nothing. He has an unhealthy craving for controversy and for quarrels about words, which produce envy, dissension, slander, evil suspicions, [5] and constant friction among people who are depraved in mind and deprived of the truth, imagining that godliness is a means of gain."

Some people will not be able to endure sound teachings. They will crave for false teachings that permit the lusts of their flesh to rule and reign without repentance. 2 Timothy 4:3-4 "For the time is coming when people will not endure sound teaching, but having itching ears they will accumulate for themselves teachers to suit their own passions, [4] and will turn away from listening to the truth and wander off into myths."

We must hold to the word we have been taught and promote the truth as found in the word of God. Those who do not, must be rebuked sharply. Titus 1:9-14 "He must hold firm to the trustworthy word as taught, so that he may be able to give instruction in sound doctrine and also to rebuke those who contradict it. [10] For there are many who are insubordinate, empty talkers and deceivers, especially those of the circumcision party. [11] They must be silenced, since they are upsetting whole families by teaching for shameful gain what they ought not to teach. [12] One of the Cretans, a prophet of their own, said, “Cretans are always liars, evil beasts, lazy gluttons.” [13] This testimony is true. Therefore rebuke them sharply, that they may be sound in the faith, [14] not devoting themselves to Jewish myths and the commands of people who turn away from the truth."

Many false prophets will bring their destructive heresies, borne of sensuality, which will blaspheme the truth. 2 Peter 2:1-3 "But false prophets also arose among the people, just as there will be false teachers among you, who will secretly bring in destructive heresies, even denying the Master who bought them, bringing upon themselves swift destruction. [2] And many will follow their sensuality, and because of them the way of truth will be blasphemed. [3] And in their greed they will exploit you with false words. Their condemnation from long ago is not idle, and their destruction is not asleep."

The ignorant and unstable will twist to their own destruction the words of Paul in his letters. 2 Peter 3:15-17 "And count the patience of our Lord as salvation, just as our beloved brother Paul also wrote to you according to the wisdom given him, [16] as he does in all his letters when he speaks in them of these matters. There are some things in them that are hard to understand, which the ignorant and unstable twist to their own destruction, as they do the other Scriptures. [17] You therefore, beloved, knowing this beforehand, take care that you are not carried away with the error of lawless people and lose your own stability."

We need the ability to discern and test the spirit of those who are false prophets. Their charisma is not sufficient authority to repeal God's word. 1 John 4:1 "Beloved, do not believe every spirit, but test the spirits to see whether they are from God, for many false prophets have gone out into the world."

Those who do not abide in the teachings of Christ, do not have God. Don't even receive a person like this into your house. 2 John 1:9-11 "Everyone who goes on ahead and does not abide in the teaching of Christ, does not have God. Whoever abides in the teaching has both the Father and the Son. [10] If anyone comes to you and does not bring this teaching, do not receive him into your house or give him any greeting, [11] for whoever greets him takes part in his wicked works."

Is it important to walk in the truth? Yes it is! 3 John 1:3-4 "For I rejoiced greatly when the brothers came and testified to your truth, as indeed you are walking in the truth. [4] I have no greater joy than to hear that my children are walking in the truth."

We are even challenged to contend for the faith because there are people who pervert the grace of God into sensuality! Wow. Jude 1:3-4 "Beloved, although I was very eager to write to you about our common salvation, I found it necessary to write appealing to you to contend for the faith that was once for all delivered to the saints. [4] For certain people have crept in unnoticed who long ago were designated for this condemnation, ungodly people, who pervert the grace of our God into sensuality and deny our only Master and Lord, Jesus Christ."

God rebukes churches over adopting false teachings surrounding, among other things, sexual immorality. Revelation 2:14-16 "But I have a few things against you: you have some there who hold the teachings of Balaam, who taught Balak to put a stumbling block before the sons of Israel, so that they might eat food sacrificed to idols and practice sexual immorality. [15] So also you have some who hold the teaching of the Nicolaitans. [16] Therefore repent. If not, I will come to you soon and war against them with the sword of my mouth."

God even rebukes a church for tolerating a false prophetess who is teaching and seducing resulting in the practice of sexual immorality among other things. Judgement is coming for her and the church that tolerates what she is doing. Revelation 2:20-25 "But I have this against you, that you tolerate that woman Jezebel, who calls herself a prophetess and is teaching and seducing my servants to practice sexual immorality and to eat food sacrificed to idols. [21] I gave her time to repent, but she refuses to repent of her sexual immorality. [22] Behold, I will throw her onto a sickbed, and those who commit adultery with her I will throw into 

What about the Old Testament?

A pretty serious punishment for those who claim to speak for God, but have not heard from Him. Deuteronomy 18:20 "But the prophet who presumes to speak a word in my name that I have not commanded him to speak, or who speaks in the name of other gods, that same prophet shall die.’"

God is against those who are false prophets. Ezekiel 13:9 "My hand will be against the prophets who see false visions and who give lying divinations. They shall not be in the council of my people, nor be enrolled in the register of the house of Israel, nor shall they enter the land of Israel. And you shall know that I am the Lord God."

Even priests are rebuked because they made no distinction between the holy and the common. Ezekiel 22:26 "Her priests have done violence to my law and have profaned my holy things. They have made no distinction between the holy and the common, neither have they taught the difference between the unclean and the clean, and they have disregarded my Sabbaths, so that I am profaned among them."

Ezekiel 44:23 "They shall teach my people the difference between the holy and the common, and show them how to distinguish between the unclean and the clean."

There are plenty of false prophets and teachers who will tell you exactly what you wish to be true. But they are vain hopes and not from the mouth of the Lord. Jeremiah 23:16 "Thus says the Lord of hosts: “Do not listen to the words of the prophets who prophesy to you, filling you with vain hopes. They speak visions of their own minds, not from the mouth of the Lord."

Falsehood is rampant and people seem to love it Jeremiah warns. Jeremiah 5:30-31 "An appalling and horrible thing has happened in the land: [31] the prophets prophesy falsely, and the priests rule at their direction; my people love to have it so, but what will you do when the end comes?"

There are certainly more passages that I have listed about false teaching and prophets. 

So why is this taken so seriously?

1. Because speaking for God can bring salvific life or death borne of manipulation to those who listen. If it is true, it will lead to life (Jesus said he was the truth). If it is false, it will lead to death. 

2. If our faith isn't grounded in what is true, then it is of no real substance. The literal death and resurrection of Jesus is necessary because if it is not an actual historic event, how can it effect actual transformation in the life of a believer? Our faith is not just an encouraging idea, it is the bedrock of eternal life in Jesus Christ!

3. The truth sets people free. Love is the motive for God extending salvation, and the ultimate response he desires of us. But His love untethered to the truth devolves into sentimentality and cultural expressions of twisted morality. Truth without love leaves us with no compelling interest from God toward us. Love and truth cannot be separated!

4. Faith comes by hearing and hearing by the word of God. We don't need more philosophical discourses. We need men and women who have been with God in the holy place. We need people who have been radically transformed and set free by the truth of the Gospel and power of God to share with us this same Good News! That message cannot be lost, ignored, twisted, or edited. 

You cannot improve upon the Gospel of Jesus Christ. But there are many who are detracting from it.

"Unsatisfied hearts are easy prey to heresies of the mind. But when the ideal of the soul is reached in the grace and blessing of a pure heart, there is not much for false doctrine to feed upon. The truly sanctified are like well-fed people: not easy to entice." J. B. Chapman

Check out these other articles:

When Did Holiness Theology Shift to Calvinism?

20 Signs You Are in a Dying Church

"Progressive" Christianity is the Real Problem

Low Expectations Beget Low Results

When we expect little, we get little. When we aim low, we hit low. When we ask for little, we receive little.

For example, I hear a lot of people lament the fact that Christians, in the United States, are so weak in their faith. They are uncommitted, ungiving, etc.

How do so many leaders and churches respond to this problem? Answer: We lower the expectations and standards!? This does not remedy the problem, but propagates the problem.

I believe that a lowering of the standards is what caused this mess to begin with! We watered down what it meant to be Christian so that "more" people would "enter the fold." What we actually did was make Christianity a title rather than a way of life. Our faith failed to be transformational, because we settled for less than full transformation. Christianity ceased to be a separation from the world and to the things of God and became nothing more than a form of fire insurance and ease of conscious.

We have slowly transitioned to expect less and less. Thus, people of our churches are less involved, attend worship less frequently, give unfaithfully, and some do little to work in the harvest. This becomes evident in at least one way by the fact we barely expect to see people once a week in our churches anymore. Worship of the Creator has been so disregarded that we have bought in to the average Christian attending church 2 out of 5 Sundays (or whatever the stat is now).

This article is not about Sunday night worship services, though I still have a Sunday night worship service. The problem you will hear from clergy and laity is that we have a crisis of commitment, devotion to God and His Great Commission, etc. We have expected and asked less of people and in turn they have given less. As we expect less in the process of discipleship, we will receive less. 

I believe that we have lost people to the church, not because we have asked too much but because we have asked too little. Shallow expectations do not produce deep Christians. Lowering expectations never increases spiritual maturity.  

So what to do about this? Raise expectations! How? Well...

1) Preachers: Be specific about what it means to be a Christian. Address clear issues of sin and evil, but also issues of worldliness. We can do better about giving our people practical tools to recognize the influences of our culture can bankrupt our faith. That actions, lifestyles, and entertainments have the potential to lead us away from the will and work of God. Be more specific and less philosophical.

2) Raise the standards! Raise standards from the top down. Pastors must live to high standards before they can expect others to live by high standards. Be specific about what standards the leadership of your church have. Do your Sunday School teachers have to come to worship to be teachers? Do your board members have to tithe to be in that position of leadership? Do those working with minors have to have a background check and training for sexual abuse prevention? Low expectations beget low results.

3) Raise the commitment level! Challenge others to commit. To deny themselves, take up their cross, and follow Jesus. That's the simple call of the Gospel anyway. Everyone should be part of a discipleship group of some kind. Everyone should regularly be worshiping Christ with their brothers and sisters. Everyone needs to be serving the Lord through their local church in some capacity. These issues are not optional, they are essential! The question is not whether people are committed, but what they are committed to. 

4) Highlight the right things. If someone is born-again and has a clear life change, then have them testify publicly. If someone is not modeling a Christian life then do not allow them to be on the platform during service. If someone professes Christ as Lord but lives like they are in love with the world you are promoting the wrong things by allowing them to retain leadership and/or publicly lead in worship services or places of spiritual authority. What people see exhibited in the leadership of the church is what people will tend to model in their own lives.

What might you add to the list?

Check out the following articles:

Cursing, Profanity, and the Tongue

Is Tithing Still a Thing for Today?

Is Life Constantly Hard for You?

Is the Wesleyan Church Going to Become Pentecostal?

The Wesleyan Church recently had their General Conference with the theme: "Unleashed." It took place on May 23-25, 2022 and represented a potentially significant identity shift. The last decade or so, the Wesleyan Church has undergone some major shifts in polity and practice (moving to one General Superintendent instead of three, dropping their requirement to abstain from alcohol from their membership requirements, and narrowly preserving the requirement to abstain from alcohol for their clergy and church board members, etc). 

As in every General Conference there were a number of "Memorials" that were proposed. A "memorial" is an amendment or proposed change to some part of the book that details their beliefs, polity, and practice called "The Discipline of the Wesleyan Church". It is much like the Church of the Nazarene's "Manual". Some of the memorials were simply seeking to streamline the denominational infrastructure and polity as the church moves to a regional (versus district) model and some memorials were restating or rearticulating various stances. Many were benign, but Memorial 52 proposed a fundamental change to a long held historic and biblical position by every denomination birthed or shaped by the Holiness Movement of the 1800's.

Memorial 52 transitions the Wesleyan church from a Holiness denomination to a Charismatic denomination. The basic difference between a Charismatic church and a Holiness church has to do ultimately with how the gift of tongues is defined. Part of the committee that developed this Memorial shares an explanation about it in a video found on YouTube. They explain their process and reasoning behind the memorial. The proposed memorial was accepted by the Wesleyan delegates of the General Conference by a vote of 264 to 70 (over 80%). Here is what the memorial stated:

"To promote love, the common good, and orderliness in Christ’s church with reference to the use of the spiritual gift of tongues. The Wesleyan Church believes in the gifts of the miraculous use of tongues and the interpretation of tongues. Speaking, praying or singing in tongues, whether done privately or publicly, is the divinely enabled ability some believers experience to communicate to God words of thanksgiving, praise, and adoration in a language not previously learned. While The Wesleyan Church recognizes that the gift of tongues is given to some believers, there is no single gift that is given to all as evidence of the Spirit’s infilling. The greatest expression of this work is a heart purified by the Holy Spirit and an empowered life of love and service to God and people. If speaking in tongues occurs publicly in a church gathering, Scripture requires one person to speak at a time and an interpretation to be provided so all in attendance, especially unbelievers, may understand and be edified. Pastors and leaders are to exercise discretion in light of these instructions to ensure our gatherings bear the fruit of unity and order in a manner helpful and intelligible to those hearing the Gospel."

A little history: The holiness movement birthed the Pentecostal movement in 1906 during a revival service at Azusa Street in Los Angeles, California. The most significant difference between the Holiness movement and the new Pentecostal movement was the definition of the spiritual gift of speaking in tongues. Throughout church history, at least until 1906, the gift of tongues was understood as overcoming the language barrier. In 1906, the Pentecostal movement, created a linguistical barrier that was without precedent. The definition of the gift of tongues adopted by the Pentecostals had never been articulated in the history of the universal church.

The Pentecostal movement eventually evolved into both the Pentecostal and Charismatic movements. I will not seek to define them in this article as there may a bit of debate on how they would be distinguished from one another, but their definition of the gift of tongues is the same. And this definition is very different from the holiness definition. I do not have time to delve into the issue in this article but can refer you to this article referencing the problem the early Pentecostals had in their new "gift" that required them to redefine the gift of tongues.

The fledgling Pentecostal Church of the Nazarene, founded officially in 1908, dropped the word "Pentecostal" from their name in 1919 at their General Assembly so as to not identify with the "Pentecostal movement." That movement, they would claim, was creating confusion and division among the holiness movement. After the rise of the Pentecostal movement, the Holiness movement quickly responded by strongly opposing this new definition of the gift of tongues for those reasons. The Holiness Movement quickly began to publish a number of books and articles rejecting the new definition of "speaking in tongues." Books like "The Bible Versus the Tongues Theory" or "Spiritual Gifts- Healing and Tongues" (by W. T. Purkiser) or "Speaking in Tongues: A Biblical Analysis" (by Donald Metz) and many, many more.

Memorial 52 serves as an about face for the Wesleyan denomination. It would serve as a total abandonment of their long held current stance for the exact opposite perspective. 

The original statement on tongues in Section 265:10 of the Wesleyan Discipline states:

“To preserve the fellowship and witness of the Church with reference to the use of languages. The Wesleyan Church believes in the miraculous use of languages and the interpretation of languages in its biblical and historical setting. But it is contrary to the Word of God to teach that speaking in an unknown tongue or the gift of tongues is the evidence of the baptism of the Holy Spirit or of that entire sanctification which the baptism accomplishes; therefore, only a language readily understood by the congregation is to be used in public worship. The Wesleyan Church believes that the use of an ecstatic prayer language has no clear scriptural sanction, or any pattern of established historical usage in the Church; therefore, the use of such a prayer language shall not be promoted among us.”

After a strong debate on the floor of the 2022 General Conference, Memorial 52 passed. Since it is a constitutional matter it required a two-thirds vote and it also requires a two-third aggregate vote of the district conferences who must approve it before it will be referred to the Philippines General Conference and the Caribbean General Conference. This Memorial impacts the international charter of the Wesleyan Church and thus must be approved on a number of different levels beyond the General Conference held on May 2022 in Missouri. 

Will the Wesleyan Church leave the Holiness movement for the Pentecostal/Charismatic movement? Or has this General Conference "unleashed" a change that will be rejected by the districts and other international parts of the church?

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Cursing, Profanity, and the Tongue

Cursing, Profanity, and the Tongue

A few thoughts on cursing, profanity, and the use of the tongue.

Profanity is the linguistical crutch of the inarticulate. But beyond the lack of credible, reasonable vocabulary, what's the big deal about a little profanity? 

What does the Bible say about cursing and profanity? Turns out that the words you use are a major subject in the Bible.

Jesus said "I tell you, on the day of judgment people will give account for every careless word they speak, for by your words you will be justified, and by your words you will be condemned." (Matthew 12:36-37) Your words do matter! Jesus later claims that the words you speak are more defiling than what you put in your mouth. Matthew 15:10-11 "And he called the people to him and said to them, “Hear and understand: [11] it is not what goes into the mouth that defiles a person, but what comes out of the mouth; this defiles a person."

Paul writes to the church in Colossae: "But now you must put them all away: anger, wrath, malice, slander, and obscene talk from your mouth." (Colossians 3:8) And to the church at Ephesus he writes: "Let no corrupting talk come out of your mouths, but only such as is good for building up, as fits the occasion, that it may give grace to those who hear." (Ephesians 4:29) Profane and obscene words are the opposite of grace and actually tear down rather than build up. They have no place in the vocabulary of a Christian.

The usage of words that are profane and inappropriate coming from the lips of a Christian create an oxymoron. The cursing and the claims of holiness are not compatible. James 3:10 says "From the same mouth come blessing and cursing. My brothers, these things ought not to be so." 

Exodus 20:7 “You shall not take the name of the Lord your God in vain, for the Lord will not hold him guiltless who takes his name in vain.

Jesus spoke extensively about the correlation between the content of one's heart and the words that they speak. Your words are important and give an indication to those listening about what matters most to you... what on your heart. Luke 6:45 "The good person out of the good treasure of his heart produces good, and the evil person out of his evil treasure produces evil, for out of the abundance of the heart his mouth speaks." (See also Matthew 12:33-37 and Matthew 15:10-20.)

Psalm 10 describes the wicked in verse 7 by saying: "His mouth is filled with cursing and deceit and oppression; under his tongue are mischief and iniquity." Then later in the Psalm, the contrast between the righteous and the wicked is described in verses 31 and 32: "The mouth of the righteous brings forth wisdom, but the perverse tongue will be cut off. [32] The lips of the righteous know what is acceptable, but the mouth of the wicked, what is perverse."

So what's the alternative? How should Christians speak? Paul writes in Colossians 4:6 "Let your speech always be gracious, seasoned with salt, so that you may know how you ought to answer each person." Grace and love are the context by which we share the Truth of the Gospel with the world around us. 

While I haven't addressed it in this particular article, there is much this would imply about words and conversation that are gossip, slander, and always tearing down people or things or ministries or politicians around us. This grace eliminates falsehood from our lips. It is not loving or gracious to communicate things that are false to others. 

To change our lips to be tools of the Holy Spirit we will have to allow Him to wash our mouths and cleanse our vocabulary. Our cooperation in that divine work will include an intentional exclusion of those words in our daily lives. To begin to eliminate music that includes such messaging and words is a holy habit; pleasing to the Lord. Turn the television off. Curtail the constant inundating impact of a steady stream of profanities into your home and mind. 

I doubt anyone has ever left a movie theater thinking: "I wish there had been more profanity in that movie." No one ever complains that a song needed more coarse language to increase the enjoyment. And no one ever gains respect for another because they use foul vocabulary. 

May God send a hot coal to purge our lips of the unclean things that have previously come from them.

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A Better Way than the Middle Way

 Find the link below of an article I wrote for Remnant magazine from the Holiness Partnership.

"A Better Way than the Middle Way"

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Is Tithing Still a Thing for Today?

 Yes, tithing is still something that Christians should do today. 

What follows is a short response to a few common objections that I have heard from people. I will attempt to give some scriptural references to clarify and respond to those ideas that reject tithing for Christians today. Following the objections, I will seek to answer some common questions people have about tithing.

Objection #1: The "tithe" is part of the Old Testament Law and the New Testament does away with the Law. 

Response: Certainly the tithe, which means 10%, is part of the Law. Leviticus 27:30:34 includes the tithe as part of the law. However, the tithe also predates the Law given to Moses in the Old Testament. The first tithe is actually found in Genesis 14:19-20 and shares Abraham tithing to the King-Priest Melchizedek. Jacob offers a tithe in Genesis 28:20-22 that also predates the law. The tithe is an issue for God's people before the Law, under the Law, and after Jesus is a fulfilment of the Old Covenant. God's people tithe as an act of worship from the heart.

Objection #2: Jesus never supported the concept of tithing in the New Testament.

Response: Not true. Some will take the passage from Matthrew 23 in which Jesus rebukes the scribes and Pharisees as an affront to the idea of tithing. Lets look at the verse in question. Matthew 23:23“Woe to you, scribes and Pharisees, hypocrites! For you tithe mint and dill and cumin, and have neglected the weightier matters of the law: justice and mercy and faithfulness. These you ought to have done, without neglecting the others." Jesus' point is that they have tithed, but neglected the "weightiers matters of the law: justice, and mercy and faithfulness." His rebuke is not that they tithed, but that they tithed and thought that it absolved them from things like faithfulness in other areas. Then he closes out his rebuke saying: "These you ought to have done [tithing], without neglecting the others [justice, mercy, & faithfulness]." From Jesus' words, it wasn't either/or it was both/and.

Objection #3: The New Testament says that everything belongs to God so we should give everything not just 10%. 

Response: There's no doubt that everything we have is a gift from God. Even those who may claim that they pulled themselves up by their own bootstraps must acknowledge that God gave them the strength, intelligence, and talent to earn what they have. We are really not owners, but stewards of all that we "possess." Tithing, which literally means 10%, is simply an ongoing way to acknowledge God's blessings upon us. We also recognize that God has made clear through the Bible that refusing to tithe from our income/increase is really to steal from God (Malachi 3:8-12).

And now some of the questions:

Question #1: Should I tithe on the gross or net income?

Response: There are a few nuances to this question that are important. First it is important to note that the tithe is based off of income. Gifts from others, presents at Christmas or birthdays, and other such gifts do not need to be tithed on. (Though there are some people who feel led by the Lord to tithe on gifts. This is a matter of individual conviction and liberty.) 

The other difficult thing is that some people receive income weekly in the form of a pay check. Those pay checks have various local and federal taxes already taken out. Tithe is based on an individual's total income and not income minus taxes. It is important in that case to tithe on money already removed from the paycheck.

Some people have a bit more calculations to do to determine their actual income. Farmers, small business owners, independent contractors, artists, and some other kind of occupations have to figure out the cost of "doing business." For example, a farmer who sells their cattle does not count the full price of the cow as income since they had to feed, care for, and spend a certain amount of money to raise the cow. The income that they make from the sale of the cow needs to account for the initial investment. 

The larger point is that some of the issues of gross vs net income are questions of the conscious and the Holy Spirit will give discernment to those who are earnestly seeking to give with a cheerful heart to the Lord.

Question #2: What if I cannot afford to tithe?

Response: You cannot afford not to tithe. If you are in debt, do not get out of debt by robbing God. Cut back in your expenses in the areas of entertainment, eating at restaurants, traveling, new furniture or clothes, etc. Tithe should always be the first expenditure, not the left overs from a busy financial month. 

Question #3: Am I required to tithe even if I am not a member of the church? 

Response: Yes. Your membership is irrelevant to your obedience to the Lord on the matter of tithing. 

Question #4: What if I don't like how the church is spending money?

Response: Tithing is not about determining the ways the money is spent, but trusting and worshiping the Lord through your income/finances. There are systems and polity in place in each local congregation to determine how each dollar is used for ministry. It is important for churches to be transparent about how money is spent and to be good stewards of that money, but it is inappropriate to use the Lord's tithe as a means of controlling the local church budget. If you have concerns about the budget, you need to talk to the pastor, finance committee, or leadership of the local church. If your concerns are of a moral nature (illegal activity, theft, etc), then you have a responsibility to report to local church leadership (then denominational leadership) and, if not taken seriously, find another church. 

Question #5: Can I give my tithe to other organizations (non profits) that are doing good work? If I am helping out my neighbor or a friend does that count as tithe?

Response: No. Those are offerings that every believer should be doing in addition to their tithing. Offerings that are directed to specific ministries are not the same as tithe. Tithe is always to the local church body that you are ministering through. Helping a family member, friend, or neighbor with finances is something that is done in addition to tithing, not in place of tithing. 

There may be other questions or comments you have. Please comment with those below and, as time permits, I'll edit this article to include those questions you might have and a response to them. I'll close with the the statement on "Storehouse Tithing" from the Manual of the Church of the Nazarene in paragraph 32.1.  

"Storehouse tithing is a scriptural and practical performance of faithfully and regularly placing the tithe into that church to which the member belongs. Therefore, the financing of the church shall be based on the plan of storehouse tithing, and the local Church of the Nazarene shall be regarded by all of its people as the storehouse. All who are a part of the Church of the Nazarene are urged to contribute faithfully one-tenth of all their increase as a minimum financial obligation to the Lord and freewill offerings in addition as God has prospered them for the support of the whole church, local, district, educational, and general. The tithe, provided to the local Church of the Nazarene, shall be considered a priority over all other giving opportunities which God may lay upon the hearts of His faithful stewards, in support of the whole church."

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I Went to an Abortion Clinic

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I Went to an Abortion Clinic

I remember the first time I stood outside of an abortion clinic. 

It was a cool day and I zipped up my jacket almost to the neck. I noticed people with orange safety vests congregating around the door. (I found out later they were anything but safe.)

The "clinic" had just opened. I was standing among people with signs, tracts, and even bull horns. I had heard many warnings about such people. They were "too extreme and hurt the witness of the church" I had been told. I was there to find out first-hand how they damaged the kingdom. 

Women, mostly young but some that were middle aged, began to find their way down the sidewalk escorted by the people in the orange vests. They were of all ethnicity and socio-economic statuses. 

After the first few walked through, I was gripped with a reality I had not foreseen: there was a spiritual atmosphere of darkness. Most of the women had a level of embarrassment or shame evident by their eyes looking down and often their hands covering their faces. Other women mocked the gathered crowd with taunts about how they were going to kill their baby. 

A chill went up my spine that shook me, but it was not from the cold temperatures. It was bitter coldness of a different kind. 

I noticed an elderly lady who held a small Bible and a few pamphlets pleading with mothers going into the clinic about different options and that she would care for the baby in their womb. Her pleading was emotional and desperate. She wept after multiple women disregarded her and went into the building. A husband and wife in their 30's stood pleading with the mothers entering the place of death. Their offer was to adopt the child if the mother would spare it. Some yelled. Some wept. Some sang. Some prayed quietly (and some vocally).

Emotion overwhelmed me as I stood watching the scene unfold. The spiritual weight of those moments helped me to realize even more than ever that abortion was not a political issue; it was a moral and even more importantly a spiritual one. People with individual DNA and a future were about to be ripped apart or burned alive in what should be the very safest place anyone could ever be: their mother's womb. 

I resolved to never be silent about those who could not defend themselves. I am prolife.

"There are six things that the Lord hates, seven that are an abomination to him: haughty eyes, a lying tongue, and hands that shed innocent blood, a heart that devises wicked plans, feet that make haste to run to evil, a false witness who breathes out lies, and one who sows discord among brothers."
Proverbs 6:16‭-‬19

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