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Blind Leading the Blind

27 Tuesday Aug 2019

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If the blind lead the blind, then both the blind and those led by the blind will fall into the ditch.

Who are the blind? When Jesus spoke His words (Matthew 15:14), He was speaking of the religious leaders and their precepts or commands of men. The word tradition, a word Jesus used in this context, is a word that means “passing down.” The word can be understood in a favorable context as well as unfavorable. When Jesus used the word, it was most certainly unfavorable. Why so unfavorable? Because the passing down of teachings from men had the effect of neutralizing God’s word, His will for the nation of Israel. This resulted in religious leaders and teachers setting to the side the Lord’s express will and living by the guidance of man. Jesus called these leaders blind, and to make it even worse, those who follow their teachings are themselves blind.

We live in a context today that is similar. We have blind religious leaders leading blind religious people (or semi religious) and both will fall into the ditch. Here are some examples. First, there is the common teaching that many churches subscribe to what is called the sinners prayer. Here is what they mean: a contrite person is to pray a particular prayer asking Jesus into that person’s heart. This is not Bible teaching; the closest one can get to wanting the Bible to teach this is Luke 18:9-14. Read it, ask yourself if this is a prayer by a sinner asking Jesus into his heart. Now compare that with what Peter said to those in Jerusalem on the day of Pentecost, “Repent ye, and be baptized every one of you in the name of Jesus Christ unto the remission of your sins; and ye shall receive the gift of the Holy Spirit” (Acts 2:38).

The difference can’t be more obvious. If that is the case, then why do so many people follow this way of thinking? Just like they were in Jesus’ day, they are today. The blind lead the blind. If the blind don’t know (or refuse to believe) what the Bible teaches, how are they going to accurately teach? They can’t.

Lesson: search the Scriptures to see if that which is taught is so (Acts 17:11). If the thinking of your way can’t hold the day throw it away.

The Uprooted Plant

05 Monday Oct 2015

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In last week’s bulletin it was mentioned that if the Lord did not plant the seed of His word into the heart of man, then the seed planted into man’s heart will be rooted up (Matthew 15:13). In Isaiah 30 there is something of the same with the following words, “‘Ah, stubborn children,” declares the LORD, ‘who carry out a plan, but not mine, and who make an alliance, but not of my Spirit, that they may add sin to sin’” (30:1, ESV). The context is the Lord’s rebuke, through Isaiah, to a people determined to align themselves with Egypt, a false strength, but they do so without any counsel from the Lord. Of course, to seek counsel from the Lord in such matters would have been a denial of the request, and the people desiring Egypt simply was not interested in that!

The rebellion of the people was strong; thus, any attempt to dissuade from a disastrous path was going to be mighty difficult. What made it so difficult was the preaching of the false prophets, and the hearing of the falsely-interested-in-the-Lord’s-way people. “For they are a rebellious people, lying children, children unwilling to hear the instruction of the LORD; who say to the seers, ‘Do not see,’ and to the prophets, ‘Do not prophesy to us what is right; speak to us smooth things, prophesy illusions, leave the way, turn aside from the path, let us hear no more about the Holy One of Israel’” (30:9-11, ESV)

In our day it is this way also. So insistent are some at wanting to alter the Lord’s way that they will go to great lengths at manipulation to accomplish their desire. For some, it does not matter what the Holy Spirit said, “It only matter what I think!” Let me give a for instance. The Holy Spirit, through Paul, stated plainly that women are not to teach in a mixed assembly of both Christian men and women (1 Timothy 2:8-15). One brother said this is not the case; all that needs to be done is for her to be trained and taught in matters pertaining to the Lord.

The only way she can be trained and taught to teach is an assembly of the saints gather is for her (or her teacher) to have a higher authority than the Lord! Do you know of one? I do not either. In fact, the One spurned for culture’s sake is the One who judges because of His own sake. Yes, she has to be trained to move away from the Lord and into the arms of Satan.

Brethren, do not associate with those who alter the Lord’s way. The blind that lead the blind – both fall into the ditch (Matthew 15:14). RT