The brethren immediately sent Paul and Silas away by night to Berea, and when they arrived, they went into the synagogue of the Jews. Now these were more noble-minded than those in Thessalonica, for they received the word with great eagerness, examining the Scriptures daily to see whether these things were so. (Acts 17: 10-11, NASB)
When I was teaching Sunday school, I used to tell my classes that more than anything I wanted them to become Bereans. I never wanted them to accept anything I said without “testing the spirits” by checking what I said against the Word. I encourage everyone who reads what I write to do the same.
If we are not Bereans, we leave ourselves open to being mislead at every turn. It is too easy to bend the Word of God to make it appear to say things that were never intended. This has been true from the beginning. Genesis 3 records Eve’s encounter with the serpent in the garden. The serpent began by testing her knowledge of what God said: Has God said, “You shall not eat of any tree in the Garden?”
Eve responded correctly and then added to what God had actually said, “’from the tree in the middle of the garden God has said, ‘You shall not eat from it, or touch it, or you will die.’” God had no warned her not to touch it. By not stating what was “so”, she left herself open to misdirection and ultimately destruction.
If Eve could so easily misquote and misapply God’s Word when there was only one commandment, how easy is it for us to misconstrue Scripture today – not intentionally, but from inattention. That is why we need to be Bereans, constantly checking everything we hear and even our own beliefs against what the Word actually says on the matter.
Bereans are those people who will “search the Scriptures” not just for a single verse, but for related verses to be sure that they understand not only the message, but also the intent. They don’t fall into the trap of convenience – either by addition or subtraction. They want to know not just what was said, but why, where, to whom, by whom, and if possible how. And they are not casual about their searching. They do it daily.
If we are not Bereans, we set ourselves up for missing out on what God has in mind for us. Just as Eve missed the chance to spend eternity in Eden, we place ourselves in danger of missing blessings or courting judgment by not understanding what God has said. A look at one of the more recent theological arguments will demonstrate this point.
One of the more convenient arguments used today to justify bad behavior is “God loves me and accepts me as I am”. A Berean knows there are ample scriptures to support that view of God’s love for us. But a Berean also knows there is more to the message than just love and acceptance. God takes us as we are and then expects us to change. How many times in His ministry did Jesus follow up his acceptance of a sinner “as is” and then follow it up with “Go and sin no more”?
Berean knows better than to accept this as a truth.
If I have one desire other than raise up Christians who are more spiritually mature than I am, it is to inspire them to check everything they hear against what God actually says. Look at the entire message – always – leaving nothing out and adding nothing in the process. When we know the truth, the truth will truly set us free.
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