Opportunities In Problems

The greatest opportunities afforded man are those arising from his problems.  President John F. Kennedy was once asked how he became a war hero.  His response was:  “It was quite easy.  Somebody sank my boat!”  Of course, he couldn’t allow himself to sink along with the boat.  In order to take advantage of the opportunity, he had to act upon the problem.  A great obstacle the church faces is the carelessness of false teaching.  Below are some opportunities that can arise from this problem.

False teaching moves us into a mode of defense and protection.  I should mention that it is not popular today to speak against false teaching.  Many believe that everything should be tolerated.  And, although we’re not guilty of teaching error, sometimes we fail to make a biblical case against it.  Paul wrote two letters to the young preacher, Timothy, which frequently addressed this problem.  In 1 Timothy 6:3-5, Paul doesn’t hold back, and explains to the young man that false teaching will lead to “envy, strife, abusive language, evil suspicions” (v. 5).  It gets ugly when false teaching is left unaddressed.  We must build a defense.

If we address the problem of false teaching the church will grow.  What is ironic is that many times we neglect lessons against false teaching in order to discuss the methods of church growth.  Consider how a child grows.  In order to achieve physical, mental, and spiritual progress the child receives continual correction from his parents.  When he disobeys, the loving parent intervenes.  By comparison, the church operates in the same way.  Neglecting correction is to set the church up for corruption and failure (cf., 1 Cor. 5:1-13).

Finally, the challenge of false teaching reveals the opportunity for freedom.  Jesus taught, “and you will know the truth, and the truth will make you free” (Jn. 8:32).  The greatest empowerment for man in any given situation is truth.  It is the most valuable tool to have on your side.  Thus, Jesus ties the antithesis of false teaching to freedom.  There is no hope to be found in false teaching.  However, if we view it from the perspective of opportunity, we find freedom!