This is what the Sovereign LORD says: Woe to the foolish prophets who follow their own spirit and have seen nothing! -Ezekiel 13:3

     Jeff is facing a crisis of conscience at work. Looking for answers, he's been cruising the websites and blogs specializing in workplace faith issues.  The trouble is, he's finding contradictory answers to his questions.  So whose advice should he follow?

    With the proliferation of websites, blogs and self-publishing, Christians are bombarded by people teaching them how to live out their faith at work and at home.  Often the people writing and teaching mean well, but find themselves teaching others what they think instead of what God says.  That's dangerous for both them and for those who listen to them. Then there are the false prophets, those who manipulate God's Word to push their own agenda.  They should be avoided at all costs. 

     So how do lay Christians know who to listen to and who to avoid?  Here are some guides to help you sift through your own spiritual sources:

     These first seven principles are the non-negotiables of Christian teaching. You should use these principles to sift through what you read for spiritual growth, and who you listen to for spiritual direction. If any of the writing or teaching violates any of these first seven principles, then everything else they teach must be treated as suspect. Anyone who teaches or writes anything which conflicts with these truths is a false prophet and their writing/teaching must be avoided/ignored/dismissed.

1. Salvation-and therefore eternal life-are only possible through faith in Jesus Christ. 
2. God created everything, including human beings.
3. The Bible is without error.
4. God never promises good health or that we'll be wealthy.
5. There's only one God, and He's a jealous God who doesn't permit or tolerate the worship of "other gods."
6. Everybody sins; and every person is stained by sin.
7. The Bible teaches that to be saved, you must agree (a) that you're a sinner; and (b) that Jesus died and was resurrected to pay for your sins, and then you must (c) accept His free gift of salvation. There is no other way to be saved.

      In addition to the non-negotiables, here are some additional principles which are helpful in knowing who and what to listen to for spiritual direction.

1. It isn't true that God promises us He will never give us more than we can handle. Many, many Christians face circumstances that overwhelm and defeat them. 
2. Just because Jesus didn't deal with a matter while He was here on earth doesn't mean it isn't important. 
3. It isn't true that ONLY Jesus' words matter, or that Jesus' words matter more than the rest of the Bible.
4. The Bible never teaches us to be only "New Testament Christians."
5. God never promises everyone will be healed.
6. It is not enough to read what others are saying the Bible says; you must read it yourself. 
7. You cannot measure whether or not God is in something by how much money you raise or don't raise.

      Every good teacher of truth will point you past themselves to Scripture direct. Use us as your guides, as your sieves, and even as your coaches, but always measure the integrity of our commitment to use Scripture accurately and in context.

--Randy Kilgore

Randy@madetomatter.org

www.madetomatter.org.

     Does this mean people shouldn't blog or do websites unless they're seminary-trained?  Not at all; in fact, blogs and website can be wonderful tools to share what God is doing in our lives, and/or to teach others. But the Bible says only a few are called to be teachers, while the rest are to be witnesses.  So you must decide carefully whether God expects you to be a witness (here's what God is doing in my life) or a teacher (here's what God's Word says) in your blog or website.