The End Result of Theological Debate is Edification

Ephesians 4:29-32

29 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. 30 And do not grieve the Holy Spirit of God, by whom you were sealed for the day of redemption. 31 Let all bitterness and wrath and anger and clamor and slander be put away from you, along with all malice. 32 Be kind to one another, tenderhearted, forgiving one another, as God in Christ forgave you.

2 Timothy 2:24-25

24 And the Lord's servant must not be quarrelsome but kind to everyone, able to teach, patiently enduring evil, 25 correcting his opponents with gentleness.

Philippians 2:1-4

2:1 So if there is any encouragement in Christ, any comfort from love, any participation in the Spirit, any affection and sympathy, 2 complete my joy by being of the same mind, having the same love, being in full accord and of one mind. 3 Do nothing from rivalry or conceit, but in humility count others more significant than yourselves. 4 Let each of you look not only to his own interests, but also to the interests of others.

Romans 12:9-10

9 Let love be genuine. Abhor what is evil; hold fast to what is good. 10 Love one another with brotherly affection. Outdo one another in showing honor.

Romans 14:5-10

5 One person esteems one day as better than another, while another esteems all days alike. Each one should be fully convinced in his own mind. 6 The one who observes the day, observes it in honor of the Lord. The one who eats, eats in honor of the Lord, since he gives thanks to God, while the one who abstains, abstains in honor of the Lord and gives thanks to God. 7 For none of us lives to himself, and none of us dies to himself. 8 For if we live, we live to the Lord, and if we die, we die to the Lord. So then, whether we live or whether we die, we are the Lord's. 9 For to this end Christ died and lived again, that he might be Lord both of the dead and of the living.10 Why do you pass judgment on your brother? Or you, why do you despise your brother? For we will all stand before the judgment seat of God;

Above are a lot of verses and this is done for one specific purpose, to show us our sin. Listen people we all have theological differences, but those differences are never to turn ugly. I am on some blogs and people are called STUPID, DUMB, IDIOTS, and they even go as far to call the others doctrine a “doctrine of demons”. This is usually stated by those who oppose The Doctrines of Grace that I so firmly adhere to. We have to be extremely careful of how we address one another as brothers and sisters in this faith. My heart is heavy because this doesn’t bring unity. Listen to what Paul says in Colossians 3

Colossians 3:12-17

12 Put on then, as God's chosen ones, holy and beloved, compassionate hearts, kindness, humility, meekness, and patience, 13 bearing with one another and, if one has a complaint against another, forgiving each other; as the Lord has forgiven you, so you also must forgive. 14 And above all these put on love, which binds everything together in perfect harmony. 15 And let the peace of Christ rule in your hearts, to which indeed you were called in one body. And be thankful. 16 Let the word of Christ dwell in you richly, teaching and admonishing one another in all wisdom, singing psalms and hymns and spiritual songs, with thankfulness in your hearts to God. 17 And whatever you do, in word or deed, do everything in the name of the Lord Jesus, giving thanks to God the Father through him.

Here is the list of don’t do’s that we are given by the Lord and anything that does not line up with this is SIN!!!! To ignore these is to ignore the Lord Jesus and to ignore Him, well you know what the bible says about that:

1. Let NO (absolute) corruptive communication
   
   
   
   1. Includes: slander, anger, malice and clamor
   
   
   
   


2. Don’t be quarrelsome! (big one for me)


3. Do nothing out of rivalry or conceit


4. We are not to pass judgment on issues of convictions

Here is the list of things we are to do (much longer than the don’t do’s)

1. Speak in a way that builds up and in the right occasion.


2. Teach patiently


3. Look out for the interests of others (selflessness in all occasions)


4. Love one another with brotherly love


5. Outdo one another in showing honor (this would kill most mean debates)


6. Bear with one another, forgive one another, teach and admonish one another in WISDOM.

Some key words for you to consider, consider these words carefully and see if your life lines up with them:

1. Gracious


2. Tenderhearted


3. Kind


4. Patient


5. Gentle


6. Affectionate


7. Sympathetic


8. Encouraging


9. Humble


10. Others focused


11. Meek

This list has more application than just theological debates. Christ embodied this entire list and much more. We are to reflect Christ to a hurting world and we too should be defined by the list above. However, as it relates to theological debate, if you took your discussion and ran it through the list above would you be able to check off every item on the list. Is your debate fruitful and is it a means to a greater end than being right or wrong? It should be, the debate should point a person to Jesus Christ and what He accomplished in His earthly ministry, His current exaltation and His future triumph over Satan! The verses above are commands from the Lord Himself. Not good discussion but His spoken commands that we are to obey. If you can’t follow these in a theological debate then you are to abstain (“if you right eye offends you pluck it out”). We are to abstain from sin at all cost, and if your debate or discussion is unfruitful then you are sinning. Come back when you can argue your points graciously but the current state of theological debate is a hindrance to the Gospel of the Lord Jesus.