The Boundaries of Truth

                I have two dogs, a Black Lab and a golden Retriever.  The lab we have had since the time it was a pup.  He now weighs close to 100lbs.  When he was a pup we had to lay down some boundaries.  There were certain things we wanted Crash (the lab) to do and not do.  There were also certain things we wanted Crash to believe.  For instance it was important for Crash to believe that I was the alpha male.  In order for me to train Crash he needed to know that I was the boss.  What crash believed was equally if not more important than his actions.  If Crash rightly believed I was the boss, I could teach and train him.  If He believed I was abusive and would do harm to him he might be obedient, but at some point it is likely that he would strike back.  He might attack me, or worse, someone in my family.  If he believed he could do whatever he wanted with no consequences, he would be untrainable.  What he believes is important.  What students believe is important.  Leaving them to find truth on their own while trying to get them to live moral lives is like training a dog that doesn’t believe there are consequences for disobedience and rewards for obedience.  I realize the analogy breaks down when taken too far.  I am not saying students are dogs nor am I saying that we need to train students in the exact same way we need to train dogs.

As it applies to students, some have taken the approach that orthodoxy is not really that important.   Instead praxis is much more important.  Words like Atonement or trinity have become the answer to trivia questions rather than important theological truths that must be taught to God’s people.  As teachers and pastors to students we have a high calling to help students find truth, understand truth, and believe truth.  Though some would say truth is subject to opinion, it is relative to one’s own experience, or at the very least it is flexible; it is not any of those things, truth is reality.  Orthodoxy could be defined as believing the essential truths of the Christian faith.

If we start with the premise that Scripture is true we must also conclude that teaching good doctrine (I would define that as what is orthodox) is of the utmost importance:

·         Titus 1:9 He must ^whold firm to the trustworthy word as taught, so that he may be able to give instruction in ^xsound⁵ doctrine and also to rebuke those who contradict it.

·         1 Timothy 1:3 As I urged you when I was going to Macedonia, remain at Ephesus that you may charge certain persons not ^hto teach any different doctrine,

·         Ephesians 4:11-14 And ^mhe gave the ^napostles, the prophets, the ^oevangelists, the ^ppastors and teachers,^{3 12 q}to equip the saints for the work of ministry, for ^rbuilding up ^sthe body of Christ, ¹³ until we all attain to ^tthe unity of the faith and of the knowledge of the Son of God, ^uto mature manhood,⁴ to the measure of the stature of ^vthe fullness of Christ, ¹⁴ so that we may no longer be children, ^wtossed to and fro by the waves and carried about by every wind of doctrine, by human cunning, by craftiness in ^xdeceitful schemes.^[1]

·         Romans 16:17-18 I appeal to you, brothers, to watch out for those who cause divisions and create obstacles ^xcontrary to the doctrine that you have been taught; ^yavoid them. ¹⁸ For such persons do not serve our Lord Christ, but ^ztheir own appetites,⁵ and ^aby smooth talk and flattery they deceive the hearts of the naive.

·         John 4:23 But ^bthe hour is coming, and is now here, when the true worshipers will worship the Father ^cin spirit and ^dtruth, for the Father ^eis seeking such people to worship him.

·         John 8:32 …and you will ^dknow the truth, and the truth ^ewill set you free.”

·         John 17;17-19  Sanctify them² in the truth; ^myour word is truth. ^{18 n}As you sent me into the world, so I have sent them into the world. ¹⁹ And ^ofor their sake ^pI consecrate myself,³ that they also ^qmay be sanctified⁴ in truth.

The list goes on, truth and doctrine are weaved throughout scripture.  Teaching Orthodoxy is an essential part of our jobs as people who love Jesus and love students.  That means helping students understand the boundaries of the Christian faith.  Certainly we cannot know all truth regarding God or even come to the same conclusion on every doctrine found in Scripture.  What we can do is teach the core essential truths of the Christian faith.  Those truths are defined for us in key scriptures like 1 Corinthians 15, Phillipians 2, and Colossians 1.