But Can You Quote God?

When there exists disagreement in matters of doctrine, Christians tend to quote preachers they admire. They will say, “This Brother believed this way and he was the most educated Christian I ever met!” Even in formal debates, you will often hear speakers reference men who fought over the same issue decades ago. They say proudly, “That’s what this man said back then, and nothing has changed today!” To be clear, we are grateful for saints who have gone on before us. We admire, in an appropriate way, those who stand for truth. We give them recognition, but we must be careful that we aren’t placing our faith in men. When giving an answer in matters of doctrine we must do more than quoting mere men, we need to quote God!

When it comes to preachers in the church, we are blessed with many fine examples of what the gospel herald ought to do. However, we must readily acknowledge that these are fallible men. Don’t be alarmed when you hear this – Men make mistakes! A preacher can easily misspeak, provide the wrong scripture reference, or misapply a verse to teach error. Some preachers, once faithful, have even chosen to leave the church. If our faith is placed in men, then we will most certainly be disappointed. When you note a preacher whom you love for saying something true, make sure you note his source material (1 Cor 11:1; 15:3; 1 Pet 4:11).

When you look to the men and women who are leaving the church today, many are influenced by the writings of denominational preachers. There is a danger when Christians become enamored with some author or speaker, following them with more diligence than studying their Bibles. These Christians will excitedly share a beautiful poem from Charles Spurgeon or retell a wise illustration from C.S. Lewis. They will speak of the power and charisma of Billy Graham. To be certain, there is nothing inherently wrong with reading or listening to their material. But we need to be cautious and keep our focus on the truth. Are we willing to search God’s Word (Acts 17:11) to see whether the things said are really so? Although these men said some right things, they have each made significant deviations from Scripture! And the same is true for many other popular religious leaders today. We should never base our beliefs or worship practices on the words of some man, but only on the authority of God’s Word.

You can quote some man, but can you quote God? Have we put so low a value on the God-breathed text? Who is a poet that compares to David (Psa 22-24)? Who laid out a wise illustration like Isaiah (Isa 29:16; 30:14; 64:8)? And shame on the Christian who highlights a man’s preaching over the power and draw of the Lord Christ’s (John 7:46)!