"Then the brethren immediately sent Paul and Silas away by night to Berea. When they arrived, they went into the synagogue of the Jews. These were more fair-minded than those in Thessalonica, in that they received the word with all readiness, and searched the Scriptures daily to find out whether these things were so.
For all the Athenians and the foreigners who were there spent their time in nothing else but either to tell or hear some new thing."
Acts 17:10, 11, 21 (NKJV)
In Acts 17 there is a story about two groups of people, the Bereans and the Athenians. Both groups had the opportunity to hear the teachings of the Apostle Paul. The thing is that each group seemed to have a different way of doing things and I think that both groups are similar to what we see with Christians today. One group, the Bereans, received the word with all readiness and searched the Scriptures to see if what they heard was accurate. The other group, the Athenians, spent all their time either telling or hearing about something new.
It is a sad but true statement that many Christians are more like the Athenians than the Bereans. So often Christians are more interested in hearing and telling about some "new" thing than they are about searching the Scriptures daily to see if what they hear is true. It is interesting to see that the people who were diligent to search the Scriptures to check the validity of what they were hearing were the same people that the Bible describes as being ready to receive the Word of God. It would seem that the more you are focused on God's Word the more ready you are to receive what it has to say.
If all we do is look for what is "new" we will get into trouble. Our goal is not intellectual stimulation but spiritual growth through the truth of God's Word. We may hear some things that are new to us but if they are right and true we will find the basis for these "new" things in the written Word of God. Don't just go after whatever seems to be new and exciting. Be like the Bereans and make sure to check up on what you are hearing, is it really teaching and truth from the Bible or not? If we keep ourselves firmly grounded in the Word of God we will stay stable and steady in an ever changing world of "new" ideas.
For all the Athenians and the foreigners who were there spent their time in nothing else but either to tell or hear some new thing."
Acts 17:10, 11, 21 (NKJV)
In Acts 17 there is a story about two groups of people, the Bereans and the Athenians. Both groups had the opportunity to hear the teachings of the Apostle Paul. The thing is that each group seemed to have a different way of doing things and I think that both groups are similar to what we see with Christians today. One group, the Bereans, received the word with all readiness and searched the Scriptures to see if what they heard was accurate. The other group, the Athenians, spent all their time either telling or hearing about something new.
It is a sad but true statement that many Christians are more like the Athenians than the Bereans. So often Christians are more interested in hearing and telling about some "new" thing than they are about searching the Scriptures daily to see if what they hear is true. It is interesting to see that the people who were diligent to search the Scriptures to check the validity of what they were hearing were the same people that the Bible describes as being ready to receive the Word of God. It would seem that the more you are focused on God's Word the more ready you are to receive what it has to say.
If all we do is look for what is "new" we will get into trouble. Our goal is not intellectual stimulation but spiritual growth through the truth of God's Word. We may hear some things that are new to us but if they are right and true we will find the basis for these "new" things in the written Word of God. Don't just go after whatever seems to be new and exciting. Be like the Bereans and make sure to check up on what you are hearing, is it really teaching and truth from the Bible or not? If we keep ourselves firmly grounded in the Word of God we will stay stable and steady in an ever changing world of "new" ideas.
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