Imagine feeling sorry for a word. Doctrine is one of those words I always feel sorry for when I read it in the Bible—because people don’t like it. In Acts 2:42, the Greek word for doctrine means teaching or instruction.
Yet I’ve heard believers say things like, “You know, it’s not about knowing doctrine. I’m not into doctrine. I’m just into loving Jesus.” It’s almost like their badge of spirituality. It sounds like they’re saying they are a cut above the rest of us, because they’re not into instruction. What a sad thing to say: “I’m not into good Bible teaching or truth. I just want to love Jesus.” But how will you love Him unless you are given good instruction on who He is and how to do it?
The early church knew this and prioritized wisely: “They continued steadfastly in the apostles’ doctrine and fellowship, in the breaking of bread, and in prayers. Then fear came upon every soul, and many wonders and signs were done through the apostles. Now all who believed were together, and had all things in common, and sold their possessions and goods, and divided them among all, as anyone had need. So continuing daily with one accord in the temple, and breaking bread from house to house, they ate their food with gladness and simplicity of heart, praising God and having favor with all the people. And the Lord added to the church daily those who were being saved” (Acts 2:42-47).
There’s a lot there, but I just want to point out something in this snapshot of what the very first church was like. If you look closely at their list of priorities, you’ll see that at the top is “They continued steadfastly in the apostles’ doctrine” (v. 42). So we see right away that they were a learning church.
Dictionary.com defines steadfast as “fixed in direction…firm in purpose…unwavering.” How does that compare to “I’m not into doctrine”? Look at 2 Timothy 2:15: “Be diligent to present yourself approved to God, a worker who does not need to be ashamed, rightly dividing the word of truth.” How can you rightly divide the Word of Truth unless you know the truth? And how can you know it unless you study it?
Jesus said to the Pharisees, “You are mistaken, not knowing the Scriptures nor the power of God” (Matthew 22:29). On more than one occasion, He said to them, “Have you not read…?” Jesus challenged leaders to become Bible teachers. “Haven’t you read that text? Don’t you know what the Scriptures say? You are in error. You are ignorant, because you don’t know the Scriptures nor the power of God.”
Here’s the reason I’m pressing this: We live in a day and age where Bible teaching—doctrine—is not tolerated, and people go to church and just want a spiritual pep rally. They want somebody to whip them up with a little exhortation and cool, clever phrases.
And because of this, we have produced Christianettes, like the people I described earlier. Don’t be a Christianette. Don’t go around craving an emotional high instead of an in-depth study of Scripture that will teach you to rightly divide the Word of Truth.
There’s nothing wrong with exhortation. There’s nothing wrong with having an emotional experience of loving the Lord—but it cannot replace knowing the Word by the study of doctrine.
