Thinking About "Refuse to be Abused by Opinions"
From Season 5 Episode 10 of "Today with Jesus."
Opinions.
We all have them - and they can be ok with God, even if we disagree.
There are matters of doctrine on which we should all agree. We cannot depart from what God has said in His Word. We must submit ourselves to Him.
All Scripture is given by inspiration of God, and is profitable for doctrine, for reproof, for correction, for instruction in righteousness, that the man of God may be complete, thoroughly equipped for every good work. (2 Timothy 3:16-17)
God’s Word must be proclaimed (2 Timothy 4:2). End of story.
Matters of Opinion
Christians can hold various opinions on some things God has not explicitly spoken about and remain pleasing to God.
Robert Hatfield and Dan Winkler host a podcast together called “Today with Jesus.” It is a wonderful podcast and one I wholeheartedly can recommend to you. Recently, they released an episode called “Refuse to be Abused by Opinions.”
I’d like to share some of their observations from God’s Word with you.
Thinking about Opinions from Romans 14:1-11
Opinions come from thorough thinking (Romans 14:1).
Opinions can be ok with God (Romans 14:2-3).
Opinions separate us [in thought] (Romans 14:4-5a).
Opinions are (and should remain) very personal (Romans 14:5b-7).
Opinions separate us [in thought], but they should never separate us [in fellowship] (Romans 14:8-11).
I won’t go into much more detail on Robert and Dan’s thoughts specifically because you should listen for yourself.
But, here is where my mind went as I listened to our brothers teach God’s Word.
I live in an area of the United States where there is a lot of division among members of the Lord’s church in matters of opinion - not doctrine. Many feelings have been hurt in previous years, and some have difficulty speaking peaceably to or about those who think differently in these matters of opinion.
As a child of God who seeks to obey Him in all matters - including what He has taught regarding matters of opinion - how should I treat and speak of my brethren who hold different opinions than I do?
Am I contributing to the problem - or am I doing what I can to follow God’s way, even in matters of opinion?
I hope you will watch or listen to the video I’ve linked above and think about yourself and how you are interacting with others regarding matters of opinion.