one vrs theology/Pt 2

One verse theology, as I have come to call it, has had an extreme adverse effect on this generation that is so incredibly off that I wonder if it can ever be recovered.

 Since I am a product of such a thing and my kids as well ,for I inadvertently passed some it along to them, something I truly regret and am spending much time going back around to them to to correct some of that 

but they are grown now but some progress is being made but it is hard because one verse theology touches many sensitive areas in any ones life 

because many verses have special meaning to the one going thru whatever situation they have,

and when those feelings that get generated from one verse get implanted in someone's mind , it is a hard thing to challenge. 

Our feelings concerning favorite verses is powerful. We just don't mess with this


A popular technique many use , when in communication with  believers is someone , sooner or later will ask  "what's wrong with single verses"?

There's nothing wrong with having favorite verses. 
I'm forever amazed when the right /wrong card gets thrown. 
Or when people ask "what's wrong with (this or that)

Suppose I were to observe someone eating ice cream three times a day , everyday.
Suppose I made note of it. 
I am assuredly going to be asked "what's wrong with eating ice cream?" 
I look at them dumbfounded because they somehow gathered there to be something "wrong" with the act itself. The problem isn't the ice cream. The problem is the abuse of it. 
Same with creating theology based on one verse. 
Discussing this sensible with anyone is  rare.  It's best to leave it be. 

I wish I could say it was the Bible that caused me to understand the deflecting (from the truth) nature  the "what's wrong with" question has on any conversation, but it wasn't. 
It was my 3 teens. 
Anytime I was trying to teach them something concerning cultural behavior, they would, in every instance ask "what's wrong with (whatever I was correcting.) 

Since I never actually said there was something wrong with the act itself and because it was the reoccurring response, I was forced to come up with an answer when they asked me "what's wrong with (this or that)

There is never (in these current days) a good answer to the "what's wrong with" question. Our society is too accepting of everything. 
The problem is not specifically in whatever the one is objecting to. 
The problem resides in the fact that whatever is being objected to, is being discussed at all. 
(i refer you back to that ice cream example) 
If we can discover why the discussion is needed at all (concerning obvious destructive behavior) then we can get closer to the real problem at hand.  

Key word there , in last thought is the word "obvious."

Keep in mind, I'm talking about Bible believing Christians conversation now. Non Christians rarely care. 

There's nothing wrong with reading one verse and liking it. 
Many times,  if the verse we favor doesn't accomplish or produce what "you" think it's supposed to, we tend to think  the verse is at fault.


Single verses can bring a great blessing to anyone but when this thinking is not kept in check , and gets abused by preachers , it makes our Bibles appear as a quick fix book. 
Folks forget that there favorite vrs are actually part of a greater thought and what they are doing is pulling out favorite thoughts . 

try reading any other book this way. one line here and another thought 3 chapters away.

Verse by number,   was not in original writings. Our Bible's are divided by verses & chapters.
Many times they are separated in the wrong place.
Reading the Bible with incorrect divisions (chapters) creates a false belief. By incorrect division I mean, men have separated God's message in wrong ways by placing the chapters where they did. Men "thought" they were helping but in truth, they were only helping to create heresy. 

Think about it. Prior to verses & chapter numbers, people would "SEARCH"  the Scriptures for answers.
Today people "LOOK UP" Scriptures to confirm our already formed opinion.

The first way has us looking for the answers. 
The second way has us trying to support OUR answers (beliefs) 

Take a moment to consider your attitude difference. 
What's your thinking when you "search" the Scriptures? 
What's your thinking when you "lookup" verses? 

There is a difference. 

See how problem can arise? 

Along with that, church's today dole out a lot , and I mean alot , of Law preaching to the believer using select verses. 
 This law stuff is hard to spot because it gets wrapped up in a package that is aimed at you and designed to make you better or at least try to make you better. 
It comes at us, one verse at a time .


The things any given sermon encourages us to do, (or not do)  we do not  associate what's said, with the Law. 
We think of these things as either good advice or not so good, advice. 
A mindset is formed and many times its based on what we like and don't like. 
We get caught up in focusing on verses rather than passages or books. 

My thoughts here concern what occurs over  time. Months & years & even decades. 
Not the immediate comfort single verses can give. 
It should be obvious, but it's not. 

When immediate strength is needed, how blessed we are too go to our favorite passages. 

But this journey we are on lasts a long long time.



The problem & solution to what I am saying concerning one verse theology can be seen in the temptation in the wilderness. 

satan used verses out of context.
Jesus used them in context. 
The solution is, reading the Bible in context. 
If we haven't read it cover to cover, then we have no clue as to what it means. 

It would be many years, for me, in this church life, till I would come to understand that. 
In the meantime, I would develop many false mindsets. 
I could impress the socks off of you with the things I heard others say. 

But when I read it myself, and saw how these one verses I've loved so long,were twisted and abused, I was amazed.

There are those who [KNOW] the comfort and peace one gets from a single verse in context and they are blessed.

Then there are those who know  [Of] that comfort & peace. In other words, they know the verse is there and they know its true. Their just not sure how or why. 

It's not so much about any one verse  bringing us comfort than it is knowing the One who said it.



Next thing you know, we'll be separating Jesus's Words with a different color, in our Bible's. 

Or we might have different Bible's for different segments of our culture (Bibles for mom's, Bibles for dad's, Bibles for  single mom, single dad, Bibles for drug addicts, Bibles for teens ,  etc) 

OK, since we already do that, I'd best not go further with that. I'm sure to be asked "what's wrong with those?"

All I'm trying to say is, many pitfalls await the one verse theology mindset when the entire context of the Bible, is not known. 

Best advice I can give is......  tryReadNit!