"...Always be prepared to give an answer to everyone who asks you to give the reason for the hope that you have..." (1 Pet. 3:15, NIV).
"Casting down arguments, and high thing that exalteth itself against the knowledge of God..." (cf. 2 Cor. 10:5).
Some overly zealous believers get carried away and went on a tangent, becoming experts on the shroud of Turin or on documented near-death experiences, but the focus should be on the gospel, for it is the preaching of the cross that has the power. Don't get me wrong, every believer should know his way around the block theologically and apologetically and have a working knowledge of all basic doctrine. It is not good to have zeal without knowledge (cf. Rom. 10:2; Prov. 19:2).
Note that doctrine is not too arcane for the run-of-the-mill believer. The man of God handles the mysteries of God faithfully. "They must keep hold of the deep truths of the faith with a clear conscience" (1 Tim. 3:9, NIV). But this is not for everyone because it takes a certain aptitude to comprehend some of these finer points and theories of science. We are not to twist Scripture (cf. 2 Pet. 3:16) or to be carried about by every wind of doctrine (cf. Eph. 4:14).
Paul tried to reach out to the eggheads of Athens and had no luck so to speak. He later said that he strove to "know nothing but Christ, and Christ crucified" (cf. 1 Cor. 2:2). The KISS principle of keeping it simple is valid. The awesome theories of quantum mechanics and general relativity blow me away, but this is how some find God.
Let's not knock it just because it's out of our league! The principle is that "Ignorance is not bliss!"IN fact, "Knowledge is power" (Sir Francis Bacon, cf. Prov. 24:5). "Where there is no vision the people perish" (Prov. 29:18). Hosea says that the "people perish" for "lack of knowledge" (cf. Hos. 4:1). Ignorance leads to ruin (cf. Hosea 4:14). Soli Deo Gloria!
Some overly zealous believers get carried away and went on a tangent, becoming experts on the shroud of Turin or on documented near-death experiences, but the focus should be on the gospel, for it is the preaching of the cross that has the power. Don't get me wrong, every believer should know his way around the block theologically and apologetically and have a working knowledge of all basic doctrine. It is not good to have zeal without knowledge (cf. Rom. 10:2; Prov. 19:2).
Note that doctrine is not too arcane for the run-of-the-mill believer. The man of God handles the mysteries of God faithfully. "They must keep hold of the deep truths of the faith with a clear conscience" (1 Tim. 3:9, NIV). But this is not for everyone because it takes a certain aptitude to comprehend some of these finer points and theories of science. We are not to twist Scripture (cf. 2 Pet. 3:16) or to be carried about by every wind of doctrine (cf. Eph. 4:14).
Paul tried to reach out to the eggheads of Athens and had no luck so to speak. He later said that he strove to "know nothing but Christ, and Christ crucified" (cf. 1 Cor. 2:2). The KISS principle of keeping it simple is valid. The awesome theories of quantum mechanics and general relativity blow me away, but this is how some find God.
Let's not knock it just because it's out of our league! The principle is that "Ignorance is not bliss!"IN fact, "Knowledge is power" (Sir Francis Bacon, cf. Prov. 24:5). "Where there is no vision the people perish" (Prov. 29:18). Hosea says that the "people perish" for "lack of knowledge" (cf. Hos. 4:1). Ignorance leads to ruin (cf. Hosea 4:14). Soli Deo Gloria!