Being Right

Let me ask a loaded question:

How important is it to be right?

Let us speak, for instance, of our personal theologies. Each of us has a set of beliefs about who God is, who Jesus is, what He did for us on the cross, what it means to be saved, how it is that we become saved, etc. For the sake of this discussion, let us call our set of personal beliefs and doctrines a "personal theology."

Each Baptist's personal theology is unique, on some level. I mean only that, though we may all affirm the inerrancy and authority of Scripture, yet we read and interpret it differently. Perhaps the differences are small, and most of us agree on the "essentials," but they're different nonetheless.

Our personal theologies differ not only in the details, they also differ on how many details there are. If your experience is anything like mine, you will have added individual beliefs to your belief structure only as you encounter and consider them for the first time. A new Christian (or an immature one) may have only the most basic essentials: Jesus died for my sins, and God raised Him from the dead. If you ask him whether he is a dispensationalist or not, he will only look at you blankly - he's not wrong, he just hasn't thought about it. And of course, the deeper we get into the finer points of doctrine, the more hairs there are to split.

Our personal theology is not only unique in details and content, it is also changing. As we live this life, and "work out our salvation in fear and trembling," our beliefs change. The Holy Spirit is a great schoolmaster, and always has a lesson plan. We read Scripture, and He reveals truths and insights we didn't even know were there. We mature and recognize flaws in our old way of thinking, and are "transformed by the renewing of our mind."

Please do not misunderstand me. I am not saying that there is no right doctrine, that there is no truth, or that there are many "truths" of equal validity. I am saying that it is a very difficult thing to nail down exactly what Truth is, especially when our own ideas about it keep changing. Has anyone ever known the fullness of God's glory? Or do we all as yet see dimly?

In fact, I might go so far as to say that a significant number of the beliefs that you and I hold strongly, that we are just sure of, will we shown in the light of God's glory to be flat out wrong. How do I know this? Because what I believe today is different in any number of ways from what I believed just last year, not to mention five years ago. I have been convicted by the Holy Spirit in the light of God's Word of my pride and self-deceit, and the ways I was not "loving my neighbor." And unless I have just now reached the pinnacle of knowledge and grace (unlikely), I expect the Holy Spirit will continue to show me ways in which my current faith and practice are in error.

So how important is it to be right? Maybe that wasn't the best question. Because it is undoubtedly important that we continue to strive for a fuller understanding of God and His truth. A better question would be, How important is it to win an argument, convincing someone else that we are right, and they are wrong?

We can spend so much time arguing doctrine and practice, and not in an academic sense, but as though the most important task before us is to correct false doctrine. We argue about whether the gift of tongues is still valid, whether it matters who baptized us, whether we should have to sign some paper, whether we can drink alcohol or not, and most tellingly, whether we can worship and witness with anyone who disagrees with us on one of the other points. And that doesn't even touch our arguments with other Christian sects.

I just have to wonder, when I see how much time and effort we spend arguing, is this really what we should be doing?