I was visiting the forums of another Christian website recently and a new member to their forums posted the following:

The simple answer to “How much error in doctrine is too much?” is of course that none can be tolerated.

I think the question is not answerable so simply….

But, if a member of the Church, like myself, understands imperfectly. Believes error. At what point does error become damning?

Obviously we study, and the more learned guide those struggling.

Is there a percentage of error that crosses the line?

Or is error in minor doctrine a case for study, and error in major doctrine heretical?

Please help me understand!

The next poster answered with this:

Error is error and any at all would cross the line for me. Our ignorance due to failure to study is not an excuse, so we must continually strive to know the truth and make sure we are not in error. I don’t know that we can all come to 100% perfection in our understanding and can only do the best we can do… being diligent to show ourselves approved before God and being able to rightly divide the Word (2Tim. 2:15). Even though I have an honest heart and desire to know the truth, I don’t know that I will ever understand everything perfectly and I certainly hope God will not hold that against me.

I believe the most important doctrine to understand is salvation. What must we do to be saved? I believe we can 100% fully understand and know the truth in regards to this doctrine. I do not believe there will be any allowance for error in regards to salvation, simply based on what the Scriptures say. From there, I cannot see how there will not be different levels of growth for each individual when that day comes.

In my mind, this is a fairly decent response but doesn’t quite get to the heart of the initial question. The original writer’s question is will he be lost if he doesn’t perfectly understand scripture? How much knowledge is enough? How much does he have to have correct? Is it based on percentages? Even if his understanding is clouded by his culture or past personal experiences, how can he fully understand scripture to assure his salvation? This is a challenging question indeed and one worth asking!

I believe this question can be answered and it was partially answered in the first response when he wrote, “I believe the most important doctrine to understand is salvation. What must we do to be saved? I believe we can 100% fully understand and know the truth in regards to this doctrine.” The question we must ask ourselves is do we understand the gospel and the implications of the gospel?

First, what is the gospel? I Corinthians 15: 1-4 says it is the story about Jesus; the death, burial and resurrection of Jesus Christ. For confirmation of this go back to the first gospel sermon preached by Peter at Pentecost, Acts 2:22-24. Do you see the same gospel in these verses? I do. Jesus is clearly shown as crucified and risen. Acts 2:31. He is both Lord and Christ, Acts 2:36. This gospel is taught by all of the apostles and followers of Christ. Read the entire book of Acts and look at each conversion story and see what was taught. It was always about Jesus! Below is a pictorial view of the gospel of Jesus.

In Acts 2:38-39 Peter instructs believers how to respond to the gospel. We see this pattern repeated over and over again in the rest of the book of Acts. This is the gospel Paul taught everywhere he went throughout the Roman Empire as did the other apostles and early church leaders, Acts 8:25, Acts 8: 26-39.

There were many attempts to change (add to or take away from) the gospel but Paul, Peter and John (and the other apostles) fought them at every turn. In doing so Paul exclaimed those who change the gospel should be eternally condemned. Galatians 1:6-9. The language Paul uses here is very strong indicating the seriousness of attempting to change the gospel.

Paul wrote the book of Galatians to defend the gospel. There were those who came to the Galatian church after Paul left and began to add to Paul’s gospel message. These Judaizers believed like Paul that Jesus was the Christ but they added to the gospel. They taught in order to be saved one must become a part of the Jewish nation and keep the Mosaic Law. Paul vehemently denies this additional requirement to the gospel. In Paul’s defense of the gospel in the book of Galatians he clearly proves the only way to salvation is faith in Jesus Christ.

How does the book of Galatians impact the question by the forum poster? Let me ask his question another way to see if it clears things up some. Is my salvation dependent upon my intellectual ability to understand every doctrine in the New Testament? Please read that question again! Are we basing our salvation on our ability to correctly understand every scripture and doctrine? If we are, aren’t we are doing the very same thing the Judaizers did in the first century? Adding a requirement to the gospel in that we be able to fully understand scripture in its entirety for salvation? This is not the gospel and Paul says we are to be eternally condemned for doing this.

In Galatians Paul clearly points out that faith in Jesus is the only way to salvation. It has always been this way, Galatians 3:6-7.  Our understanding of every doctrine in the Bible creates a false sense of pride for those who “correctly understand.” Paul forbids this pride. I Corinthians 1:29. I affirm we need to understand the gospel as presented above, the proper response to the gospel and then live a reasonably moral lifestyle, (I say that because we all continue to sin regardless of our desire not to) and strive for unity of the brothers. That’s it. The rest is learning through the help of the Holy Spirit. Our salvation does not depend upon our ability to correctly delineate every scripture properly. Not in this lifetime will we ever fully understand every scripture and doctrine in the Bible. It is impossible but we can know Jesus Christ and Him crucified! I Corinthians 2:2.

How Would You Like to be a Christian Only, Nothing More, Nothing Less?

This is a series of posts answering a skeptic who rejects Christianity (or any other religion/god) and clings to atheism and natural causes for everything in the universe. Here is the link to the last post – Part Four

The skeptic is making fun of the death of Jesus Christ and the terrible cost God the Father gave to redeem mankind. He says:

 There is a fountain filled with blood drawn from Emmanuel’s veins;
And sinners plunged beneath that flood lose all their guilty stains.

Aw, yeah baby. This is what it’s all about. Just picture that.

Take a dip.

E’er since, by faith, I saw the stream Thy flowing wounds supply,
Redeeming love has been my theme, and shall be till I die…

Then in a nobler, sweeter song, I’ll sing Thy power to save,
When this poor lisping, stammering tongue lies silent in the grave.
Lies silent in the grave, lies silent in the grave;
When this poor lisping, stammering tongue lies silent in the grave.

Sounds great. Sources say:

“‘There is a Fountain Filled with Blood,’ is a well-known hymn written by William Cowper. It was one of the first hymns he wrote after his first major bout of depression.”

I’d never have guessed.

There’s a FOUNTAIN… and it’s FILLED with BLOOD!

It’s just business as usual.

I’m not quite sure where to begin to respond but let’s start here.

First, the William Cowper is using a metaphor. A metaphor is a literary figure of speech that describes a subject by asserting that it is, on some point of comparison, the same as another otherwise unrelated object. Metaphor is a type of analogy and is closely related to other rhetorical figures of speech that achieve their effects via association, comparison or resemblance including allegory, hyperbole, and simile. Mr. Cowper isn’t saying a person needs to take a plunge in a pool filled with blood. He is comparing our baptism in water to the death, burial and resurrection of Christ. Jesus did die a horrific blood filled death and was raised the third day. He did it for all mankind so we wouldn’t have to. But why did Jesus have to die?

Mankind on its own has no ability to deal with sin (Psalms 49:8, Matthew 19:25-26).  The law demanded flawless perfection to which no human can attain (Romans 3:18 and multiple other scriptures). The book of Leviticus instructed the Jewish people in the proper sacrifice for sins. The whole sacrificial system of the Mosaic Law was a shadow of the coming Christ and His sacrifice.  Many sacrifices involved the death of an animal. The blood atonement of Christ required a perfect sacrifice (Hebrews 4:15). Jesus was sinless and provided the vicarious or substitutionary death we deserved (Galatians 3:13). In order to obtain the salvation offered by His blood sacrifice we are asked to re-enact his death, burial and resurrection by faith in baptism upon which we will receive the Holy Spirit (Acts 2:38-39, Acts 22:16 and others).  It’s a metaphor!

Second, is the skeptic saying simply because a person suffers from depression they can no longer intellectually contribute to society, either through song or written word? Is that his point when mentioning Mr. Cowper’s depression? If that’s the case I hope he’s willing to dismiss the works of Nietzsche. Here’s a brief excerpt from Wiki on Mr. Nietzsche.

Nietzsche began his career as a classical philologist before turning to philosophy. In 1869, at the age of 24 he was appointed to the Chair of Classical Philology at the University of Basel (the youngest individual to have held this position), but resigned in the summer of 1879 due to health problems that plagued him most of his life.^[35] In 1889 he became mentally ill with what was then characterized as atypical general paresis attributed to tertiary syphilis, a diagnosis that has since come into question.^[36] He lived his remaining years in the care of his mother until her death in 1897, then under the care of his sister until his death in 1900.

Considering their lives and comparing the two I think I’d rather choose Jesus over Nietzsche!

However, the position held by the skeptic is predictable and I didn’t predict it. God said it would happen when writing through the inspiration of the Holy Spirit to Paul in I Corinthians 1:18.

I would urge you to consider your life and accept the redeeming sacrifice of Jesus Christ and be baptized. Your eternal salvation depends upon it.