Bible Doctrine Steers the Spiritual Ship

I Corinthians 2:10–16
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Have you heard someone say, “Don’t preach doctrine to me, just give me sermons that will encourage me!” The truth is that it is Bible doctrine that steers our spiritual ship. Unless we learn Bible doctrine, we cannot know the mind of Christ. In this passage Paul deals with three vital doctrines.

1.    The Doctrine of Revelation (v. 10). God has revealed Himself to us through Hie Word, not man’s words. We can only know the mind of Christ as we search the Word of God through the Holy Spirit. 

2.    The Doctrine of Illumination (v. 11). Since the truth of God comes only from God, it requires the Spirit of God for us to properly understand it. It is only as He shines His light on His truth that we can see and understand His truths. 

3.    The Doctrine of Inspiration (v. 12). The truth about God is found in the Word of God. It is important to know that in the Bible we have inspired words (John 17:8). That is why we say we believe in both the verbal and plenary inspiration of Scripture. 

We can see the contrast between the natural and the spiritual man (vv. 13-16. The unsaved man cannot understand the things of God because he does not have the Spirit of God living within. The saved person can understand because the Holy Spirit lives within and teaches him. The Holy Spirit helps us see things as they really are. It does not make sense to an unsaved person when you decide to follow Christ. Just as a tone-deaf person cannot understand good music, the person who rejects God cannot understand God’s message. Through the guidance of the Holy Spirit believers can begin to have the mind of Christ and begin to know Him. An intimate relationship with Christ comes only from spending time with Him and in His Word. 

Application

Am I spending enough time with Christ to know what He wants in my life?  I can only know this as I spend time consistently in His presence and in His Word as I allow the Holy Spirt to teach me.