"Quacking" in the Church

When the Apostle Paul was speaking to the Ephesians, he told them this:

Acts 20:26-27 (NKJV) “Therefore I testify to you today that I am innocent of the blood of all men. For I have not shunned to declare to you the whole counsel of God”

In counseling the young Pastor Timothy, Paul said this:

2 Timothy 2:15 (NIV) “Do your best to present yourself to God as one approved, a worker who does not need to be ahamed and who correctly handles the word of truth.”

Paul used the term "innocent" about himself when saying that he had faithfully declared the Word of God. In other words, he believes he would have been "guilty" of some error, he would have had the blood of men on his hands had he not declared "the whole counsel" of God. What is the whole counsel of God?

Other versions of the Bible which interpret the same verse use terms like "the whole will of God" or "all that God wants you to know." In short, the whole counsel of God is to preach the balanced, big picture of everything He has to say about any given subject.

The Word of God is a collection of books which requires dedicated study. When I am preparing to preach a sermon or even give a simple Bible study, it is not a joke. I cannot simply go to the scripture that I want to base my teaching on. I must go to every scripture that I can find in the Bible that deals with that subject in that particular context. This is why it might take me as long as 20 hours or more to prepare a sermon, especially if it is the first time I have covered that subject. There have been times that I have reviewed more than 100 scriptures in order to teach on just 1 of them. On average, it's more like 20-30 scriptures I look at before I understand the broader context. Do I really need to do that much research to prepare a 45 minute talk? Yes, I do. The reason is because much of the studying that I am doing is simply to make sure that I am not preaching a slanted or a narrow piece of God's Counsel without taking into account and adequately teaching the bigger picture.

Could I throw a sermon together in an hour or two? Could I watch a YouTube video from some other preacher or read a chapter of a popular book and preach it? I suppose I could... many do it (quite obviously)... but I won't. First of all, I didn't get that revelation personally. Secondly, whenever I study someones sermon or book and really go into the scriptures, it is literally shocking how often they are casually throwing around things that are completely out of context or they have added their own words to scripture (always marked with emphasis, of course). Friends, I'm not talking about little known teachers but I'm talking about materials you can buy at your local established and reputable Bible Bookstore. Scary. It's good to remember that a Bible Bookstore is a business. They sell things that sell. They sell ear tickling, people pleasing books and videos right up there on the same shelves next to the solid, balanced, un-compromising books and videos that quite frankly in most cases, aren't selling nearly as well.

A famous Bible School professor once said that "heresy is the overemphasis of any minor doctrine." He was right! If we speak only a small part of the truth and major on what is minor, then we lead people astray. (He's so famous that I forgot his name!) The over-emphasis of minor doctrines happens every day. Think of abuses in the realm of prosperity, healing or grace teachings. All of these teachings have a place in the big picture of God's counsel, but they do not stand alone and it must always be remembered that at the core of an understanding of God is that He is sovereign. The sovereignty of God is a major doctrine. These other doctrines are subservient to it.

Let me put it this way. God does whatever He wants to do, whenever He wants to do it according to His Word, His own rules that He gave Himself. And the only prayer that He is obligated to answer is the one that you pray which is in accordance with His will. And so for instance, if you don't have the character to handle wealth, then you can tithe and give and pray all you want, but God in his grace probably won't entrust you with much of it. Why? Because He loves you too much!

When the Apostles selected 7 men to help them in serving the people in the early Church of Jerusalem, it was so that they could devote themselves to prayer and to the study of God's Word. Hmmm... they must have been studying and praying a lot!!! (Acts 6)

That was a BIG foundation for my main point! I hear the sound of "Quacking in the Church!" Like ducks? Nope. Like people who are "Quacks!"

Quack is an English slang term used to describe people who neither have the qualifications nor the experience but pass themselves off to be experts, usually for the purpose of gaining money or fame. The most famous type are "Quack Doctors." If you Google the subject, you will find a lot about them.

In years past, many of these quacks were involved in selling products including a very popular field of helping ladies lose weight. They would post advertisements saying that if you take their products, you can eat whatever you want and as much as you want and will still stay slim. One of their alleged products, was to intake tapeworms which would theoretically eat the food in your stomach. Great, right? Evidently, thousands of women went for it. Or, maybe it's an urban myth. There is debate even on this! This was a long time ago! I think most ladies now wouldn't do that. (they go for lipo or plastic surgery instead.. hahahaha) Potions, secret ingredients, items imported from exotic lands... These quacks have tried to sell everything to gullible people. By the way, they are still at it but are more careful about it. Billions of dollars are spent every month on things that don't work.

I was at a lunch the other day with a well meaning pastor who was telling me that I should eat a lot of honey. Well, as an under control diabetic who has done much research, I know that I am not supposed to eat a lot of honey, no matter the kind. What may be good for some people may not be good for me! He was telling me that if I eat natural honey, that it won't affect me and will actually cure my diabetes. How does he know this? Because people told him so and because he read an article on the internet. Sorry, but I need more than that before I risk my health!

The point is that people are constantly giving us advice that is narrow and even inaccurate. It's not only true in the field of health, but also in the field of spiritual advice.

If I told you all of the crazy advice based on mis-applied scriptures I have encountered, it would floor you! Some people have been damaged beyond imagination. Others still have not awakened to the error of what they have been taught and are in a state of blindness.

Here is my advice to you. Don't be a Quack and don't be gullible! Don't try to be an expert unless you have actually gone through the process of studying God's Word and gained godly, trustworthy counsel. Every Christian needs to be more careful when giving scriptural advice. To the same point that the Apostle Paul was at... Realizing that when we dispense partial truth, we are guilty of the blood of men.

And don't be a Prophetic Quack! Just because you think it was God who spoke to you does not mean that it really was or that it completely was. Every prophecy, every dream, every impression must be tested according to God's Word.

The term Paul used with Timothy was "Approved." He was saying that only after you have studied the big picture are you one who is approved by God who can now correctly handle the Word of God.

Let me tell you friend, the Word of God is a loaded weapon and you had better respect it and you had better learn how to use it. Remember this, even the devil uses scripture. The devil used scripture on Jesus and he still does it today. Because Jesus understood the whole counsel of God's Word, He was able to refute the scriptural manipulations of the devil. (Matthew 4:1-11)

Unfortunately, I believe that if Jesus were to show up in human form today in many Churches, He would keep interrupting the preachers in the same way he gave rebuttal to the devil. It would go something like this:

Preacher: "You're the head and not the tail, above and not beneath, the lender and not the borrower!"

Jesus: "Hello?! That's not for everyone who calls themselves a Christian. That will be true for those who are careful to obey all of My commandments."

You don't believe me? Check it out for yourself in Deuteronomy 28:1-14. And while you're at it, check the rest of the Bible as well. There are strict conditions for prosperity. It's not just a matter of sowing in the Sunday collection.

Where are the prophets?!? Not the "feel good" false prophets that only speak encouragement and never call out sin or confront bad attitudes or partial teachings... The real ones? The ones who are passionate about Jesus and His Word? The ones who care more about peoples salvation than they do about their own acceptance and their own reputation? The ones who weep over the fact that 5 of the 10 virgins didn't make it because they were foolish and ill-prepared! (Matthew 25) Where are the prophets who are grieved that many Churches have become dens of thieves... businesses which promote and enrich men rather than building the true Kingdom of God!

It's time for a major clean up. A shift is coming. A new reformation. Let us be sensitive to Jesus and to the Holy Spirit in this time and let us move with Him. Let us be disciplined to study ourselves to the point of approval by God to correctly handle His Word.