Knowing How To Answer

  I woke up early this morning and heard the Lord whisper to my heart, “If you listen closely, I’ll teach you something that will save you YEARS of experience.”  Well, obviously God had my attention.  I’m the type of guy that if I could learn from others to keep myself from a long, hard road, then I’m all ears…ESPECIALLY if that other person is God!

 

He took me to Acts 4:20.

“For we cannot but speak the things which we have seen and heard.”

 

A short verse, but it’s packed full of truth and wisdom.  Someone called me the other day to ask me a question concerning what the Bible had to say about a certain topic.  If I were to mention what the topic was, more than likely, you would have a strong opinion about it.  That’s because we are so often conditioned to believe we should always have an answer for things.  However on this particular topic, as on many others, I have stopped just going by what I have been told.  At some point, we have to stop living out of the doctrine we’ve accumulated from other people!

 

Instead of giving this person a flat out answer, “Yes, this is biblical” or “No, this is not biblical”, I answered like this:  “Well, I was just this past week wondering that same question.  There is a pastor named ______ that talked in depth about that topic.  You might go listen to him on that subject.  Also, go and read what Paul and Timothy each had to say about it, but make sure that you also look at the situational and cultural context before coming to a conclusion.”

Now to some of you, that may have sounded like I was running for President and was trying to side-step the question.  However, I’m a firm believer in Acts 4:20.  I cannot answer anyone unless I have first experienced something OR been given a revelation of that thing by the Holy Spirit.  And plus, I wouldn’t be doing anyone any favors, or be helping them to mature spiritually if I could not show them in the Word of God where the answer to their question is.

 

This will require you to sacrifice on two parts:

1. Your Pride.  You must be willing to speak only what God speaks.  Not your opinion, not what you heard someone else say.  Understand that true wisdom is from heaven.  Everything else is just worldly babble.
2. Your Reputation.  God’s Word is not always easy to swallow.  Sometimes the things God asks you to say will scare you to death!  But if God wants to say something, and you KNOW he has given you the right spirit and insight to speak, then speak!  Your reputation is one of those things you must be willing to lay down, as you put on and wear the name of Christ.  But remember, it is now his reputation that you either help glorify or disgrace.

So spend time in prayer and study.  Be educated in God’s Word.  Submit more and more to the Holy Spirit and let His fruit become more and more evident in your life.  THEN, you’ll know how to answer!