Does the Bible Emphasize Doctrine?
An Important Question to Consider
I put the theme of this article in question form: does the Bible emphasize doctrine? If you have read the Bible carefully, and especially if you have read it carefully many times, you know that it does emphasize doctrine.
In fact, the word “doctrine” occurs many times in the Bible. Strongest Strong’s Concordance, the best concordance available for the King James Version, lists the word “doctrine” 51 times. Of this number, the word is used only 6 times in the King James Version Old Testament. This means the word occurs 45 times in the King James Version New Testament. Strongest Strong’s Concordance lists the word “doctrines” 5 times, and it is used only in the King James Version New Testament.
These references prove that the Bible refers to doctrine many times. However, that is not the only way we know the Bible emphasizes doctrine. It also emphasizes doctrine by its content. We find doctrine woven throughout the Bible; attentive Bible readers cannot miss it. Even the Bible’s Book of Psalms, so encouraging to Christians, is full of doctrine on a variety of subjects. This underscores the foolishness of the idea that we can, as one man told me many years ago, study the Bible without studying doctrine.
Bible Doctrine Is Meant To Inform and Transform
One striking characteristic of Bible doctrine is that it intends more than simply filling our minds with information about important subjects. It intends to transform our thinking, which in turn, transforms our behavior. The apostle Paul wrote in 2 Timothy 3:16 & 17 that “All Scripture (by which he meant the Old Testament, and which now includes the whole Bible) is given by inspiration of God, and is profitable for doctrine, for reproof, for correction, for instruction in righteousness, that the man of God may be perfect, throughly furnished unto all good works.” The ESV puts it this way: “All Scripture is breathed out by God and profitable for teaching, for reproof, for correction, and for training in righteousness, that the man of God may be competent, equipped for every good work.” The CSB says, “All Scripture is inspired by God and is profitable for teaching, for rebuking, for correcting, for training in righteousness, so that the man of God may be complete, equipped for every good work.”
By considering these verses from these three translations, we can see that Bible intends doctrine to have very practical application to daily life. It is not just some theoretical, unhelpful thing that one might find in some dust-covered theological textbooks in a seminary library.
On the contrary, Bible doctrine helps build strong Christian character and strong Bible-believing churches. But the neglect of Bible doctrine results in individuals and churches being blown about by every wind of (false) doctrine, and by diverse and strange doctrines, about which we are warned in Ephesians 4:14 and Hebrews 13:9. Therefore, it is necessary that sermons and Bible studies be known for presenting Bible doctrine. It is noteworthy that biographer Arnold Dallimore said the famous preacher, C. H. Spurgeon, was first and foremost a theologian. This was because Spurgeon’s sermons were full of Bible teaching. Meaning, they were full of Bible doctrine.
Lack of Interest in Bible Doctrine among Christians
We live in a time when many Christians have little interest in Bible doctrine. This is, in truth, a fulfillment of a prediction in the Bible. In 2 Timothy 4:2-4, the apostle Paul wrote this sobering prediction to his preacher-friend, Timothy: “Preach the word; be instant in season and out of season; reprove, rebuke, exhort with all longsuffering and doctrine. For the time will come when they will not endure sound doctrine; but after their own lusts shall they heap to themselves teachers, having itching ears; and they shall turn away their ears from the truth, and shall be turned unto fables.” Here it is in the English Standard Version (ESV): “Preach the word; be ready in season and out of season; reprove, rebuke, and exhort, with complete patience and teaching. For the time is coming when people will not endure sound teaching, but having itching ears they will accumulate for themselves teachers to suit their own passions, and will turn away from listening to the truth, and wander off into myths.”
We see this prediction coming to pass now in various way. Here are some examples:
- The popularity of the (false) prosperity gospel.
- The popularity of books such as “Jesus Calling,” all of which put words in the Lord’s mouth.
- The popularity of books by authors who claim to have gone to heaven and returned, or who claim to have gone to hell and returned.
- The rejection of the Biblical doctrine of the miraculous creation of the universe and the acceptance of evolution.
- The acceptance of the falsehood that everyone who believes in God believes in the same God, but call him by different names.
- The questioning of the dogmatic claims of the Bible’s teachings.
This prediction started to be fulfilled way back in the days of Christ’s apostles (the first century A. D.), and has been picking up momentum ever since. It has reached the point of being like an avalanche that comes roaring downhill, destroying everything in its path. The only way we will escape this avalanche of false teaching is by being unflinchingly resolute in our commitment to following the doctrines of God’s Holy Word, the Bible.
Conclusion
Does the Bible emphasize doctrine? These few paragraphs have revealed that it does. Should Christians and churches emphasize Bible doctrine? Certainly!
Bruce K. Oyen is the pastor of First Baptist Church, Spearfish, SD.