Change in Belief
People and institutions, then cultures, tribes, and nations, change their beliefs. Perhaps, like me, you recognized changes in belief and practice not preceded by any announcement of change. The belief just changed — no explanation or even notice that the belief changed.
I grew up in institutions where a particular belief and practice resulted in exclusion, suspension, or ejection. Today someone might say, “cancellation.” A process should precede the change. What is the right process?
Recognition
One could divide the process into more steps than what I’m going to enumerate, but these should occur. First comes the recognition that the belief or practice is wrong. The belief should change because it’s wrong or at least not the best. It is good to recognize and admit wrong about a belief. Recognition itself occurs through some sort of process.
Revelation 22:18-19 mentions adding or taking away from the truth. Wrong belief could be a wrongful addition or omission. According to the Bible, both are bad. Someone is not better because he adds things not in scripture any more than subtracting them. Maybe a person did add and didn’t know it, so he’s right to subtract, but he must recognize this first.
Starting with Scripture
The discovery of an addition or subtraction starts with scripture. If he is wrong, he violated scripture in some manner. Maybe someone showed him from the Bible or he found it himself when he studied God’s Word on his own. The process might start with an inquiry. He might be wrong on a doctrine and it had not occurred to him, so he contemplates change. Changing with the impetus of scriptural teaching is a major way how God sanctifies someone through His Word.
In thinking about the process of right change, one should also consider the means of bad or wrong change. Many changes come through wrong philosophy, false teaching, worldly influences, Satan and his forces, vain deceit, lust, persecution, threats, popularity, pragmatism, pride, and money. However, when people change for a wrong reason, they may not announce it. They don’t want other people or their constituents to know or think about it. People almost never will say, “We’re changing for the wrong reason and we wanted to let you know.”
What Happened?
As you look at the world, you know many major changes occurred in your family, church, culture, society, and nation. Things did not continue like they were on many different issues. How and when did it happen and what is the process?
Very often I will make mention of the fact that the change did not start with a study in the Bible. Someone did not say, “Wow, I’ve been studying my Bible and can see I was wrong on this belief or practice!” That does occur at times, but I have not seen it much. Usually, the change occurs and no one says anything. It just happens. If you ask what or why, the ones mainly in charge of the change attack you for just asking.
I do understand the fear of explaining a change, asking about one, and even and especially of changing back to the original, true belief. Someone changed for a wrong reason without the appropriate process and he admits it. He then changes back to the original position. He admits, “I shouldn’t have changed, and I did change for a wrong reason,” then explains.
No Explanation
Someone wrote me recently about major changes in his life, where his life looks almost unidentifiable to what it was. He said he changed and was glad about it. He did not explain the changes, how he came to these changes. This person believes and practices much differently and didn’t tell me why. His only explanation was that he experiences many more new things and spends time with people he never did before. Maybe you know that if I went any further with an inquiry, I was in trouble. The only recourse was acceptance. It’s like the old Bill Clinton policy for the military: “Don’t ask, don’t tell.”
If the first step for change that led to recognition wasn’t, “I studied scripture or someone showed me from scripture,” then that is not a right change. Change occurred. Everyone should admit it. Then when they do, they should just say that it occurred because of some other reason than studying the Bible. They were losing constituency. Family put pressure on them. They just wanted to do what they wanted to do. I think you know that people will not say that, and if you ask, you might be in trouble.
More to Come