Anything, but Cut and Dry

The question was asked, "If the Bible is so cut and dry, why do no two Christians agree on doctrine?" To expand on their question, the individual followed up with the following: "Whether it's eternal security or some other basic truth of scripture how come no two Christians will agree with the Bible? I mean there are Christians out there that don't even believe that belief is good enough for salvation when the Bible clearly says "believe in Christ and you will be saved" in multiple spots. I mean its extremely difficult to get the truth out of scripture because everyone will interpret a particular verse differently. Why isn't there just one huge believe all belief that one can pick and say "Okay I believe that. Yay! I am saved now!"? Why all the divisions in the church and among Christians? What is the truth about scripture?" One of the best pieces of advice I was ever given is to not always accept the premise behind a question or questions. To do so automatically gives credibility to the question being asked. The individual asking all these questions started out by assuming that the Bible is "cut and dry." For something to be "cut and dry" is to say that it does not require much thought or discussion; that it lacks originality and is boring. Well, the Bible is far from any of these things. According to Guinness World Records, "A survey by the Bible Society concluded that around 2.5 billion copies (of the Bible) were printed between 1815 and 1975, but more recent estimates put the number at more than 5 billion." I doubt a boring book that does not require much thought or discussion would have 5 billion copies printed of it. Furthermore, where is it written that the guideline for determining a doctrine to be true is that two Christians have to agree on it? If something is true it doesn't matter if nobody or everybody agrees on it. There is a principle in math that states, and I paraphrase, "if your foundation is wrong, your findings will be off." Therefore, if you start off wrong, but make all the right moves afterward, you will still miss the mark you were aiming for. That is the case with all these questions being asked. It would be so easy to accept the premise of the question and then get lost in the weeds as you go down endless rabbit trails trying to answer all the subsequent and open-ended questions that are asked.

However, there is one major thing missed here. The individual asking the question doesn't seem to realize that the Bible is full of examples where Christians disagreed on or didn't understand doctrine. You have the apostle Paul who said, "For we hold that one is justified by faith apart from works of the law (Romans 3:28)." But, in his letter, James wrote, "As you can see, a man is justified by his deeds and not by faith alone (James 2:24)." Peter, referring to Paul, writes, "He writes this way in all his letters, speaking in them about such matters. Some parts of his letters are hard to understand, which ignorant and unstable people distort, as they do the rest of the Scriptures, to their own destruction (2 Peter 3:16)." You have Apollos, of which the scriptures write, "He spoke and taught accurately about Jesus, though he knew only the baptism of John. And he began to speak boldly in the synagogue. When Priscilla and Aquila heard him, they took him in and explained to him the way of God more accurately (Acts 18:25-26)." You have Paul and Peter disagreeing on justification and whether it is by faith or by works. Peter writes about how Paul wrote some things that were difficult to understand and were then distorted by others. Priscilla and Aquila had to explain the Gospel more accurately to Apollos because all he knew was the baptism of John. My point in all of this is that these Christians didn't necessarily agree on doctrine or, at the very least, didn't fully understand it. Therefore, when someone seems perplexed enough to ask why "no two Christians agree on doctrine," as if this premise is undermining scripture, the person needs to answer why scripture gives numerous examples of Christians not agreeing? Generally speaking, the reason why Christians may not agree goes back to what they believe about Jesus and salvation; the foundational premise. Everything a person believes about the faith and their walk starts there. Honestly, the only question that matters is the question Jesus asked His disciples; "Who do you say I am (Matthew 16:15)?” The one thing that all Christians have in common is faith in Jesus Christ. Modern Christians and the first Christians didn't agree on everything, but they did agree that Jesus is the Messiah, the Son of God, the Savior of the world and that faith in Him alone is the only way to get to Heaven. That is all that matters in the end. Yes, doctrine matters, but I trust that God, in Christ, will teach His children the truths of His word "until we all reach unity in the faith and in the knowledge of the Son of God, as we mature to the full measure of the stature of Christ (Ephesians 4:13)."