There are a lot of people today who claim they want to tell you what God’s word means. They quote scripture verbatim, then go on to explain its meaning. But does including a scripture mean they are presenting God’s message? Are you disagreeing with God if you question someone who claims a specific passage is the source of their belief? I’m not nick-picking when I say there is a very big difference between telling someone God’s Word and telling someone what you say God’s word means.

Consider that Galatians tells us that even if an angel from heaven should preach a gospel other than the one the apostles preached, let them be under God’s curse! The irony here is that there are people who use this scriptural warning about those who add to God’s Word, to get others to follow the things they’ve added. What I mean is, if someone reads a scripture and says this is God’s Word, they have spoken well.  But if they follow the scripture they just quoted with phrases like, “And what that means is…” they are no longer speaking God’s Word but giving you their interpretation of God’s Word. Shouldn’t we be wary of anyone who claims that if you disagree with them, you’re disagreeing with God if they have said anything in addition to what’s written in the Bible?

Disagreeing with what someone says about the scripture is not the same as disagreeing with scripture. Too many times people, even preachers, claim that if you have a problem with what they are saying you’re disagreement is with God when they’ve added to what God actually said. If someone claims that they alone, or their congregation alone, is the only one following God’s Word, would you know how to tell the difference?

What are your thoughts?