Once again the anger of the LORD burned against Israel, and he caused David to harm them by taking a census. “Go and count the people of Israel and Judah,” the LORD told him. [2 Samuel 24.1]
I have previously discussed what I believe is the explanation for the discrepancy between 2 Samuel 24.1 above and the account of the same event in 1 Chronicles 21.1 (The Message Remains Untouched). Since that time, I have only grown more convinced that the Bible itself clears up any confusion over what it means if we just read it and allow the Holy Spirit to give us understanding, which brings me to the conclusions hereafter.
It is amazing that people so quickly turn to other sources for explanations for difficult Bible passages. These other sources are good, please don't misunderstand, but subconsciously we risk those other sources becoming "word" to us without which we have no confidence in the Bible by itself.
All we need to know about God and His plan for the world (and our individual lives in particular) can be found in the pages of the Holy Bible. This does not detract from the importance of preachers preaching, teachers teaching, and writers writing about the Bible, however, if any person will truly know God, He will be known only in intimate knowledge of His Word. Sadly, too many people's foundation is "so-and-so preacher/teacher/author" and they see the Bible simply supporting what those other sources say... Wait, what?
The overwhelming proof that the Church's foundation is not actually the Bible is that the Church today is highly divided into sects and denominations whose differences seem irreconcilable. But the Bible that each of these sects and denominations claim to follow is not divided. The reason people are divided is because they have built their understanding of God upon the foundation of men (call it theology, denomination or doctrine - it matters not) instead of God's Word.
If the Church today is to ever be united, it will be because she finally gives the Bible its proper place of authority. Unity among believers will never be achieved through rallying around a man (preacher, teacher, or author), doctrine, or denomination. Unity among believers will come when the Bible is the final say on any topic (with unanswered questions left so until the Bible answers them). But this will not happen until our conclusion of "who's right" no longer matters as much as what the Bible actually says.
Yes, there seems to be a real problem between 2 Samuel 24.1 and 1 Chronicles 21.1. However, as one becomes well-versed in the Bible, the Bible itself clears up the questions. God's overriding character descriptions throughout the Bible tell us exactly how to understand passages otherwise confusing. God so amazingly preserved the Bible so that anything lost or confused in translation is cleared up elsewhere.
Do we trust God's Word enough to live by it alone? Do we believe that the redemption provided by Jesus Christ and the work of the Holy Spirit are in perfect unison with the Bible and God Who gave it? Here is what the Bible says about the input of man in this:
Now these are the gifts Christ gave to the church: the apostles, the prophets, the evangelists, and the pastors and teachers. Their responsibility is to equip God’s people to do his work and build up the church, the body of Christ. This will continue until we all come to such unity in our faith and knowledge of God’s Son that we will be mature in the Lord, measuring up to the full and complete standard of Christ. Then we will no longer be immature like children. We won’t be tossed and blown about by every wind of new teaching. We will not be influenced when people try to trick us with lies so clever they sound like the truth. Instead, we will speak the truth in love, growing in every way more and more like Christ, who is the head of his body, the church. He makes the whole body fit together perfectly. As each part does its own special work, it helps the other parts grow, so that the whole body is healthy and growing and full of love. [Ephesians 4.11-16]
A true minister of God will direct people only to God's Word - not their opinions and not the opinions of their favorite preachers, teachers, authors or denominations. Interestingly enough, the passage above says Christ is the standard - Jesus Christ, Who is the Living Word of God!
God's people will never be united until they are in Christ. And here is a provoking truth: if "God's people" are not united, they are not in Christ.
There is too much at stake to base our faith on the opinions of man. We simply must learn God's Word as it is written and as Jesus lived if we are to know God and His will.
Father, may Your written and Living Word take priority in our lives.
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