KNOWLEDGE PUFFETH UP, BUT LOVE EDIFIETH - I Corinthians 1:8-2

1 Cor 8:1-2
8:1 Now as touching things offered unto idols, we know that we all have knowledge. Knowledge puffeth up, but charity edifieth.

2 And if any man think that he knoweth anything, he knoweth nothing yet as he ought to know.
KJV
As a Bible pastor I've listened to said, level of Bible knowledge, is not a dependable indicator of the quality of one's relationship with Christ. I agree. We are to prayerfully study God's Word, and do our best to interpret all parts of the scriptures as correctly as is possible. Learning more about the scriptures and what they mean, is always a beneficial thing, and a thing to work on increasing on, in daily life.
There are many church denominations. Which shows that there are many different ways of interpreting the scriptures. I believe it is to be expected, that there will never be perfect agreement on all points of Bible doctrine, during this life. Though we are to try to help correct one anothers errors of belief that we feel we see, we are not to be anxious about them, though, if they are sincere, faithful Christians. And those who fit that description, are those who have accepted Jesus as Savior and Lord (God) of their life, and living according to it faithfully in daily life. Those who do not fit that description, are hypocrites and those who reject to have Christ in their life.

1 Cor 13:13
13 And now abideth faith, hope, charity, these three; but the greatest of these is charity
KJV
The most important thing of all to God is our love towards Him and others!
A book I've been reading, by Watchman Nee, also expressed the fact, that Bible knowledge is no dependable indicator of the quality of one's relationship with God. He said he's observed this in people. And that sometimes, it is those who are new Christians and who know less than others - who turn out to be ones who have a better relationship with God than others.
Watchman Nee also mentioned that having a superior knowledge of God's Word, doesn't make a man equipped to be a pastor, or etc. - if he hasn't had much experience with it yet. Experience is an important part of preparing people to better know how to teach others, and to do well at it, he said.

The truth you know is in the life you live.
We forget that truth is a Spirit.
You cant read a book and know God...

I think a lot of peoples faith rest in their reason and reasoning about God, not actually in God himself.

I have read Nee. A lot good, some off target as I recall , but it was a long time ago.
I remember sitting in the cafe reading "Spiritual Authority" and how the books title had such an impact on passers by.
I guess to actually operate in Spiritual Authority you would need to have the spirit of truth in such a way that you know in your Spirit, possess by the truth rather then in your mind only thinking you know, thinking you possess.

God commands us to obey his words. I cannot bring to mind any passage where God tells us to correctly interpret his words. We can either obey them, pervert them, or ignore them. Many end up ignoring scripture by "interpretation" inventions.

It's not that complicated at all. All the law is summarized in loving your neighbor as yourself (Romans 13:9; John 1:5).

Those who do not want to obey the holy scriptures seek an interpretation to make the commandment void. Agreement is to be expected according to scripture:

Be of the same mind... (Romans 12:16).

Speak the same things...and that there be no divisions among you...be perfectly joined together (1 Corinthians 1:10).

There should be no schism in the body (1 Corinthians 12:25).

Be likeminded...being of one accord, of one mind (Philippians 2:2).

Walk by the same rule...mind the same thing (Philippians 3:16).

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 wars; and they shall turn away their ears from the truth (2 Timothy 4:2-4).

Notice it does not say, They shall misinterpret the truth, but that they will turn away their ears from it.

There are multitudes of interpretations out there that make people turn away their ears from the holy scriptures.

As soon as someone plays the 'interpretation' and 'context' card when discussing scripture, that's a red flag for me.

I can see your zeal. That's a good thing.

I would agree that Submission and Obedience to Gods word as you understand it, is the path to understanding and unity.
If you are looking for reasons to explain away what know in your heart is true, you are already on the wrong side of the spiritual war.

Still you cant make the assumption that you are actually obeying what God intended for you to obey how He intended.
AKA Don't think you know until you are living it!

Can we deny the deceptive and very much self deceptive nature of the exceedingly wicked heart of man within all of us?
In faith we embrace obedience to what we think is Gods will (even if we get it wrong).
If in the humility of mind we seek to keep our conscience before God we find He is willing and ready to lead us and correct us.

It is the haughty spirit that God opposes, it is the lofty mind of the fool always wanting to preach his own thoughts, that God leaves in darkness.
Love is a matter of keeping conscience before God. Not yours but mine. Not before others but God himself. No one else will get to be judge of your conscience keeping but you and God. But we all should encourage one another to keep it in love and also allow for God to lead them on their journey. If they actually are on the path...
if not it will be obvious they will not even be trying to love and obey.
They will be full of reasons not to.

The real destroyer of unity is that haughty spirit and that lofty mind and that self deceptive heart hiding its wickedness deep out of sight. They sought to look good, white washed tombs full of dead men's bones. - Jesus's words to the religious leaders of his day.

Are We trying to look Good in front of our Church, our friends, our family, our coworkers or in front of our God?

What?

If God says to love your neighbor as yourself, what's so hard to comprehend about that?

God intends us to love his neighbor as himself.

How many "understandings" are there for such a simple statement?

And all the sound teachings in scripture are as simple as the above.

Your choice is either to do it, or not do it.

We should not bring into question God's word by the wisdom of men and the rudiments of the world.

As it is written, God hates a haughty look and arrogant attitudes, but it is wonderful that He gives His grace to the humble, isn't it?

Obey or not, yes!
But how do you love yourself? Do you just assume you are doing it in the wisdom and understanding that comes from the spirit of God? Of course not you will start out doing it based on the natural mind, you will do it as someone still corrupted by sin in thought and understanding.
Are you really loving your neighbor or are you just deceiving yourself in your own heart into thinking you are?
The depths of the corruption of sin is no joke, its deceptive nature leads us to thinking we know what something is and how to go about it.

The reality is we need to walk in Faith and obedience to what we do know is right to do or it is sin for us.
Some may eat the meat sacrificed to idols because they know their are no other Gods, Others may think it a sin and a sin it would be for them to go against their conscience. Even if the reality is that it is no sin at all.

Obedience itself is done in faith in God.
Not as one who understands God but as one who wants to.
The Pharisees obeyed, but not in faith in God but rather in faith in themselves and their obedience. As if they knew God and where right in it already.

Don't discount the depths of the effects of sin on everything you perceive or the ability of your own heart to be wrong in a thing.

Don't assume your thinking what God is thinking, or how you see and understand it is how God sees and understands it.
Isaiah 55:8

Sin and the heart of man is so tricky.
If you stand you need to be careful less you fall.
Even if you get it right, your heart can bring you down in ashes.

Don't forget the justified man was the publican, the man who know what he was, who understood the heart of man within is not something to be trusted, as he beat upon it. Our faith must rest in God alone, and often times we think it does only to find out our God was really our own reasoning about God. If you think you know you have yet to know as you should. Don't trust in what you think. Trust that God will always lead you into what He thinks.

I know I am doing it in the understanding and wisdom that comes from God.

Happy is the man that finds wisdom, and the man that gets understanding (Proverbs 3:13).

The way to wisdom and understanding is given in God's word.

For God gives to a man that is good in his sight wisdom, and knowledge, and joy (Ecclesiastes 2:26).

Wherein he hath abounded toward us in all wisdom and prudence (Ephesians 1:8).

And if you don't have the wisdom of God, just ask for it:

If any of you lack wisdom, let him ask of God...and it shall be given to him (James 1:5).

Wrong.

If you are a born again believer you will love as someone sanctified by the Spirit, with a renewed mind; whose sins have been taken away; who is lead by the Spirit.

Walk in love, as Christ also has loved us (Ephesians 5:2).

And this I pray, that your love may abound yet more and more in knowledge and in all judgment...that you may be sincere and without offence until the day of Christ (Philippians 1:9-10).

You may very well be totally right in your heart and your thinking but not everyone will.
Perhaps you have already worked out your salvation with fear and trembling.
Perhaps you are standing in the fullness of the stature of Christ Jesus.
You could even be getting filled up with all the fullness of God but most people are not.

I think that those of us who know the depths of the corruption of sin and the deceptive nature of the heart understand me full well.
What I am saying is it is right for all of us too put on such humility of mind.

But even if you totally know God and your heart is right living it all out in obedience this is the word of God for you to obey.

Brethren, I do not regard myself as having laid hold of it yet;
but one thing I do: forgetting what lies behind and reaching forward to what lies ahead, I press toward the goal for the prize of the upward call of God in Christ Jesus. Let us therefore, as many as are perfect, have this attitude; and if in anything you have a different attitude, God will reveal that also to you; - Phl 3:13-15

You are entitled to your opinion.
I would just urge you along with everyone to keep you own conscience before God.
I trust He will lead you as well as me into all that is right in his eyes through faithful obedience

I will leave it at that.

When you read it or hear it, do it.

Many are posting scriptures and telling the Child of God what to do, but not how to do the what to do the scriptures ask or commands us to do. What you have posted (99% also do the same) will have the Child of God use their own ability, strength, will power, and Christian disciplines to carry out sanctification (this will immediately frustrate Grace - Gal. 2:21). The Child of God now becomes a transgressor (Gal. 2:18).

It is so important that a teacher tell those how to do the what to do that the scripture ask of us to do, so they will not become a transgressor by attempting to do what the scriptures say do in their on ability (Which is called the letter of the law and not the Spirit of the Law). Gal. 2:18, Zechariah 4:6



My Brother in Christ you mean well. However, without Faith in Christ and the Cross of Calvary where the victory was won, i.e., the Blood of Jesus, i.e., The Lamb of God, i.e., His Sacrifice, it is impossible to please God.

The Believer who attempts to live for God in their own strength, willpower, and ability becomes a transgressor of the "LAW" (Gal. 2:18). They have just made a Law how to live for God, versus Faith placed and maintained exclusively in Christ and the Cross of Calvary where the victory was won, i.e., the Blood of Jesus, i.e., The Lamb of God, i.e., His Sacrifice (Rom. 8:2). This is why Paul said, "I do not frustrate the Grace of God: for if righteousness come by the law (any type of Law), then Christ is dead in vain (Gal. 2:21). Under the Grace of God the Holy Spirit carries out the work and the will of God in our lives because we have been Crucified with Christ (Rom. 6:3-5, Gal. 2:20).

Paul teaches run the race unto the end
gen 3:18 man will have to work for bread and it will be hard with troubles and traps
mat 13:11-13 the children understand the one truth but some have lots of understandings some are taken away
the many church denominations shows that the truth has been blured
who is right ?
the one who trust in this guy
John 16:13
But when he, the Spirit of truth, comes, he will guide you into all the truth. He will not speak on his own; he will speak only what he hears, and he will tell you what is yet to come.

blessings

Romans 7 King James Version (KJV)

7 Know ye not, brethren, (for I speak to them that know the law,) how that the law hath dominion over a man as long as he liveth?
are you the one that live or have you took on the death of christ ?

2 For the woman which hath an husband is bound by the law to her husband so long as he liveth; but if the husband be dead, she is loosed from the law of her husband.
being in christ sets you free from the bondage of death gen 3:18

my understanding
Adam fell chose to be his on God gen 3:22 choose the wrong tree
so what did God do after man said i can be master ?
showed man everything it takes to be master and trained him in the best way he could
then set man out as master with a warning
Malachi 4
4 Remember ye the law of Moses my servant, which I commanded unto him in Horeb for all Israel, with the statutes and judgments.
5 Behold, I will send you Elijah the prophet before the coming of the great and dreadful day of the Lord:
6 And he shall turn the heart of the fathers to the children, and the heart of the children to their fathers, lest I come and smite the earth with a curse.

Matthew 11:13-14
For all the Prophets and the Law prophesied until John
And if you are willing to accept it, he is the Elijah who was to come.

what did man do to john ? being the master

Matthew 14
10 Herod had John’s head cut off in the prison. 11 His head was brought in on a big plate and given to the girl. She then carried it to her mother. 12 John’s disciples came and took his body and buried it. Then they went and told Jesus.

a master does not break the law
God is master and kelped the law perfect
man never could
now the spirit of God (master of the law) should live in you guiding you into all truths
so man has had his chance at being master of the law
God gave him over 3000 years to get it right

now man seems to be at it again
is that some thing you want to be apart of?
how did it work out for them? (speaking of 70 ad)
blessings

Yes, many churches and Christians have serious errors of doctrinal belief, and that is definitely a thing to be concerned about! The kind of doctrinal beliefs that are dangerous and seriously wrong are that relating to salvation and to keeping saved. One can't afford to overlook serious errors of belief on that subject. But all others, outside of the subject of salvation and keeping it, are not something to be anxious about. There is a need to be concerned about people having as clear and correct understanding as is possible of all Bible subjects. But it is not something to be anxious about, since the important thing is whether people are saved or not and headed for heaven or to hell. We are to try to help correct errors of belief others have on all Bible subjects, but not with the feeling of anxiety that would accompany our making efforts towards helping them to correctly understand the way of salvation and to get them to make the decision to abide by what God's Word teaches on that subject.

The New Testament, numerous times, warns against the teaching of false prophets who teach and preach a false gospel. Again, that is very appropriate to do so, as that is indeed very, very important! Those who teach a false gospel are able to draw many away from the faith. How awful it is when Christians are drawn away from the faith and fall away from Christ! If they never find the way back to Christ, they will end up in hell, the scriptures say.

As you say, yes, the one to trust the most is always God and His Spirit! Humans fail, and aren't as wise as He is!
God bless you!

You're right! Yes, that is a good verse, and I've thought of that before how it well illustrates the wisdom of taking care to avoid being overly proud, when faced with the beliefs of other people! Jesus was said to be meek, too. And He as you know - is always an example to follow and try to be like, as much as is possible in our daily lives!

You are bringing things up that pertain to a man outside of Christ.

I am addressing this:

And hereby we do know that we know him, if we keep his commandments (1 John 2:3).

I respect your views. But let me explain my reasons for seeing this the way I do: Think of Eric Liddel, who was a Christian and the movie, "Chariots of Fire" - is about how he enjoyed the sport of racing. But I know of one spiritual error of belief he had, in all sincerity - that of his belief that a Christian should rest physically on the Sabbath day. Also, I know the Charles Spurgeon, a famous evangelist of the past, used to smoke, and he didn't think it was wrong to do so. He finally came to see he shouldn't be doing it and stopped smoking. But in both of these cases, they both had errors of belief in nonessential matters, compared to salvation. I think Eric Liddel died, probably still holding to that error of belief. So he's in heaven, as his heart was right towards God. And if Charles Spurgeon had died before he came to see that he shouldn't be smoking, he'd still have gone to heaven even then. Since his heart was right towards God.
However, people who knowingly disobey any of God's laws in the scriptures that God intends for them to be obeying - are certainly headed for hell if they never repent of it in this life.
Here are some verses that show a need to be tolerant and patient with those who have errors of belief in the less important matters of the Bible:
1 Cor 8:1
8:1 Now as touching things offered unto idols, we know that we all have knowledge. Knowledge puffeth up, but charity edifieth.
KJV
Rom 14:5-6

5 One man esteemeth one day above another: another esteemeth every day alike. Let every man be fully persuaded in his own mind.

6 He that regardeth the day, regardeth it unto the Lord; and he that regardeth not the day, to the Lord he doth not regard it. He that eateth, eateth to the Lord, for he giveth God thanks; and he that eateth not, to the Lord he eateth not, and giveth God thanks.
KJV
1 Cor 8:7

7 Howbeit there is not in every man that knowledge: for some with conscience of the idol unto this hour eat it as a thing offered unto an idol; and their conscience being weak is defiled.
KJV
1 Cor 10:29

29 Conscience, I say, not thine own, but of the other: for why is my liberty judged of another man's conscience?
KJV
To me, it looks like there are both scriptures that are easy to understand, and the kind that is more difficult to understand. I believe the prophetic parts of the Bible are often difficult to understand as they use much symbolism. This is one reason so many Christians aren't able to agree on the meaning of all these prophetic scriptures. Even godly people in Jesus' time, hadn't been able, at first, to correctly understand the prophecies that foretold of Jesus' coming to earth in human form, as He did long ago.
The sciptures about the way of salvation, I believe - are in the category of being simple and easy to understand. Jesus said even children are able to understand correctly, that subject.
And true, Jesus' command to love God and one's neighbor, is a simple, easy to understand statement. Yet is not sufficiently comprehendible, as to how to do that, to unbelievers. The Bible says unbelilevers aren't able to sufficiently well understand the Bible. They need to have a change of heart and attitude towards God, first, in order to attain that knowledge.
1 Cor 2:14-15
14 But the natural man receiveth not the things of the Spirit of God: for they are foolishness unto him: neither can he know them, because they are spiritually discerned.
15 But he that is spiritual judgeth all things, yet he himself is judged of no man.
KJV
To me, the scriptures you listed, in which ones are exhorted to be likeminded spiritually, has to mean as regards to the all important seriously important subject of the way of salvation. Since there are scriptures, as I said, that imply we are not to think people are not Christians - simply on the basis that they fail to understand all parts of the Bible correctly. The danger of Christians straying from the faith has always existed in the New Testament parts of the Bible until the present. So it is always a thing to prayerfully guard against.

You said:
I guess to actually operate in Spiritual Authority you would need to have the spirit of truth in such a way that you know in your Spirit, possess by the truth rather then in your mind only thinking you know, thinking you possess.
Correct - I agree! The source of all spiritual truth from God - is God's Word, and God's guiding spirit. All true Christians correctly understand the way of salvation and live according to it in daily life. But they are commonly not able to agree with one another in their interpretations of all parts of the scriptures. That's because they are human and no one is able to have the same degree of wisdom as God has in this life, until they get to heaven. Of course, anyone who knowingly and purposely interpret the scriptures incorrectly, aren't satisfactory to God, as that is a very wrong attitude, which if not repented of - will result in their ending up in hell instead of in heaven.
Watchman Nee, was just another human as we all are. So whether he had any errors of belief in the unimportant matters (less so compared to salvation) is unimportant, since he's now in heaven, where I'm sure he has been given perfect understanding of all things. Unlike how it was for him while on earth.