Audio Transcript
Bible reading — we take it seriously, as a life priority and a daily discipline to cultivate. And we are now half done reading the whole Bible together in 2025 in the Navigators Bible Reading Plan. Thanks for joining us, if you have. Of course, we have dozens of episodes covering a host of very practical tips on overcoming the challenges of studying the Bible for ourselves: episodes on Bible reading, careful Bible study, choosing Bible translations, how to do Bible memorization, even the struggle we’ll inevitably feel when it comes to Bible neglect. All of those are topics covered over the course of many years in many episodes on the podcast, which I put together into one big digest to show you all the ground we covered, in the Ask Pastor John book. See that first section, pages 1–46.
Related to all this is this question: What do we lose if our doctrine is distorted? Is it harmless? Is there any real danger to be feared? It’s the question from a listener named Regina. “Pastor John, hello. What is the real danger of having the wrong theology? Does misunderstanding God’s character or his word lead to spiritual damage, or is it just a matter of differing interpretations? Many people believe that as long as someone sincerely loves God, doctrinal errors aren’t a big deal. But others warn that false beliefs can lead to serious consequences in our faith, our worship, and even our daily lives. How should we think about this? What’s at stake when our theology is off? Is there really harm that will come of it?”
Defining Doctrine
The key sentence that needs clarification is this: “Many people believe that as long as someone sincerely loves God, doctrinal errors aren’t a big deal.” The clarification that this needs is this: Which God are you loving — Buddhist god, Hindu god, Muslim god, Christian God? In other words, in order for “love of God” to have any meaning at all, you need to know something about God. Which God are you loving? Is he worthy of love? Does he have enough factors, attributes, things about him, that make him worthy of love? Are you loving an unworthy God? What God are you loving? “He’s like this” or “He’s like that”; “He’s not like this” or “He’s not like that.”
It would be fair to say, wouldn’t it, that this knowledge of God that we need in order to love God is doctrine. Doctrine is just things we know about God and his ways from the Bible. It’s simple. Everybody’s got doctrine, either good or bad, and we can’t live without it. Would it be fair to say that to make an error in the knowledge of God might mean you’re loving something other than God?
So, the straightforward initial answer to the question is that the real danger of wrong theology, mistaken doctrine, is that it prevents or limits genuine love to God. You can’t love God if you don’t know God, and that knowledge is called doctrine. It’s either right (and it’s the true God) or wrong (and it’s the wrong god). Doctrine is simply the knowledge of God and his ways.
Jesus said, “You shall love the Lord your God . . . with all your mind” (Matthew 22:37). Why did he say that? That means, at least, that you should use your mind to gather the kindling of true knowledge of God (doctrine) and throw it onto the flame of love in the furnace of your heart. That’s what the mind is for: gathering the kindling of truth and doctrine, and throwing it onto the flame of love in the furnace of your heart.
If God says to you, “Why do you love me?” and you answer, “I don’t have any knowledge of you — I don’t know who you are or what you’re like, but I love you anyway,” God will not be honored by that. You can’t honor a god by saying, “I love you” for no reason. That you doesn’t even have content. It won’t have any meaning. You can’t glorify God by your love for him if your love for him is not based on any truth about him, which is what we mean by doctrine.
Biblical Reasons for Doctrine
So, that’s the basic answer. Now, let’s put some Bible under it, because that’s what really matters. Does God himself, in his word, in the Bible, teach or show us that doctrine, knowledge of God and his reality, is precious and worthy of our life’s pursuit? Does the Bible teach us that making mistakes in doctrine is destructive to our love for God and our soul? And the answer to both of those questions is yes.
Here are three ways that the Bible shows us the importance of doctrine — that is, the importance of true knowledge of God and his ways.
1. Doctrine matures us.
First, the Bible urges us to grow in our knowledge of God. In Ephesians 4:13–14, Paul argues that the church should pursue “the knowledge of the Son of God . . . so that we may no longer be children, tossed to and fro by the waves and carried about by every wind of doctrine, by human cunning, by craftiness in deceitful schemes.” So, he’s saying, “Grow up! Grow up into doctrinal maturity so that you’re not victims of human doctrine and deceit.”
Here’s what people need to think seriously about: Life is not doctrine-less. We are always believing somebody’s view of reality. It’s not like there’s anything neutral. Let’s be God’s people and listen to God’s word and believe his doctrine. That’s the point of Ephesians 4:13–14.
“You can’t love God if you don’t know God, and that knowledge is called doctrine.”
Peter said in 2 Peter 3:18, “Grow in the grace and knowledge of our Lord . . . Jesus Christ.” In Colossians 1:10, connecting right living and the growth of the knowledge of God, Paul said, “Walk in a manner worthy of the Lord, fully pleasing to him: bearing fruit in every good work and increasing in the knowledge of God.” It matters — it matters for life, it matters for love — that we increase in the knowledge of God and not be children anymore.
2. Doctrine protects us.
The second way the Bible shows us the importance of doctrine is by teaching us the destructive effects of making doctrinal error. Paul warns the Ephesian elders in Acts 20 that they need the whole counsel of God, not just fragments of it. And one reason is that wolves will come in and twist true doctrine and drag away Christians to ruin.
Here’s what he says: “I did not shrink from declaring to you the whole counsel of God. . . . I know that after my departure fierce wolves will come in among you, not sparing the flock; and from among your own selves will arise men speaking twisted things” — in other words, distorting true doctrine — “to draw away the disciples after them” (Acts 20:27, 29–30). And Peter says in 2 Peter 3:16 that “ignorant and unstable” people will twist Paul’s teaching “to their own destruction.” That’s the issue. That’s the danger.
What’s the danger of bad doctrine? Answer: destruction. It destroys people.
3. Doctrine profits us.
The third way that the Bible shows us the importance of doctrine is that it exists. The Bible exists. It’s a book. Why did God give us such a big book, a profound book? What, to ignore it? He gave it to us so that we read it and think about it and live by it. In 2 Timothy 2:7, Paul says, “Think over what I say” — think over what I say, my inspired words; think over my inspired words — “for the Lord will give you understanding in everything.” He says in the next chapter, “All of it, all Scripture, is inspired and profitable. It’s profitable, especially for how to live and do good deeds and glorify God and love people” (see 2 Timothy 3:16–17).
And add to that — the sheer existence of the Bible — the fact that the Bible tells us that God has provided elders in all the churches who “must be . . . able to teach” (1 Timothy 3:2). If the church needs good teachers (which it does, the Bible says), it’s because there’s good doctrine that needs teaching, explaining, so we can grow by it and live by it.
Hope Through Doctrine
And I would close by simply pointing to my fifty years of watching true doctrine make massive differences in people’s lives for their good. For example, to have a right understanding of God, a right doctrine of God, in the midst of suffering and tragedy is the difference between suicide and staying sane. It is. People have told me this.
Knowing that there’s a holiness of life without which we won’t see the Lord (Hebrews 12:14) could be crushing and overwhelming, unless one has a right doctrine of how to pursue holiness. The whole issue of sanctification and getting it right, or right knowledge of how you got saved — whether you yourself were the decisive cause or whether God was — that will make a huge difference in your assurance and whether you love God and give proper thanks to him.
Oh, there are many reasons why wrong theology is tragic and destructive, and many reasons why good theology is life-giving and full of hope. So, I encourage everyone: Grow in the grace and the knowledge of God like the Bible says we should.
