The nobility of skepticism is pure humbuggary. It was the inhabitants of the city of Berea who were singled out by the Holy Spirit because they sought to prove what was being taught. And sure, we may try to jump on the Scrooge bandwagon with our lamentations and cries about too much naivete in the world, too many gullible, too easily swindled, but in context of prophecy, we are told to test prophecy, not test everything
that is ever said and certainly not to be negative to the point of skepticism. We are challenged to understand that Love itself looks forward to rejoicing with the truth, it hopes all things(!), and also proves prophecy by testing to see if it may be "Yes!" that IS the word of God.
The campus president of the Skeptics Society
(I wish I would have thought to call them the "SS" but that would have been inappropriate and negative, so I'm glad I didn't) would often stroll around the college grounds and enter into discussions with the unwary where he would challenge and seek to disprove and debunk various concepts such as, 'Mother Theresa is a good person', or (and of course) that any rational person could believe that God exists. He had a dozen or so pet thesis's that he'd trot out for others. The theme was seen by me to be, "
I'm smart," and "
You're not," in every case. I challenged him and stated that taking a position that sought to prove what was being taught has not hurt me. "The truth will out," I told him and explained that I could seek to argue from the side of my opponent in order to find what was good and to hold that fast.
He would have none of it.
Love doesn't brag
(Student Skeptics do), is not proud
(Student Skeptics are),
Love doesn't behave itself inappropriately, doesn't seek its own way, is not provoked, and love takes no account of evil. The challenge isn't to remain skeptical it is to become like a child and learn to trust, to be wise like a serpent, *yes*, but to remain harmless and peaceable and gentle and pure while doing so. Keeping oneself spotless in this modern age of "advanced knowledge" is the true task.
I've come to pretty much the same conclusion, and try to follow it. Even my old pastor used to say to always listen to the Bible over him.
This is the heart of it! Does the quest driven one not love her pastor? I know she does. She also is diligent to prove what is being taught and like the good soil, accepts the seed, but not the weed, and acts on the truth as it is taken into her heart and proven to be good by the fruit of uprightness that grows in her sight.
Pardon me for singling you out there, Quest, and I know that you are one of many here, one of many, many... still there are some who will wish to join the SS in their efforts to trot out their pet theories and speak as if they too were the sole font of prophecy. We are told to test these things, not told that we must debunk them or convince their authors otherwise, as you know.
