Watchout For WOLVES: Keys To Discerning Authentic Ministries & Evaluating Doctrinal Trends

controlling the churches through taxation and audits or enacting laws that challenge the basic teaching of the Bible (anti-spanking, hate speech laws, etc.). The church needs to be aware of what is going on around it so that it can adapt in order to present the Gospel to the world of today. We want to be like the men of Isachaar who understood the times and knew how to respond correctly to those times (1 Chr. 12:32a).

…of the sons of Issachar who had understanding of the times, to know what Israel ought to do…

All these men understood the temper of the times and knew the best course for Israel to take. – NLT

…men who knew the needs of the time and what exactly Israel ought to do. – Mof

The Church and Relevancy

As the Church finds itself in the cultural context of this day, it faces the challenge of being relevant. Even though the Bible was written thousands of years ago to a specific people with specific cultures, we must be able to extract that which is timeless and bring it into our time in a way that it can be received by in our culture and in our time zone. The word “relevant” means “fitting or suiting given requirements.” Some of the synonyms for this word include: applicable or pertinent. “Since the church has been commissioned by Christ to extend His Kingdom throughout the earth, we are continually in need of evaluating our progress. Part of this evaluation has to focus on the world we are trying to reach. Do we understand where people are? Are we aware of the forces shaping their lives? Are we hindering our mission by being out of date? Are we preaching to kinds of people that do not exist

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