Be More Berean: Four Marks of a Faithful Believer
Dear Brothers and Sisters. As we enter the month of July, I have been thinking and praying about the believers in the city of Berea and the beautiful testimony that God gives of them in Acts 17:10-15. I ask myself how I can be more like them, be more Berean. Using their example, after being persecuted in Thessalonica, Paul and Silas fled to Berea and began preaching in the synagogue. The people there responded in a way that every Christian should desire to imitate. So I asked myself how can I do that, be more like the Bereans? I came up with four areas I should work on in my life.
#1 Be more noble minded: They were humble enough to recognize God was more powerful than they were.
#2 Be more in the scripture: They were eager to dive into the scripture, study the Word, to know the Word and be strong in the Word.
#3 Be more protective: When there was trouble they took Paul and made sure he arrived safe in Athens. They also protected the Word of God and the doctrine in that Word.
#4 Be more centered in faith: They took every Word in faith, while living in faith.
Acts 17:11 says, “Now these Jews were more noble than those in Thessalonica, they received the word with all eagerness, examining the Scriptures daily to see if these things were so.” Do we do this? I would simply encourage all of us this month to strive to be more Berean. I can hear some of you saying okay Randall, but how do we do this? Well first of all, let us be more noble minded. The Bereans were teachable people. They were not hard-hearted, argumentative, or proud. They listened carefully and received the Word eagerly. A noble mind is a humble mind. It recognizes that God has spoken and that His Word is true. They did not try to rewrite the Bible, they did not try to change it slightly, they did not try to uproot or start man-made traditions. Because they understood that God was mighty over them. They knew that Pride said “I already know.” Humility says, “Lord, teach me.” May we never lose our desire to learn from God's Word.
Second of all, let us be more in the Scriptures. The Bereans examined the Scriptures daily. They did not simply accept what they heard because a respected teacher said it. They opened their Bibles and searched the Word for themselves. They dug daily into God's Word because they wanted to understand perfectly what they had heard. Brothers and Sisters, we live in a day when many voices claim to speak for God. There are podcasts, videos, books, and endless opinions. Yet nothing can replace opening our Bibles!! Reading the very Word that God has given us makes us strong in the Word. A starving Christian is usually a neglectful Christian. The child of God grows by feeding upon the Scriptures.
Thirdly, let us be more protective. Not only did they protect Paul, they protected the Word. When Paul was threatened they whisked him away to Athens to make sure he was safe. We must protect our leaders all the while protecting the Word of God and the doctrine it contains. We must fight to protect true doctrine in our churches using God's Word as our measuring stick. We must fight to protect and preserve our Christian loved ones. We must fight to protect against the false doctrine that is being spread everywhere. The Bereans searched the Scriptures because they wanted to guard themselves from error. They understood that truth matters. Yes, loved ones truth matters!! Most importantly the Bereans knew for sure the gospel mattered. We also must lovingly guard our hearts, our homes, and our churches. Not every teaching that claims to be biblical is actually biblical. The Lord has given us His Word so that we may know truth from error and hold firmly to sound doctrine.
Finally, let us be more centered in faith. The Bereans searched the Word everyday; therefore they were more centered in faith. They knew that faith was grounded in the truth of God's Word and entirely upon Christ alone. They did all this as I wrote earlier, because they wanted to know if what Paul preached was true concerning Christ. Saving faith is grounded in the truth of God's Word and centered entirely upon Christ alone. The Scriptures point us to the Savior who lived the perfect life we could never live, died on the cross for our sins, was buried, and rose again on the third day according to the Scriptures. Our faith rests not in Feelings, Man-made traditions, or personalities. Our faith does not rest in what movie stars might say or what athletes might say or the nonsense of televangelists. Our faith rests in Christ and Christ alone.
Brothers and Sisters, imagine what God might do in our lives, our homes, and our church family if we truly embraced these four simple actions. A humble mind that is willing to learn, a daily commitment to the Scriptures, a loving concern for protecting sound doctrine, and a faith firmly centered upon Christ alone. This could be a genuine growth-changing movement among God's people. Such a church will not be easily tossed about by every new idea or distracted by the spirit of the age. Instead, it will grow in wisdom, maturity, unity, and Christlikeness. The Lord has always been pleased to bless His people when they humbly submit themselves to His Word. Perhaps one of the greatest needs in our day is not something new, but rather a renewed commitment to be more Berean.
My prayer for all of us this month is simple. May we be a people with humble hearts, open Bibles, guarded minds, and steadfast faith in our Lord Jesus Christ. May our homes be filled with Scripture, our conversations seasoned with truth, and our lives increasingly shaped by the Word of God. It is my prayer, Loved Ones, that we may all strive to be more Berean, then in doing so we would stay Bold in the Lord and Strong in His Word.
