What are Disputable Matters?

And How Do We Handle Them?

As followers of Jesus, we all have different experiences, perspectives and understanding of various parts of God’s Word. While we all agree on the major points of theology, there are some things that are less than clear in scripture, which we frequently understand differently.

I want to point out a few issues on which scripture is mostly silent to examine how we should handle disputable matters.

Over the years, the church has taken various stances on disputable matters related to our culture and social practices. Consider the following. Is it permissible for a Christian to smoke, drink in moderation (the Bible is clear on getting drunk), attend movies, go to dances, smoke marijuana or take legal recreational drugs? Many of you will say ‘absolutely not’ to that question. Others will say ‘yes’ to some or all of these things. Who is right? These are clearly disputable matters.

Where do we start?

With every issue, we start with scripture. We look for guidance to what has already been declared to be God’s will. But, in order to apply scripture to the issues just mentioned, we must be a little creative in our interpretation and understanding of the Bible. That places us in a dangerous place because we should always seek the plain meaning of any scripture passage. In this case, scripture does not directly address any of these issues.

Our second stop is prayer. Seeking God’s guidance in these things may yield a conviction or impression of what is permissible. However, that is frequently an individual application rather than the final answer for a group of followers.

What’s next?

The next question we must answer is simple: what is the goal of every follower of Jesus? The answer is also clear: to become more like Jesus.

There are other considerations we must make in all disputable matters such as how our personal views affect the faith of other followers and our witness to the world.  

To become more like Jesus

All our spiritual and life pursuits have the aim of becoming more Christlike. That means we study the life of Jesus, take all scripture seriously, pray, allow God’ Spirit to transform how we think, speak and act and develop a lifestyle that elevates all of these activities. It means we cease doing all things we know are sinful and some things that detract from our spiritual life.

For me, personally, this means that I minimize how much I engage in being a fan of my favorite sports teams. Since I tend to become extremely emotionally invested in my teams, my words, actions and attitudes do not always reflect a good witness when things go badly for those teams. While it’s obviously not wrong to enjoy sports, it’s wrong for me to become too engaged in them.

Affecting the faith of others

The apostle Paul gave excellent counsel when he wrote to the church in Corinth regarding eating meat sacrificed to idols. For some, this was a serious issue. You can read the entire discussion in 1 Corinthians 10:23-31. This principle is a good one to follow:

Let no one seek his own good, but the good of his neighbor.

1 Corinthians 10:24 (ESV)

When we realize that something we do has caused hurt or doubt in the life of another follower of Jesus, we should prayerfully consider giving up that practice. We certainly want to help others follow Jesus and we never want to be the cause of stumbling or struggle in the life of another.

Our witness to the world

Since the disputable matters are clearly acceptable among nearly everyone in our culture, it is highly unlikely that our behavior is offensive to those around us watching our lives. The real question is, do our practices in these matters influence our witness to those watching. Do they detract from showing people what a Christlike life is? Do they send the message that people can live however they want and still somehow be a Christian?

Jesus was uncompromising when it came to obedience to his Father in heaven. Following his example, we must be the same. If our habits and actions somehow mask the love, mercy and grace that should flow from our lives, then we need to change.

Finally

Everything comes down to this: how badly do we want to be like Jesus? Striving to be like him will resolve so many issues in our lives. It will help us make much better choices. It will soothe conflict, enhance peace and elevate harmony. Focusing on being like Jesus, will influence all around us in a positive way so in all disputable matters, let’s seek to be like Jesus and see how the Holy Spirit works in and through us.