Have you ever had the experience of seeing or going through a severe storm? With the storms, come very strong winds. The velocity of the wind is sometimes so great that branches break from trees, and very large limbs and branches are scattered everywhere. The wind has the power to move any size object.
The bible paints a similar picture of the lives of Christians. Paul wrote, “That we henceforth be no more children, tossed to and fro, and carried about with every wind of doctrine, by the sleight of men, and cunning craftiness, whereby they lie in wait to deceive” (Eph. 4:14). Sometimes Christians can become like the shingles on our roof, or the branches of a tree, and be blown away by every wind of doctrine.
What can a Christian do to keep from being the victim of these pernicious, evil deceivers who are trying to blow them off course? First, a Christian must become firmly planted in the faith. Why is the wind able to easily carry objects like paper, plastic, and cans wherever it wishes? It is because those objects are light and have no roots. They are not firmly planted in anything. If Christians want to stand firm against the winds of false teaching, we must be firmly rooted in the faith. “Be ye steadfast, unmoveable” (1 Cor. 15:58). “If ye continue in the faith grounded and settled and be not moved away from the hope of the gospel”… (Col. 3:23). These verses give the sense of having deep roots in the gospel of Christ. When we are firmly planted and rooted, it will be more difficult to be carried away with every wind of doctrine.
Second, we become firmly planted through study and application of the God's Word. Jesus said, “Therefore whosoever hearth these sayings of mine, and doeth them, I will liken him unto a wise man, which built his house upon a rock: and the rain descended, and the floods came, and the winds blew and beat upon that house; and it fell not; for it was founded upon a rock” (Matthew 7:24-25). Jesus, very plainly, gives us the formula to avoid being carried away by false doctrine: Hearing + Doing = Steadfastness. Hearing the word of God is not enough. There must be practical application made.
When I was a child in elementary school, I participated in fund raiser to raise money for our school to purchase books. Each student could purchase helium filled balloons for one dollar. Your name and the schools telephone number was attached to the balloon. The balloon that went the furthest distance would win a prize. Hundreds of students released thousands of balloons on one particular day. We all watched the wind carry those balloons high into the sky. One student's balloon was found almost 200 miles away. When we allow ourselves to be carried away with every wind of doctrine, there is no telling where we may be found. One thing is for sure, the wind of false doctrine will blow us far away from home.
-K.A. Pugh
