Quote:
Originally Posted by OBW
I also read some other Christian writers who are bringing up serious points that I need to consider, yet there are things that they say in some of those books that gets at least a "huh?" on the heresy meter. And I'm not sure that where we have discernment to see both aspects it is necessary to simply reject them in full. But I'm not sure that I would suggest them for general consumption or as a guest speaker because of the potential of things being said that would then be presumed to be endorsed.
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Yeah, this can be said for many writers. For me, every book from LSM has a very strong "HUH!?" response on my heresy meter. I have yet to find one that glides through without any warning. I'm sure that there are good parts in there, but I would never consider suggesting LSM books for general consumption (let alone as the only thing to be consumed). That last sentence of yours covered it quite well.
So how would we find new authors and books to read to help us on our path? To start, I would suggest prayer is one of the most important helps here. God knows what He wants us to avoid, and even if He only increases our sensitivity to heresy while we are reading the books, there will be some very valuable help from God on the matter.
Along with prayer, going with "non-controversial" authors may well be a good start. If the buzz about an author is that they are cutting new ground, you have more to filter through the heresy filter. If the general consensus is that the author is teaching "the same old" (aka "orthodox") teachings, there is a good chance that you will not be stumbled as quickly by said books as you might by others.
That isn't to say that there's no good in fresh thinking, etc. However, if it's something new that hasn't been said before (in the last 2000 years, presumably), one really should wonder WHY it's never been said before. Could it be because it's not true?
Just more ponderings of a person who's rapidly coming down with a crappy cold... Sigh.