Do We Really Need Bible Teaching?

1Jn 2:27  But the anointing that you received from him abides in you, and you have no need that anyone should teach you. But as his anointing teaches you about everything, and is true, and is no lie—just as it has taught you, abide in him. ESV

Would you look at that Bible verse? Wow. It says right there in the Bible that "you have no need that anyone should teach you."  It goes on to say "But as His anointing teaches you about everything, and is true, and is no lie -- just as it has taught you, abide in Him."

Amazing. I guess I could take that to mean I don't need preachers and teachers to help me understand Scripture. Or even about anything else, since it says that His anointing teaches about everything. I could take that to mean I can let the "anointing" teach me everything I need to know.

Well, I could take that verse to mean what I just suggested, or I could take a closer look at the context of that verse to see whether I'm jumping to conclusions just to satisfy my self-centered ambitions. To start with I guess I could read the verse immediately preceding the one I quoted above.

1Jn 2:26  I write these things to you about those who are trying to deceive you. ESV

Ah! Apparently there is "teaching" that we don't need. Teaching from those who are trying to deceive us. We don't need deceivers to come along and teach us things that are contrary to the truth that is found in Scripture. This portion of Scripture known as 1 John, and all the rest of Scripture, is sound teaching that is vital to grow in our understanding of God and His will. But when somebody comes along and tries to add something new to it an alarm should go off inside us to warn us "Wait a Minute -- That's not in accordance with the God breathed Word of God!"

But do we need others to teach us about what is in  the Bible? Can we or should we go it alone in learning Scripture? Do we need the help of anybody other than ourselves to grow in our understanding of the Word of God?

Well, what does the Word of say about that? In Paul's first letter to Timothy we can read:

  1 Tim 4:13  Until I come, devote yourself to the public reading of Scripture, to exhortation, to teaching. ESV

 1 Tim 5:17  Let the elders who rule well be considered worthy of double honor, especially those who labor in preaching and teaching.  ESV

 These verses along with other Scripture passages make it clear that God wants us to have good preaching and teaching. God has a lot to say to us in His written Word, and God provides teachers to help us learn.those truths. The body of Christ has many different members, some of whom are gifted helpers or leaders, and some of whom are gifted teachers.

What we don't need are teachers who either distort Scripture or add to it. They are deceivers and we all need to take care to be on the watch for them. What they say can sound wonderful which is why so many people get deceived by such false teachings.

How can we be protected from deceptive teachers? Well, spending time reading and studying the Bible is important. When we have Biblical Spirit inspired truth in us we become more sensitive to recognizing when the Holy Spirit is alerting us to false teaching.

We also should avail ourselves of the preachers and teachers who are true to the sound doctrines of the Bible. God says they are worthy of double honor, and one way we honor them is by taking the time to listen and learn from them.

Do we really need Bible Teaching? Yes, indeed, we really do.