Most are conversant with the famous poem concerning the blind men of Hindustan who went to “see” an elephant. Since each was sightless and stationed at a different vantage point surrounding the huge creature, the six men came away with vastly different concepts regarding the elephant.
The first said, “An elephant is like a rope,” because he had felt the tail. Another, stationed at the ear, concluded it was like a fan. Another, feeling of its leg, said it was like a tree. Another thought an elephant was like a wall.
A partial view of the Bible is like that. Prejudice blinds many a person to the whole truth. Sectarian dogma, shallow teaching, emphasis on tradition, parochial thinking, and emotional persuasion dogma, shallow teaching, emphasis on tradition, parochial thinking, and emotional persuasion contribute to spiritual blindness.
As John Saxe said of the blind men in his striking poem:
Each in his own opinion
exceedingly stiff and strong,
though each was partly in the right,
and all were in the wrong!
We must pursue “all the counsel of God” (Acts 20:27) and desire to be fully instructed on every Bible subject. The sum of God’s Word is truth (Psalm 119:160). Taking all that the Bible says on any doctrine forms the best commentary on the sacred Scriptures. This allows us to see the harmony and blend in God’s grace and man’s obedience.
House to House
via Keltonburg church of Christ
Smithville, TN