βOne of the famous Greek storiesβ¦is the story about the conquering of the city of Troy. Greeks, you remember, laid siege to the city of Troy for over ten years. They were unable to capture it. In exasperation, a man by the name of Ulysses decided to have a large wooden horse built and left outside the city walls ostensibly as a gift to the unconquerable Trojans. And then the Greeks sailed away in apparent defeat, leaving this horse as a gift.
βThe curious and proud Trojans felt confident enough to drag the horse inside the walls, though a priest named Laucoon warned them not to. He said, βI fear the Greeks, even when they bring gifts.β That night, Greek soldiers crept out of the horse, opened the city gates from within and let the rest of the Greek forces into Troy. The Greeks massacred the population of Troy, looted, and burned the city.β
We are continually surrounded by deception and error as a result of the working and influence of βthat old serpent, called the Devil, and Satan, which deceiveth the whole worldβ (Rev. 12:9). Our enemy, Satan, presents his lies like a gift, similar to that of the Trojan horse. Unfortunately, for the last 2000 years, the Church, the Body of Christ, has opened the gates and pulled in deceitful and devastating Trojan horse doctrines. However, our apostle challenges us to
βProve all things; hold fast that which is goodβ (1 Thes. 5:21).
The term βproveβ means to test, examine, or scrutinize. This challenges the Church not to be gullible, naive, or accepting of every new or interesting teaching that comes along, but rather to be discerning. We are to test and examineΒ allΒ things in light of the unchanging, infallible truth of the Word of God, rightly divided. Like the Bereans, we are to receive the word with all readiness of mind, but then search the Scriptures whether those things are so (Acts 17:11).
Here are some good questions to ask when proving a doctrine:Β Is it honoring to Christ? Is it consistent with the character of God? Is it based on Scripture? If yes, does the doctrine fit with the immediate context of the Scripture itβs based on? With the dispensational context? With the teaching of the Bible as a whole?
After proving a doctrine, Paulβs instruction is that we βhold fast that which is good.β βHold fastβ means to retain, to keep firm possession of. As teaching is proved to be good and in line with the truth of the Word, then itβs imperative that we embrace it, stand for it, and live it out. source
