Tim Maas Supporter Retired Quality Assurance Specialist with the U.S. Army

To me, the answer to the question is basically contained in the verse from Acts cited in the question itself. We should not reject teachers or their teachings out of hand, or based on erroneous or preconceived ideas, but always compare them with the Scriptures and use that as our standard for determining the accuracy of what is being taught. The fact that the Bereans did this was why Luke (the author of Acts) described them as being of noble character. 

(This would be in contrast to the unbelieving Jews in Thessalonica discussed earlier in the same chapter of Acts (Acts 17), who had forced Paul and Silas to leave the city by claiming that their gospel teachings amounted to sedition against the Roman emperor.)

November 03 2020 • 0 responses • Vote Up • Share • Report

Jack Gutknecht Supporter Arizona Bible College graduate and Dallas Seminary graduate

When I pastored the church in Genoa City, Wisconsin for 7 years (the Genoa City Bible Church which has since become Anchor Baptist Church), we had another church in town by the name of Berean Grace Church. It's still there, but I wondered even back then how it got its name. One thing I learned from Acts 17:11 is that these early Berean Christians were more "open-minded" than the people who lived in another city, Thessalonica. For that is what the word, "noble" means. (I prefer the NET Bible translation here.) Acts 17:11 in the New English Translation says,

"These Jews were more open-minded than those in Thessalonica, for they eagerly received the message, examining the scriptures carefully every day to see if these things were so."

Another quality that I learned that the Bereans had was consistent persistence or perseverance, if you will. By the way, in Acts 17:11, Berea was a city in the Roman province of Macedonia, modern-day northern Greece, located southwest of Thessalonica. The modern city on its site is known as Veria. Doesn't every church wish its members would read and study the Bible everyday? That and prayer is our lifeline to God. These early Bereans did not just open the Word on Sunday. They got into it every day! How? They would check the Old Testament which was the only Bible in existence in the early days, and they would check it against what Paul was saying to see if they matched. (At the time of Acts 17:11, only the books of the Old Testament existed as scripture The events in Acts 17 took place during the apostle Paul's second missionary journey, which biblical scholars generally date to around 49–51 A.D.)

2 days ago • 0 responses • Vote Up • Share • Report