The road of error has a point of no return. That is what Jesus was speaking of when he said of the multitudes who followed Him, “They seeing see not, and hearing, they hear not.” He meant they had physical sight but no spiritual sight. They had physical hearing but could not pick up on and understand the spiritual truths He was speaking. The road of error has a point of no return for one can progress down the road of error so far that they become totally engulfed in error and are held fast by their falsehood and misconception. That explains why a Roman Catholic priest remains a Roman Catholic priest until the day he dies. It explains why a Mormon remains a Mormon all of his, or her, life.
Jesus spoke of this same phenomenon when he said one does not put new wine into an old wineskin else the wineskin bursts and one loses both the wineskin and the wine. New wine is still fermenting and emitting gases. If it is placed into an old wineskin, a wineskin that cannot expand without cracking or ripping, then the gases will cause the wineskin to expand to the breaking point whereby one loses both the wine and the wineskin. Likewise, one cannot place new truth into a mind that is saturated with false beliefs and errors. The one embracing falsehoods will reject the truth spoken to him. The truth given to him will be “lost”, so to speak.
One embracing false spiritual concepts and beliefs generally has several scriptures they think fully support their viewpoint. Looking about them both in the now and historically, they will often find that they are in the majority in what they believe and have many highly respected preachers and theologians who agree with them wholeheartedly in their Christian views. If in error, they are then so far down the road of error that their getting off of that road and on to the road of truth is problematic.
One does not merely absorb spiritual truth as they pass through life. Truth is the pearl of great price, a buried treasure that must be carefully and energetically sought. Much error is often absorbed into the mind and thinking before one ever really begins to prove and fully document his, or her, religious beliefs. Dislodging that error and replacing the same with divine spiritual truth can be the most difficult task one will ever undertake. Most never even make the effort.
Reared in a Baptist church, one absorbs and believes Baptist doctrine while the family across the street attend a Pentecostal assembly, absorbing the teachings of that group and naturally assume their particular belief system to be more correct and in line with scripture. This is one glaring pitfall of being human. But take heart. The truth CAN be known. But one must search for the same with an open mind and with the firm commitment to obey the truth once it is revealed to their mind. And, of course, such personalities are in the minority in the human family. This is one reason why teachers of God’s truth are in short supply in any given generation. For every truly anointed teacher of the Word of God, you can well believe there are many dozens who perform that function entirely on their own even though sincere and well meaning.. But the Lord knows those that are His and the sheep hear the Master’s voice regardless of the one through whom the Shepherd desires to speak and teach.
Christ’s Aged Servant (Galatians 1:10-12),
Donald Wiley