7 Principles That
Determine Eternity
How you handle the word of God in this life will determine how you stand in the next.
The Standard of Judgment
“He who rejects Me, and does not receive My words, has that which judges him — the word which I have spoken will judge him in the last day.”
— JESUS CHRIST, JOHN 12:48 NKJV
Why This Is a Life-and-Death Issue
Most Christians never give serious thought to how they decide what to believe. They absorb teaching from a pastor, a podcast, a book, a friend — and they take it in without ever testing it against a careful, principled handling of Scripture itself.
That is exactly how a sincere believer ends up holding false doctrine.
And here is the part that should sober every one of us: false doctrine is not just an intellectual problem. It is not just a Sunday-school disagreement. It is the substance you will be required to give an account for — when you stand before the Lord Jesus Christ.
The standard of that day will not be your sincerity. It will not be your church’s reputation. It will not be how widely your teaching was accepted. The standard will be the words of Jesus Himself — the very word He spoke. Anything you believed or taught that did not align with His word will be exposed in that moment as the error it always was.
That is why these 7 Principles matter so much.
Following them does not make you legalistic. It makes you unshakable. They are the safeguards God Himself laid down to protect His people from drifting into doctrine they will one day have to renounce in shame — and to give every believer the strongest possible confidence on the day of their accounting.
How to Determine What You Should Believe
About God. About spiritual things. About life. From THE FIGHT, page 141.
Principle #1
Let Scripture Be Your Final Authority
On all things pertaining to God, spiritual things, Christian doctrine, and the purpose of life — the Scripture has the final word. Not tradition. Not preference. Not popularity. Not the loudest voice in the room. For God’s children, there is only one final arbitrator: the word of God.
Principle #2
Eliminate Commentary — Let Scripture Speak For Itself
Diligently minimize human commentary. ALWAYS prefer to let the Scripture speak for itself. Don’t try to make the case for a belief — let the Scripture make its own case.
Principle #3
Don’t Add. Don’t Subtract.
Don’t go beyond what is taught in the Scripture, and do not reject what is taught in the Scripture. Adding to the word is sin. Taking away from the word is sin. Stand inside the lines God drew — and stay there.
Principle #4
Hold Both Truths When They Seem to Conflict
When it seems that two “contrary” truths are clearly being taught by the Scripture, do not reject either of them; instead, seek to reconcile them through research and prayer. If you are unable to reconcile them, teach both. Admit you know they are both true, but at the present time you are not certain how to reconcile them, and leave the paradox to God rather than also violating Principle 3 and “subtract” from God breathed biblical truth and commit sin.
Principle #5
Don’t Let Obscure Passages Overturn Clear Ones
Don’t let individual obscure passages refute doctrinal conclusions that are soundly established by multiple other clear passages. The clear interprets the unclear — not the other way around.
Principle #6
Give an Honest Hearing to Every Contrary Passage
Study all the Scriptures presented by those who teach something contrary to what you teach. Make sure those passages do not actually refute your position — without forcing them to teach something that was clearly not intended by the writer. And while doing this, hold tight to Principle 2 and Principle 3.
Principle #7
When Scripture Is Silent — Let Biblical Principle Prevail
When the Scripture is silent on a specific issue, or does not address a topic sufficiently to clearly establish a biblical position: (1) Let biblical principle prevail. (2) Let any decision or action line up with both biblical principle AND your conscience. Never forge ahead with a belief or action that will wound your conscience.
4 Benefits of Living by These Principles
What you receive when you anchor your faith to the unshakable word of God.
Benefit #1
Unshakable Unity
God’s answer to the strongest degree of unity in a church, a marriage, and a family.
1 Cor 1:10
“Now I plead with you, brethren, by the name of our Lord Jesus Christ, that you all speak the same thing, and that there be no divisions among you, but that you be perfectly joined together in the same mind and in the same judgment.”
Benefit #2
Protection from False Doctrine
Drastically reduces, if not eliminates, your susceptibility of being led into false doctrine — because your faith is soundly established upon the word of God itself.
Benefit #3
Confidence on Judgment Day
Strengthens your peace and confidence when you stand before Christ and have to give an account for what you believed and what you taught others.
Benefit #4
A Legacy That Saves
As you pass these principles on — to your spouse, your children, those closest to you — you are most likely giving them the most beneficial instruction regarding their pursuit of God and the Scriptures that they will ever receive from anyone. They, too, will give an account. And because their faith will be founded on the unshakable, infinitely powerful, everlasting word of Almighty God — they will gain every one of these benefits as well.
Picture It
You are standing before the Lord Jesus Christ. Every belief you ever held is laid bare. Every sermon you taught, every truth you passed on to your spouse, your children, your friends, your church — all of it open before His eyes.
And the standard by which it is all measured? The very words He spoke.
Two believers stand there. One sincerely absorbed whatever sounded right. The other — with the same sincerity but armed with these 7 Principles — tested every doctrine against the Scripture, refused to add to it, refused to subtract from it, and built every conviction on the unshakable foundation of the word of God.
Which one would you rather be?
That is what these principles guarantee. Not perfection. Not a free pass. But the deepest possible confidence that what you believed and what you taught was anchored to the very word of Christ — the same word that will be the judge.
Get the Whole Battle Plan
These 7 Principles are page 141 of THE FIGHT — one foundation stone among many. The full book gives you the enemy’s playbook, the Scriptures that defeat it, and the discipleship plan that builds an unshakeable faith. It is free.
“The word which I have spoken will judge him in the last day.” — Jesus, John 12:48