Numbers 1:54
“And the children of Israel did according to all that the LORD commanded Moses, so did they.”
The source of one’s authority is vital in determining the authenticity of what they are saying. One of the guidelines news reporters must follow before reporting a story is to have two separate sources to authenticate what is being said. Those two sources become their one source of authority to authenticate their report. Without a source of authority their story is nothing more than hearsay.
The verse above honors the actions of the children of Israel. It says that they did “all” that they were supposed to do. It is interesting that the authority they used to validate their claim of obedience was the LORD. Yes, they followed the commandment of Moses, but his commandment was only validated by the LORD. It didn’t matter what Moses said outside of the LORD’s commandment, it only mattered what he said according to the LORD’s commandment. The LORD’s commandment was their final authority. Even though Moses was a man of God, that was not what they were supposed to follow. They were to only follow what the LORD said.
Christians have to be careful about making anything but the Word of God their authority for action and belief. God’s Word is our final authority. We can easily get caught up in the mentality that because many people said something then it has to be true. This is absolutely false! The amount of voices never makes something true. God’s Word is the only authority on truth. If God’s Word tells us to do something or not to do something, then It is the final authority and not the voices of men. There are a couple of thoughts we must take from this verse that will help us in determining whether or not we should do something.
First, antiquity of voices doesn’t determine truth. Just because voices from the past may have said something doesn’t make it true. You can always find voices in history that will validate your stance because there have always been compromisers in every generation. The age of voices can’t be used to validate truth.
Second, the majority of voices don’t determine truth. Just because the majority of voices may say something doesn’t mean that it is right. These voices may be coming from a spiritual realm, but that still doesn’t make it right. It says that Moses commanded the people, but it was what he said “according to all that the LORD commanded” that made it right.
Third, only the LORD validates the authority of truth. Friend, you don’t have to study or read hundreds of sources to validate that something is true, God’s Word is the only source of truth. Inside of the pages of God’s Word you will find the source of all truth. When you study the Scriptures, you will find your answer as to what you should do in every area of life.
Be careful about allowing people to shame you into believing that you must read other sources than the Scriptures to validate truth. There is nothing wrong with reading other sources as long as those sources use God’s Word as their source of authority. Even then, what they say is not right simply because they said it, but what they say can be right because God’s Word also says it. Keep God’s Word as your final authority and you will never be led astray.