One basic truth a Christian should know is found in Proverbs 18:13 it says, “He that answers a matter before he hears it, it is folly and shame on him,” and another is Proverbs 1:7 it says, “The fear of the LORD is the beginning of knowledge: but fools despise wisdom and instruction.” We must allow God's word to clean out our mind and heart; Psalms 51:10. Do not be afraid to open your heart and mind to the possibility of learning something new or different, or learning more of God’s truth. What you should be afraid of is thinking you don’t need to learn anymore. You should also be afraid of sharing and teaching God’s word incorrectly with others, for example; there was a man named Apollos, he was a converted Jew, he left Judaism and converted to Christianity, and he taught the local Jews about the Lord, but he only taught them about the water baptism of John. Acts 18:24-28 says, “And a certain Jew named Apollos, born at Alexandria, an eloquent man and mighty in the scriptures, came to Ephesus. This man was instructed in the way of the Lord; and being strong in the spirit, he spoke and taught diligently the things of the Lord, knowing only the baptism of John. And he began to speak boldly in the synagogue: and when Aquila and Priscilla heard him, they took him aside, and shared with him the way of God more perfectly.” Just like us or perhaps people we know, Apollos was mighty in the word of God and strong in God’s Spirit but he was missing important doctrine about Jesus and needed to be corrected. We can see that today, in ourselves. Although we have truth in God's word, we do not have it all. Sometimes when we do not know the whole truth, we just say what we feel and then justify it by saying things like; “The Bible says…,” but they don’t know where, or they change God’s word a little and say, “God knows my heart,” or “The Bible was written by disciples and apostles and in each book the author is saying what the Spirit put in his heart, but it is not for everyone,” or “The world is different today…,” but after hearing what Aquila and Priscilla had to say, Apollos did not tell them that, He does not believe what they, believe. Apollos did not tell them He already has the truth and, doesn’t want to hear what they are saying. Apollos did not tell them that the people he has been teaching don’t believe that. Apollos did not tell Aquila and Priscilla anything like that, but instead he listened and learned that there was more truth than he knew. In verse 28 God’s word says, after he learned the truth and believed through faith, “He mightily convinced the Jews in public showing by the scriptures that Jesus was Christ.” Apollos listened, learned, and accepted correction by the word of God, by the scriptures, (not from Aquila and Priscilla,) and applied it to his teaching and taught others about Jesus from the Word of God. † Another good example is Acts 17:11, God’s word says, talking about the people in the church, in Berea, “These, were nobler than those in Thessalonica, because they received the word with all readiness of mind, and searched the scriptures daily, whether those things were true.” The people from Berea were more noble, (more dignified,) than the people in Thessalonica, because when they heard God’s word, they received it with a readiness of mind, an open mind, and they didn’t stop with that, they didn’t just believe what they heard, they searched God’s word daily to see if what the Apostles taught was true! They did not say that they believed something different and then refuse to hear anything else; they received the word with all readiness of mind and then searched God’s word, the scriptures, to find what they heard so they could see for themselves in God’s word, if it was true! (They had scrolls back then and it probably took some time to search, but it is worth it.) We have to know whether what someone says is actually in God’s word. It is dignifying and noble to search God’s word to be sure that what anyone tells you about His word is true. It is also always a good idea to search for the truth of our own faith in God’s word, as opposed to asking someone else what they think, and they believe like you. We have to be prepared for the truth. We also have to be willing to accept the fact that our beliefs have strayed from the straight gate and the narrow path to life; Matthew 7:13-14. This was approximately 30 years after Jesus’ crucifixion and it is the example we are to follow today. Nothing has changed; only by using God’s word for confirmation can we be sure if what someone says about His word is true. If you do not find what someone says in God's word or if a person interprets God’s word from their own understanding, than you must love them enough, even through poor attitudes and non-communication, to use God’s word to reprove, rebuke and correct them. We correct them with love and respect, and with fear that we do not misquote God's words ourselves. We do not want to cause confusion.