I consider quoting scripture... Dangerous. Most cults are based on scripture, but a subset. Most fallacies are based on truths, but half truths. Most errors start with truth.
Truth is in concepts, not phrases. The Bible is a set of stories and letters, not verses. Dividing a letter or story into collections of sentences and then using those selectively is.. Dangerous. It bypasses all context. Contact is the beginning of understanding, the protector of truth. Context provides a framework of understanding. Otherwise, what is really happening is the person quoting scripture out of context or without regard to context, is using a single item to create their own context.
Think about this... Take a sentence from a story, and build your own story around it. Does your new story have anything to do with the original? Is there any tie between the original story and the ideas presented there and the new story created around a new context? Not necessarily. This is danger, it is using an obvious truth (Bible verse) to further what may be ones own thoughts. But the thoughts are not based on the context of scripture.
An example is when a person quotes a scripture that begins with "for" or "then" or "therefore" etc. These words themselves build a bridge between verses that provide contact, meaning. Taking a second verse with out the first is taking a half truth. That is danger.
The Bible stories and letters are written for a reason. They are not collections of verses (except perhaps proverbs), they are stories. Consume the entire story, look at historical context, get inside the author and understand what he was thinking when writing, what question, problem, topic was he addressing, what was his goal. Then you are beginning to understand in the safe confines of context.
I could give dozens or hundreds of examples. But I won't. This truth is so obvious once you see it that it becomes overwhelming. You won't be able to listen to most preachers or commentators without asking "what's the rest of the story". Dig, let the holy ghost guide you into truly understanding the big picture. Be skeptical of any teaching based on a single verse.
Instead of reading verses collected to prove a point or provide meaning, read the Bible as what it is. Forget verse or even chapter. Read it as a letter, in entirety. Or a story in entirety. Ask questions. Think broadly. Only then do individual verses provide meaning, in the context they were authored.
One reason I trust David Wilkerson as a teacher is that he seldom uses verses in isolation. He usually gives a complete thought from the Bible, and then provides historical context behind it, before making his point. This is safety, protection for heresy.
So be safe, think broadly, read more. Ask questions, dig deeper, before you accept any truth. True and complete truth will stand any level of investigation.
