By Todd Paetznick, May 27, 2024

What was it about the people of Berea during Paul’s evangelistic journeys that they were considered more noble than the people of other cities he visited?  According to Acts 17:10-15, it was their process of discerning truth.  They neither blindly accepted the gospel message nor did they violently reject it.  

Discernment is important in business.  The phrases are often repeated to the point that they seem almost cliche.  Do the homework.  Do the research.  Be curious.  Perform the discovery.  Qualify.  The implication is that an analysis of options must be made to determine the optimal path.  Some circumstances require quick decision-making, often in crises when there is no time to consider alternatives.  In other circumstances, quick action should not replace thoughtful decision-making.  What is distinctive about the previously mentioned cliched phrases is that they all require an intellectual exercise: thinking.  In a world where machines can analyze data faster and better than their human counterparts, discernment remains a uniquely human ability, especially in times of ambiguity. 

The Bereans were considered noble because they had already done their homework, knew the Holy Scriptures, and recognized the consistency and fulfillment of prophecy in the story of Christ told to them by Paul. They could quickly discern truth because they had learned the scriptures in advance of needing to recall what they knew.  However, they did not stop with what they thought they knew; they went back to the scriptures to confirm what they remembered and its consistency with what Paul explained. 

In business, some people will blindly accept whatever they hear because it is new and seems good to them. Others reject innovative ideas because they represent a different way of operating than they have traditionally done.  In my experience, the best customers are informed enough to make good decisions about an alternative but will take the extra step to prove the validity of what they think they know.  Once additional research proves their original assessment, they will become enthusiastic advocates for change.  

Paul encountered three types of people in his missionary journeys.  The first group blindly and eagerly accepted whatever Paul had to say.  But their new faith was superficial and quickly died out when they experienced opposition.  The second type of people rejected anything different from what they were familiar.  This type of people objected to disrupting what was routine, familiar, and traditional for them.  Sometimes, they reacted violently in their opposition to the gospel message and directed their violence toward Paul.  They threw him in prison, drove him out of their towns, and ultimately found a way to have Paul killed by the Romans.  The third type of people were like the Bereans; they were noble because they graciously listened to Paul, used their minds to consider what they heard, and proved that what he said was correct.  

Over the past few weeks, my articles have explored how Paul instructed the people of Thessalonica to test or examine everything and hold onto the good (1 Thessalonians 5:21).  Paul’s instruction to the Thessalonians may have been based on the contrast with the nobility he found in the people in Berea.  The Bereans became enthusiastic followers of Jesus because they used their minds, did their homework, and compared Paul’s new message against the source of truth in scripture, what we now call the Old Testament.  Interestingly, some of the people from Thessalonica who had violently rejected Paul and the gospel, traveled to Berea to disrupt his preaching and stir up trouble (Acts 17:13).  The Bereans, however, sought to keep Paul safe and delivered him to the coast where he could escape persecution (Acts 17:14).

Like the Bereans, our minds should not turn off before or after we become followers of Christ.  Blindly accepting something we hear because it sounds good means we are gullible and susceptible to deception.  Violently defending traditional positions means we are stubborn and foolish.  The Bible advocates a process of discernment that includes study, critical thinking, and research.  Evaluating the value of something and holding onto it when it is proven good is the noble way.