A question of appropriate Bible application

I noodled with an essay I titled "In defense of conspiracy theory." I thought to find biblical grounds in Deuteronomy for a mandate to look for fire when you saw smoke: "If you hear in one of your cities . . . then you shall inquire and make search and ask diligently" (13:12-14; see also 17:4).

A friend objected that the Deuteronomy passage has to do with "searching out whether someone is encouraging God's people to worship other gods. . . . The passages don't tell us what other kinds of rumors are worth our time investigating."

This is a very interesting point. Just what is our permitted use of the Old Testament? We know from the New Testament that the Old has continuing authority and validity for our lives in some way or other (Luke 24:25-27,44; 1 Corinthians 10:6,11). Perhaps the most sweeping of all is from 2 Timothy 3:16: "All Scripture is breathed out by God and profitable for teaching, for reproof, for correction, and for training in righteousness."

As they say, the devil is in the details. Is it overreaching to see in these Deuteronomy passages permission to chase down rumors other than the exact rumor cited in the passage---namely, the rumor that an inhabitant in the land is trying to persuade people to worship other gods? If the application of this passage must be to this exact situation only, then it has a very narrow application indeed! Then in what sense is "all Scripture . . . profitable for teaching," since we live in different times and circumstances from the original audience of these words?

If we can be content for the moment that the Deuteronomy passage has some general applicability to us, then what of the conspiracy question? What is the threshold of evidence needed for checking out a rumor or story? Well, it is pretty low. "If you hear . . ."

The question of what is "worth our time" is a whole other kettle of fish and beyond the scope of this rant. I wish I could just settle what the Old Testament is good for.

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