If these Bible teachers—each afflicted with paranoid personality disorder, fiercely devoted to the King James Version, and convinced that the Textus Receptus is inerrant—end up fracturing a church and sowing discord, then the issue isn’t primarily textual or doctrinal. It’s spiritual, psychological, and communal.
The paranoia here is the deeper infection. Paranoid traits—suspicion, rigidity, hypersensitivity to criticism—warp theology into a defensive weapon. The KJV and TR, beautiful as they are in their linguistic and historical significance, become idols of certainty. Bible teachers in that state are no longer defending the faith but protecting an identity built on being right.
Biblically, the corrective method starts not with exegesis but with discipleship of the heart. The New Testament repeatedly warns against divisiveness born from pride and fear:
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James 3:17-18 describes wisdom from above as “pure, peaceable, gentle, open to reason, full of mercy and good fruits.”
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2 Timothy 2:24-25 insists that “the Lord’s servant must not be quarrelsome but kind to everyone, able to teach, patiently enduring evil.”
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1 Corinthians 3:3-4 rebukes factionalism among believers as a mark of immaturity: “For while there is jealousy and strife among you, are you not of the flesh?”
So, the biblical method of healing involves a few crucial steps:
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Reorientation to Christ over Textual Pride – The living Word (Christ) must be placed above the written word’s particular form. When love for a translation or manuscript tradition replaces love for truth and community, the idol must fall.
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Pastoral Intervention, Not Debate – Rational argument won’t reach paranoia. These individuals need pastoral care that reintroduces humility, trust, and relational safety—grounded in Galatians 6:1, where those “who are spiritual” restore others “in a spirit of gentleness.”
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Church Discipline with Mercy – If they persist in divisive behavior, Titus 3:10-11 instructs: “Warn a divisive person once, then a second time; after that, have nothing to do with them.” This isn’t punitive—it’s protective, a way of containing harm while leaving the door open for repentance.
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Communal Repentance and Teaching – The wider church must be catechized again in what unity means: that fidelity to Scripture includes fidelity to the Body of Christ.
The paradox is that these Bible teachers defend the Bible but deny its spirit. True orthodoxy cannot coexist with chronic suspicion and pride. The remedy is not more apologetics, but the rediscovery of meekness as truth’s companion.
When the intellect bows to love, textual fidelity finds its proper place again—as a servant of Christ, not His rival.
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