From C. Robert Line and his book ‘UNDERSTANDING the doctrine of GOD’S TIME:
Religious education is a rewarding yet daunting undertaking. There is so much to teach in so little time. It takes thoughtful preparation and hard work to continually teach in edifying and inspiring ways, and learning to rely on the Spirit takes a sustained effort and lots of time. There are so many areas of knowledge to be touched upon, so many doctrines and principles to master. There are historical and cultural considerations to be learned and placed in proper context. Gospel teachers are usually very aware of the need to study all facets of the gospel so as to obtain a well-balanced reservoir of knowledge. Whether intentionally or not, some teachers forget how important it is to have a broad knowledge from which to draw in teaching the doctrines of the Gospel so that students may truly understand. Comparing this broad understanding of gospel knowledge to a piano keyboard, Elder Packer gave this warning:
Some members of the Church who should know better pick out a hobby key or two and tap them incessantly, to the irritation of those around them. By doing this they can dull their own spiritual sensitivities. They can thus lose track of the inspired knowledge that there is a fulness of the gospel and can become, individually, as many churches have become: They can reject the fulness in preference to a favorite note. As this preference becomes exaggerated and distorted, they are led away into apostasy. 5
Elder Packer further observed how this applies specifically to the scriptures: “Instruction vital to our salvation is not hidden in an obscure verse or phrase in the scriptures. To the contrary, essential truths are repeated over and over again. . . . every verse, whether oft quoted or obscure, must be measured against other verses. There are complementary and tempering teachings in the scriptures which bring a balanced knowledge of truth.” 6
Elder Neal A. Maxwell stressed that a well-rounded knowledge of the gospel must include checks and balances: . . . . The system by which the gospel principles are weaved together in a fabric . . . keeps them in check and in balance with each other. You see, the doctrines of Jesus Christ by themselves are dangerous. Any principle of the gospel, isolated, spun off and practiced in solitude goes wild and goes mad. It is only the orthodoxy of the gospel that keeps it together, because these are powerful principles that need each other. Just as the people of the church need each other, the doctrines of the Church need each other.7
As stated, one such example of a doctrine (if not tempered by other doctrines) that could go wild and mad, if isolated from the grand picture of things, is the doctrine of God’s omniscience. It is certainly true doctrine (see 2 Nephi 2:24; 1 Nephi 9:6; Moroni 7:22; Doctrine and Covenants 38:2; Alma 26:35), but it is doctrine that can only be fully understood in the context of other doctrines. ~C. Robert Line, Understanding the Doctrine of God’s Time (American Fork, Utah: Covenant Communications, 2015) 3-4. . . The Gospel Hobby Dilemma)
