Nevertheless, there were people willing to look beyond their prejudices. For example, how did residents of Beroea respond to the good news preached by the apostle Paul and his associate Silas? Regarding the Beroeans, the Bible writer Luke said: “The latter were more noble-minded than those in Thessalonica, for they received the word with the greatest eagerness of mind, carefully examining the Scriptures daily as to whether these things were so.” (Acts 17:11) Are you “noble-minded” like the Beroeans?

Please consider the case of Masaji. At one time, he bore a strong animosity toward Christianity. He was like the exclusionists who opposed the opening of Japan. When his wife, Sachiko, started to study the Bible, he violently opposed her. He even thought of killing his family and then committing suicide. Because of his violence, his family had to flee to the home of Sachiko’s older brother in northern Japan.

Finally, Masaji decided to open his mind a little and investigate his wife’s religion. After reading some Bible literature, he saw the need to make changes. As he studied the Scriptures, his violent attitude changed into one that reflected the fruitage of God’s spirit. (Galatians 5:22, 23) Masaji hesitated to attend meetings of Jehovah’s Witnesses because he feared that the Witnesses might seek revenge for his violence against them. But when he finally visited a Kingdom Hall, he was welcomed with such warmth that he burst into tears.

That we should be selective about accepting new ideas. We would do well to imitate the Beroeans by “carefully examining the Scriptures daily as to whether these things [taught by Paul] were so.” (Acts 17:11) The Greek word here rendered “examining” means to “make careful and exact research as in legal processes.” (Word Pictures in the New Testament, by A. T. Robertson) Rather than blindly accepting every new idea presented to us, we need to do careful and exact research, just as a judge would in hearing a legal case.