2 Important Points:
never take their word for it &
start with the beginning / context matters
1) When people wanna spread what they've learned (including me) you can never know for sure if they might have made a mistake in their research, were slipped tainted information, or are deliberately spreading misinformation until you check up on the information.
So, back up whatever you hear with your own research. Even sources that you, after time, realize are reliable will sometimes tell you to be their check and balance; and if you correctly analyze a mistake in their teaching and bring it up, they will change.
Trustworthy sources can err,
Tons of bad sources are out there,
So have a good filter under your hair... :\
(Use your noggin. Activate those precious critical thinking skills and don't let your own prejudices or emotions let you reject and push away something without objectively analyzing it.)
2) And when it comes to confirming spoken and written teachings through your own reading of the Bible, you've got to remember this one word: CONTEXT. For example, when given references (such as Hebrews 9:22 or Isaiah 53:5), reading the surrounding verses helps to get a clearer and more accurate picture of what's being conveyed in the original text. The author isn't trying to say multiple opposing things with the same statement.
You can go the light route with the “20/20 Rule” (reading the 20 preceding verses and the 20 following ones), or go even further and deeper into your study.
The subject of context has a lot to do with Jesus as well. Some people don't realize it, but He didn't just pop up out of nowhere into a random land with a random message of "follow me!" There was 2000 years of Hebrew History behind Him. And that's why it's important to start at the beginning of the story. Without prophetical passages and events such as Exodus 12, Jeremiah 31:31, the Levitical Sacrificial System, and the Jewish/Israelite Holidays, Jesus' appearance and death don't mean anything at all.
There is continuity through it all...
