Stages of Learning

In Christianity it seems there are many stages of learning. The first stage is always coming to faith in God.

That stage in itself is very complex and looks very different for many different people. For some people it is coming to grasp that the bible is true history.

For myself it was coming to grasp that I was who the bible said I was - a sinner who needed the grace of a merciful God.

Later stages of Christian growth are complex as well. There is one aspect I'd like to focus on today.

That aspect is being confronted with truth we do not like. I think it's a common experience although people rarely speak of it when scripture begins to say things we do not like.

We come to faith in God and then scripture starts telling us things about ourselves and our lives and we do not like these things. The reality is that this is about what we should expect because the bible tells us we were lost in sin.

How do we approach teachings we do not like?

Well the reality is the only honest way to approach teachings we do not like is to accept them. If we have accepted that Jesus is who he says he is and he confronts us with aspects of reality we do not care for we need to listen.

I have found then sometimes when I have accepted teaching which I do not like (first on only an intellectial level) then slowly on a more heart/emotional level I also begin to see the wisdom of God's teaching.

The bible says a lot of things which can be difficult to accept, but over time you begin to see the wisdom of them. I think the importance for those of faith is to trust that God knows what he is talking about.

God's ways are higher than our ways and his wisdom is better than our wisdom. The bible is always right even when it at first seems to be wrong.