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Acts 8:4 – Levels of Acceptance
Levels of Acceptance – Years ago I read a study on the three levels of accepting truth: Intellectual, Personal, Universal. When a sinner studies baptism and accepts the truth, the first stage is intellectual. Unfortunately we all have seen sinners stop there. They know baptism is when we accept God’s grace, but they will not apply. The next stage is personal which is when a sinner breaks down the barrier that keeps them from applying what they know on a personal level. They act and are baptized, accepting mercy through faith. The last stage is universal wherein they accept if this is true for me then it is true for everyone. This final acceptance takes time for some, while others immediately see the logical truth. What is the applied action to accepting the universal application? In the example of baptism it is evangelism. As to why some Christians never preach the good news of grace, one answer is they have stopped the logical progression of the application of truth: 1) It is true; 2) If it is true, then it is true for me, so I act; 3) If it is true, and it is true for me, then it is true for all, so I act. “Therefore, those who had been scattered went about preaching the word” (Acts 8:4). What level of truth have you accepted?
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