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It’s Not the Difficult Passages That Bother Me
It’s Not the Difficult Scriptures that Bother Me
It’s not the things God says which we don’t understand that cause us the most trouble:
1. It’s the things God says we understand, but don’t like; so we change them. Too many change God’s word instead of allowing God’s word to change them.
2. It’s the things we convince ourselves we are doing but we aren’t, such as loving our enemies and forgiving one another. This self-deception becomes our self-defense, allowing us to sooth our consciences. Too many fake their own sincerity unknowingly.
3. It’s the things we get right but others get wrong; so we feel superior by emphasizing what we don’t have to repent of. Too many emphasize what they grew up believing and doing and stop there. They have a stunted growth.
4. It’s the things we get wrong again and again, and think we are beyond forgiveness; therefore we give up which is easier than getting back up by God’s grace. Too many, ironically, think more highly of themselves than God’s grace,. This convinces them their unworthiness is deeper than God’s mercy.
The point here is, yes, we should continue to study and unearth as much as possible what God says. But don’t forget to study and learn as much as possible about yourself and how you react to what you do understand whether hard or not.
“Therefore, dear friends, while you wait for these things, make every effort to be found without spot or blemish in his sight, at peace. Also, regard the patience of our Lord as salvation, just as our dear brother Paul has written to you according to the wisdom given to him. He speaks about these things in all his letters. There are some matters that are hard to understand. The untaught and unstable will twist them to their own destruction, as they also do with the rest of the Scriptures. Therefore, dear friends, since you know this in advance, be on your guard, so that you are not led away by the error of lawless people and fall from your own stable position. But grow in the grace and knowledge of our Lord and Savior Jesus Christ. To him be the glory both now and to the day of eternity.” (CSB’17 2 Peter 3:14-18)
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