On Understanding, in Brief

Sometimes people confuse excuses with reasons. Sometimes well meaning friends suggest that searching for the reasons or the cause of something is akin to abdicating your responsibility for a particular action. Sometimes your friends are right.

I am sure that many of us have been "stuck" doing something wrong over and over again. The sin has become a habit or a refuge. It may be something quasi-secret, it may not. Either way I am sure that we sometimes seek to know why we do something, and in seeking to understand, we avoid dealing with our sin first. It is as if we think we have to understand things before we can obey. And sometimes we act as though we are entitled to certain knowledge...

I would suggest that perhaps obedience should come before understanding more and more as you grow in your faith in Jesus Christ. I think that it can become a trust issue. Do I trust that God is right? Do I trust that God knows best? Do I trust that God knows and cares about me? Do I trust that His law is not arbitrary?

I do not wish to stop anyone from seeking understanding, however. In your pressing for trust in God Himself, do not stop seeking for answers. Do not stop trying to understand how you got where you are (the good places and the bad). Only, do not let your search become an excuse to continue sinning. "Lord I believe; help me with my unbelief."