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Training Our Perceptive Powers
How, then, can we acquire the ability to distinguish between right and wrong? Paul’s words to the first-century Hebrew Christians provide the answer. He wrote: “Everyone that partakes of milk is unacquainted with the word of righteousness, for he is a babe. But solid food belongs to mature people, to those who through use have their perceptive powers trained to distinguish both right and wrong.” Here Paul contrasted “milk,” which he described in the preceding verse as “the elementary things of the sacred pronouncements of God,” with “solid food,” which belongs to “mature people,” who “have their perceptive powers trained to distinguish both right and wrong.”—Hebrews 5:12-14.
This means that, first of all, we must work hard to gain an accurate understanding of God’s standards as contained in his Word, the Bible. We are not looking for a list of dos and don’ts to tell us what we may or may not do. The Bible is not such a book. Rather, Paul explained: “All Scripture is inspired of God and beneficial for teaching, for reproving, for setting things straight, for disciplining in righteousness, that the man of God may be fully competent, completely equipped for every good work.” (2 Timothy 3:16, 17) To benefit from that teaching, reproving, and disciplining, we must put our mind and thinking ability to use. This takes effort, but the result—being “fully competent, completely equipped for every good work”—is well worth it.—Proverbs 2:3-6.
How, then, can we acquire the ability to distinguish between right and wrong? Paul’s words to the first-century Hebrew Christians provide the answer. He wrote: “Everyone that partakes of milk is unacquainted with the word of righteousness, for he is a babe. But solid food belongs to mature people, to those who through use have their perceptive powers trained to distinguish both right and wrong.” Here Paul contrasted “milk,” which he described in the preceding verse as “the elementary things of the sacred pronouncements of God,” with “solid food,” which belongs to “mature people,” who “have their perceptive powers trained to distinguish both right and wrong.”—Hebrews 5:12-14.
This means that, first of all, we must work hard to gain an accurate understanding of God’s standards as contained in his Word, the Bible. We are not looking for a list of dos and don’ts to tell us what we may or may not do. The Bible is not such a book. Rather, Paul explained: “All Scripture is inspired of God and beneficial for teaching, for reproving, for setting things straight, for disciplining in righteousness, that the man of God may be fully competent, completely equipped for every good work.” (2 Timothy 3:16, 17) To benefit from that teaching, reproving, and disciplining, we must put our mind and thinking ability to use. This takes effort, but the result—being “fully competent, completely equipped for every good work”—is well worth it.—Proverbs 2:3-6.