Lesson to Learn

“But go and learn what this means: ‘I DESIRE COMPASSION, AND NOT SACRIFICE,’ for I did not come to call the righteous, but sinners.”  Matthew 9:13

The Lord Jesus called all who would be His disciples to “learn of me” (or “from me”) (Matt. 11:29), and our text verse contains the first use of “learn” in the New Testament, thus indicating a basic item we must learn when we become Christians.

The Lord stressed that God cared nothing about the ritualistic offering of animal sacrifices, as such, but rather desired understanding of the meaning of those sacrifices, accompanied by the motivating love and faith of a repentant heart. He referred them back to their own Scripture, “For I delight in loyalty rather than sacrifice, and in the knowledge of God rather than burnt offerings” (Hosea 6:6). This is the most difficult but most basic lesson to learn by one seeking forgiveness and salvation.

There are many subsequent lessons to learn, of course; many of them very difficult even for sincere, believing Christians. Paul notes one of them he had learned the hard way, “I have learned to be content in whatever circumstances I am” (Phil. 4:11). Another difficult but vital lesson has to do with Christian humility in leadership, “So that in us you may learn not to exceed what is written, so that no one of you will become arrogant in behalf of one against the other” (1 Cor. 4:6).

Even the Lord Jesus Christ in His perfect humanity had lessons to learn. “Although He was a Son, He learned obedience from the things which He suffered” (Heb. 5:8). Finally, having learned these and many other such lessons, we must not forget them. Paul, in his final letter, so reminds us, “Continue in the things you have learned”
(2 Tim. 3:14).