TRAJECTORY

I suppose most Christians walk around with an innate sense that their tradition, their denomination, and their local church have managed to hit the theological nail squarely on the head.

I used to assume my tribe was 100% on target and all other denominations ranged from "really close" to "way off". Other brands of Methodists and Wesleyans were close to holding correct theology while Catholics were really missing the boat.

Then I started looking closely at Calvinism and, at first, I grew nervous that I had missed something essential to faith. There are some really smart Calvinists out there and they write a lot of books and preach a lot of sermons. These men seemed like they really knew their Bible, too.

But the entailments of Calvinism never sat well with me. In time, I began to see the holes and contradictions in their very neat and logical system. 

And once I saw them clearly, I couldn't unsee them. 

Eventually, I got to the point where I viewed their theology as obviously and deeply flawed. 

And although my final conclusion was that Calvinism is a ridiculous error, I never forgot the fact that for a long period of time, I had thought maybe they were completely right. 

I still watch plenty of debates on the subject and - unsurprisingly - nobody ever changes their minds. 

And that brought me to a place of self-reflection: Is it not possible that I could also hold some theological convictions that are just as much in error? How would I know?

As Scott Adams says, "Being absolutely right and being spectacularly wrong feel exactly the same". 

These days, I don't expect to ever reach 100% in my lifetime - there's always more to learn. There are mistaken assumptions to be confronted. 

(And if Scripture never challenges my assumptions, then am I even reading it closely?)

I have decided that the best I can hope for is a lifetime trajectory of moving in the direction of Truth. 

If I am wrong about something, I want to know today so that tomorrow I am on a more accurate course.