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Learning in Christ's School
In this unique account of growth in grace, 'babes', 'little children', 'young men' and 'fathers' are the stages through which the learners in Christ's school pass on their way to the 'academy of heaven'. While supporting and comforting beginners in the school of grace, Venning encourages all Christians to make further progress towards 'the measure of the stature of the fullness of Christ' (Eph. 4:13).
297 pages, Paperback
First published January 1, 1999
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Displaying 1 - 5 of 5 reviews
May 28, 2022
Profitable book for both disciplers and disciplees. Knowing the stage of one’s maturity and spirituality and that of others gives a proper perspective, humility, and dependence on our good Lord who gives grace for us to grow and mature in the faith.
April 4, 2026
#27 of 60+ in the partially updated Puritan Paperbacks series by Banner of Truth although you would never know the number of this volume due to the fact that it remains unavailable in the new format despite the fact that it is in the middle of the series! It’s mesmerizing that this is still the case. Have you ever put a pill on your tongue and as you frantically searched for water to chase it the pill slowly dissolved in a fit of nasty bitterness? Despite the fact that the pill served a good purpose for your body, the experience of consuming it was unpleasant. Reading the old version of Learning in Christ’s School is similar. Despite the fact that it is good for your edification, the experience is without water to chase it with. On to the review…
Learning in Christ’s School by Ralph Venning was published a year after his death in 1675. In this book, he traces the journey of a believer from the point of justification through the different stages of sanctification (he sees four in Scripture). It is interesting that Banner of Truth buried a caveat within their Publishers’ Foreword. They state “while Venning’s exegesis may be questioned from time to time, that does not undermine the value of this thoughtful look at spiritual growth.” (ix) Could this be why they still have hundreds of the archaic version of this title in their inventory?
In perusing the table of contents, you can see that Venning has defined what he calls “ranks of saints.” (3) Not sure I like the terminology he chose but he does provide scripture references for his rationale. He deals in turn with “babes,” “little children,” “young men,” and “fathers in Israel.” What stood out to me was the amount of pages allotted to each….babes-140 pages, little children-45 pages, young men-36 pages, and fathers in Israel-4 pages. It does make sense that as you progress in your sanctification there will be less to guide you in your pursuit of godliness. At each level, he defines the characteristics and offers numerous exhortations in striving to reach the next level. Basically, Venning’s argument is that we should aim to find our current place on this journey so that we can know where to focus our efforts in progressing to the next stage of sanctification. He says as much at the end of the book: “It is a great advantage in many respects to know where one is, to know one’s place, rank and station, as it is for a servant in a family or a soldier in an army. Those who do not know where their work is do not know how to do their work. But if we know our station, and it is clear what our work is and how it is to be done, we may set about it.” (271)
In brief, babes are defined as those who are new to the faith. They have seen their sin and repent but focus mostly on the what instead of the why. They are still “carnal in that they can hardly bear a reproof or an exhortation.” (147) The progression from babes to little children stems from knowing the Father. Venning calls this “knowing the Father by communion and experience.” (188) This is basically where we switch from focusing on the what of carrying out religious duties to the why. For example, we don’t focus on the sacrament itself but why we celebrate them. Young men are characterized by their strength which comes from the Word of God abiding in them. (235) As we grow in our communion with the Lord, we also continue to internalize God’s Word and this produces fruit by necessity. One key aspect here is that young men are also “exceedingly humble and lowly towards their weak brothers. They dare not lord it over the Lord’s inheritance.” (259) There is marked maturity absent in little children and babes of the faith. The section on fathers is very brief and Venning says they are “filled with the fruits of righteousness.” (267) There is no real exhortation provided for them because their next step is to be with the Lord.
I want to close by zooming in on something Venning mentions multiple times in the section on babes of the faith and this is their latching onto one particular pastor and their elevating him above his deserved station. Venning says: “[Babes] too often value ordinances according to the dispenser and administrator of them….It is true indeed, God may make one man’s ministry more useful than another’s, and that greatly endears the man and his ministry to those persons as have sat under it and felt it. But when people are divided by this and puffed up for one against another, it is then carnal…and the apostle chides them for it as being babyish.” (103) He goes on to say later in referring to the Corinthian church that, “these babyish and carnal Corinthians, it seems, confined not only themselves but God, too, to a particular man’s ministry.” (139) I believe this is what we see in many mega-churches today. Even if the pastor is a faithful man and has no desire to be elevated, many times his congregation is filled with those that have remained babes and have therefore elevated him above where he should be. Then we start to see division and pride and condescension amongst them. They arrive collectively at a place where no one outside of their circle can be right theologically. They lord it over those that are in another denomination or use a different bible translation or don’t ascribe to all of the secondaries they believe. Everything is primary to them. The true value of Venning’s book may be that he has diagnosed the true issue in the American church today. The pews are filled with either nonbelievers or babies in the faith who think they are much farther along in their sanctification than they really are. Perhaps if they all read this book and took the time to truly test themselves and find their current station and then set about to strive for the next one instead of seeking faults to call out in others, the body of Christ would be much better off. Actually, come to think of it, didn’t our Lord say something out specks and logs? How refreshing would that be if we all heeded His words?
I would be remiss if I didn’t close this review by once again calling out Banner of Truth’s dereliction of duty in continuing to market and sell the old version of this book. It’s distracting and unnecessary and we deserve better from the #1 publisher of Puritan books out there. We all owe them a great deal of gratitude but there is certainly an asterisk at the moment.
Learning in Christ’s School by Ralph Venning was published a year after his death in 1675. In this book, he traces the journey of a believer from the point of justification through the different stages of sanctification (he sees four in Scripture). It is interesting that Banner of Truth buried a caveat within their Publishers’ Foreword. They state “while Venning’s exegesis may be questioned from time to time, that does not undermine the value of this thoughtful look at spiritual growth.” (ix) Could this be why they still have hundreds of the archaic version of this title in their inventory?
In perusing the table of contents, you can see that Venning has defined what he calls “ranks of saints.” (3) Not sure I like the terminology he chose but he does provide scripture references for his rationale. He deals in turn with “babes,” “little children,” “young men,” and “fathers in Israel.” What stood out to me was the amount of pages allotted to each….babes-140 pages, little children-45 pages, young men-36 pages, and fathers in Israel-4 pages. It does make sense that as you progress in your sanctification there will be less to guide you in your pursuit of godliness. At each level, he defines the characteristics and offers numerous exhortations in striving to reach the next level. Basically, Venning’s argument is that we should aim to find our current place on this journey so that we can know where to focus our efforts in progressing to the next stage of sanctification. He says as much at the end of the book: “It is a great advantage in many respects to know where one is, to know one’s place, rank and station, as it is for a servant in a family or a soldier in an army. Those who do not know where their work is do not know how to do their work. But if we know our station, and it is clear what our work is and how it is to be done, we may set about it.” (271)
In brief, babes are defined as those who are new to the faith. They have seen their sin and repent but focus mostly on the what instead of the why. They are still “carnal in that they can hardly bear a reproof or an exhortation.” (147) The progression from babes to little children stems from knowing the Father. Venning calls this “knowing the Father by communion and experience.” (188) This is basically where we switch from focusing on the what of carrying out religious duties to the why. For example, we don’t focus on the sacrament itself but why we celebrate them. Young men are characterized by their strength which comes from the Word of God abiding in them. (235) As we grow in our communion with the Lord, we also continue to internalize God’s Word and this produces fruit by necessity. One key aspect here is that young men are also “exceedingly humble and lowly towards their weak brothers. They dare not lord it over the Lord’s inheritance.” (259) There is marked maturity absent in little children and babes of the faith. The section on fathers is very brief and Venning says they are “filled with the fruits of righteousness.” (267) There is no real exhortation provided for them because their next step is to be with the Lord.
I want to close by zooming in on something Venning mentions multiple times in the section on babes of the faith and this is their latching onto one particular pastor and their elevating him above his deserved station. Venning says: “[Babes] too often value ordinances according to the dispenser and administrator of them….It is true indeed, God may make one man’s ministry more useful than another’s, and that greatly endears the man and his ministry to those persons as have sat under it and felt it. But when people are divided by this and puffed up for one against another, it is then carnal…and the apostle chides them for it as being babyish.” (103) He goes on to say later in referring to the Corinthian church that, “these babyish and carnal Corinthians, it seems, confined not only themselves but God, too, to a particular man’s ministry.” (139) I believe this is what we see in many mega-churches today. Even if the pastor is a faithful man and has no desire to be elevated, many times his congregation is filled with those that have remained babes and have therefore elevated him above where he should be. Then we start to see division and pride and condescension amongst them. They arrive collectively at a place where no one outside of their circle can be right theologically. They lord it over those that are in another denomination or use a different bible translation or don’t ascribe to all of the secondaries they believe. Everything is primary to them. The true value of Venning’s book may be that he has diagnosed the true issue in the American church today. The pews are filled with either nonbelievers or babies in the faith who think they are much farther along in their sanctification than they really are. Perhaps if they all read this book and took the time to truly test themselves and find their current station and then set about to strive for the next one instead of seeking faults to call out in others, the body of Christ would be much better off. Actually, come to think of it, didn’t our Lord say something out specks and logs? How refreshing would that be if we all heeded His words?
I would be remiss if I didn’t close this review by once again calling out Banner of Truth’s dereliction of duty in continuing to market and sell the old version of this book. It’s distracting and unnecessary and we deserve better from the #1 publisher of Puritan books out there. We all owe them a great deal of gratitude but there is certainly an asterisk at the moment.
May 21, 2025
I'm torn on this.
It could be that I only just finished it, after starting it more than a year ago, and it could be the structure, the argument or even the purpose of writing.
Let's talk about the structure first, the format of the book is confusing. With the exception of the introduction which is quite long, the chapters go in a descending order in terms of length. Starting with Babes, which occupies most of the book, then little children, then young men, and finally Fathers, followed by a conclusion of application. The final chapter occupies but a few pages, surely demonstrating Venning's humility to not talk about a state he feels he had not yet attained. I will say though, that the appendix which outlines the structure, point by point and sub-point is extremely helpful.
The issue is, it's particularly hard to read a book with chapters this long. it's not the the information isn't good or useful, because it is. Rather the issue is that there's simply too much information. Had Watson written this book, it may have been a more enjoyable read!
The argument, I think is sound. Venning seeks to trace the growth of a christian in grace, from a particular section of 1st john, though he starts with babes which are mentioned in other places (Hebrews, and 1 Corinthians). He presents a compelling case for how to discern between the different stages of growth, and perhaps a useful framework. That said, I'm not sure who this is for, I think given the right level of attention and concentration this might be a useful work, because as I said the framework is generally helpful.
With all this said, as I look back over the pages and the outline in the appendix, i see some real gold here. There is value in a book like this existing, but I think that it would have done well with some editing. Perhaps instead of the unbalanced and awkwardly large chapters, a book could achieve the same goal by breaking up the christian life into key areas, and then explaining them through this framework.
Just an idea.
If you see this book and are compelled by the concept, do read it. Just know that it's not an easy read, and it does drag on.
It could be that I only just finished it, after starting it more than a year ago, and it could be the structure, the argument or even the purpose of writing.
Let's talk about the structure first, the format of the book is confusing. With the exception of the introduction which is quite long, the chapters go in a descending order in terms of length. Starting with Babes, which occupies most of the book, then little children, then young men, and finally Fathers, followed by a conclusion of application. The final chapter occupies but a few pages, surely demonstrating Venning's humility to not talk about a state he feels he had not yet attained. I will say though, that the appendix which outlines the structure, point by point and sub-point is extremely helpful.
The issue is, it's particularly hard to read a book with chapters this long. it's not the the information isn't good or useful, because it is. Rather the issue is that there's simply too much information. Had Watson written this book, it may have been a more enjoyable read!
The argument, I think is sound. Venning seeks to trace the growth of a christian in grace, from a particular section of 1st john, though he starts with babes which are mentioned in other places (Hebrews, and 1 Corinthians). He presents a compelling case for how to discern between the different stages of growth, and perhaps a useful framework. That said, I'm not sure who this is for, I think given the right level of attention and concentration this might be a useful work, because as I said the framework is generally helpful.
With all this said, as I look back over the pages and the outline in the appendix, i see some real gold here. There is value in a book like this existing, but I think that it would have done well with some editing. Perhaps instead of the unbalanced and awkwardly large chapters, a book could achieve the same goal by breaking up the christian life into key areas, and then explaining them through this framework.
Just an idea.
If you see this book and are compelled by the concept, do read it. Just know that it's not an easy read, and it does drag on.
June 4, 2020
This was so refreshing. Venning takes you through the different degrees of growth in sanctification: babes, little children, young men, and fathers. He explains from the Scriptures their characteristics and gives application to their specific state. Highly recommended as an thourough and deep introduction to sanctification as well as to Puritan literature.
December 14, 2010
This was a unique classification of the different stages of Christian development. He takes as is the puritan way a biblical approach to the subject and it has some sound advise for those primarily in the 'babes' stage, since they are the ones most in need of solid foods.
Displaying 1 - 5 of 5 reviews