For the time is coming when people will not endure sound teaching, but having itching ears they will accumulate for themselves teachers to suit their own passions, and will turn away from listening to the truth and wander off into myths. [2Timothy 4:1-4 ESV]
In the above passage, Paul is writing to Timothy and warning him of a time that is coming when people will not endure sound teaching. I’m afraid that time has come. Sound teaching is one that is true and not corrupted, but instead it says they have itching ears. Itching ears, also translated “wanting to have their ears tickled,” means that they desire to hear something pleasant. People want to hear teaching that agrees with their thoughts, passions, and emotions. We want to feel good about ourselves. We want it to be about us.
Have you ever heard someone say, “What did that verse mean to you?” We must be careful not to put our own thoughts on Scripture above the actual Scripture. It is true we are all taught by the Holy Spirit and anything spiritual you gain has come from Him, but we also must admit our hearts are deceitful. Even our own experiences and impressions of what Scripture says must be tested by other Scripture. All Scripture was written for specific purposes and in specific contexts. Our question should not be what does this verse mean to me, but what was the writer’s intention when the Holy Spirit guided them to write this passage. There is a specific meaning to Scripture and we must seek what God was intending when it was written.
When you read a letter written to you from you grandmother, you would never simply jump to the second page, third paragraph, and read the second line to determine what your grandmother wanted to write to you. You would read the letter from beginning to end, and knowing your grandmother’s character and personality you can grasp all the intricacies written (and not written) in the letter. As we grow in God’s Word, we learn more about Him and the authors He used to write His book. We read each letter, each book, each Psalm as we would our grandmother’s letter—from beginning to end.
The more we allow ourselves to judge Scripture and interpret it in our own hearts without the use of other Scripture, the more easily we will be deceived and drawn away by myths. Christ has given us a church with many members, each with different gifts.
And he gave the apostles, the prophets, the evangelists, the shepherds and teachers, to equip the saints for the work of ministry, for building up the body of Christ [Eph 4:11-12 ESV]
There are only twelve apostles and they are gone, but we still have prophets, evangelists, shepherds and teachers. Prophets are those with the gift to interpret Scripture. There are great and not-so-great commentaries out there to help us as we study God’s word. Let’s find out which ones are trustworthy and use the gifts God gave the church to equip the saints and build us up. We aren’t meant to do this on our own. Go to our shepherds/pastors. Go to our elders. Learn from them and ask them questions. God has placed them there to guide us and help us. It’s not about me. It’s not about you. It’s not about them. It’s about Him.
Thank you for allowing me to write these 24 devotions. I hope God has been able to use some portion of these devotions to encourage you in your walk with Him.
Reflection Questions:
- Do you have a tendency to ask, “What does this Scripture mean to me?” instead of “What was God’s intention when writing this Scripture?”
- Have you ever learned how to look at Scripture for the context given to determine what the it is saying? (O.I.A Observe, Interpret, Apply)
Do you have someone you can go to for spiritual questions? Do you feel comfortable going to one of your church shepherds, teachers, or elders? Why or why not?
Reflection Song:
