The Itch

2 Timothy 4:3-4 (CEB) · Passing the Flame

“There will come a time when people will not tolerate sound teaching. They will collect teachers who say what they want to hear because they are self-centered. They will turn their back on the truth and turn to myths.” – 2 Timothy 4:3-4 (CEB)

Paul predicted our time. Or, rather, he predicted every time. The human itch to gather voices that agree with us is not new. The technology that makes it easier is. A phone can curate for each of us a personalized chorus saying exactly what we already wanted to believe.

Paul names the condition plainly: itching ears. The ear reaches out for the scratch. The scratch feels good in the moment, and the itch comes back worse.

Sound teaching rarely scratches the itch. It corrects. It stretches. It names what we would rather ignore. Paul knows sound teaching will often be the teaching we least want to hear, and he is telling Timothy to preach it anyway.

What teachers or voices are you listening to because they agree with you, and which ones are you avoiding because they might correct you?

God of truth, strengthen our ears for sound teaching. When the itch comes, remind us that what feels good now is not always what forms us for good. Amen.