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Itching Ears – 2 Timothy 4
Itching Ears – 2 Timothy 4
Paul has time and again warned the disciples about false teachers. Now at the end of his life he ends this last letter with yet another warning. This time however, he notes a great part of the problem is the heart of the people who are willing to accept such false teaching. False teachers, like gossips, don’t last long without a listening audience. There unfortunately seems to always be an audience.
Such an audience is made up of people who are intent on following their own passions yet want to have a clean conscience about it. The truth doesn’t allow for such. Truth will convict people of their sins. Truth will demand of them that they repent. They thus will turn away from listening to truth and will find ‘teachers’ who will only teach them what they want to hear.
Paul explained to Timothy the solution to such a situation: preach the word. Such preaching must be according to truth. Such preaching will involve reproving, rebuking, and exhorting the people. It will have to be done consistently and continually, ‘in season and out of season’. It is done NOT because it is popular but because it is needed.
Such preaching takes courage as it won’t be liked and it won’t be well received by the ungodly. The book of Proverbs includes many warnings concerning those who refuse such reproof:
· "Whoever loves discipline loves knowledge, but he who hates reproof is stupid" (Proverbs 12:1).
· "A fool despises his father’s instruction, but whoever heeds reproof is prudent" (Proverbs 15:5).
· "There is severe discipline for him who forsakes the way; whoever hates reproof will die" (Proverbs 15:10).
· "The ear that listens to life-giving reproof will dwell among the wise. Whoever ignores instruction despises himself, but he who listens to reproof gains intelligence" (Proverbs 15:31–32).
There will be some however that will hear, understand, repent and be saved. What do your ears itch to hear?
Hugh DeLong
