It was early in my faith walk when I was chasing money and success when the primary goal was to seek physical and emotional comfort. And then God sent me yet another rebuke through the Apostle Paul…
“The time will come when people will not listen to sound doctrine, but will follow their own desires and will collect for themselves more and more teachers who will tell them what they are itching to hear.” 2 Timothy 4:3 GNT
Paul’s warning here is for people who will have a heart which must be continually stimulated by the prurient. He uses “itching ears” as a figure of speech to describe how easy it is to seek what is easy and pleasant and not the truth which is often hard and unpleasant.
Paul is predicting great demand for diluted messages that steer people away from the truth of life and produce an inexorable abandonment of our need for repentance. And he was right! Many believers and churches then and still today move toward comfort and away from conviction.
God says NO!
“We have renounced secret and shameful ways; we do not use deception, nor do we distort the word of God. On the contrary, by setting forth the truth plainly we commend ourselves to every man’s conscience in the sight of God.” 2 Corinthians 4:2
Paul is warning us of the dangers in rejecting truth and light in favor or deception and darkness. A key part of that warning is to avoid getting tired of the gospel and fall for “comfortable teaching” that soothes the soul with what we want to hear over what we need to hear.
I ask God to keep me away from the danger of rejecting truth and light in favor or deception and darkness. Inspire me to steer away from “comfortable teaching” that delivers what I want to hear, not what I need to hear.
HOW ABOUT YOU?
What are your ears “itching” for today?
“How terrible when all people speak well of you; their ancestors said the very same things about the false prophets.” Luke 6:26-28
