Will We Never Learn?
2 Timothy 3:6,7 For among them are those who make their way into households and captivate silly women, overwhelmed by their sins and swayed by all kinds of desires, who are always being instructed and can never arrive at a knowledge of the truth. (NRSV)
I never cease to be amazed by my own propensity to be spiritually thick, dull, and unresponsive to the powerful, life-changing wisdom of God through His Spirit and His Word. That may seem like an odd thing for a preacher to say, but it’s true.
One of the things you notice about the Apostle Paul is that the more he experienced God’s faithfulness amidst the extreme trials of ministry, the more self-aware he became and the more he was able to look in the mirror to see his faults on the one hand, and who he was in Christ on the other.
We live in a world where self-awareness is in perilously short supply; a world of “anything-goes” without regard for the consequences. And, sad to say, that reality permeates the ranks of God’s own children. Writing of those very people, Paul says:
2 Timothy 3:6,7 For among them are those who make their way into households and captivate silly women, overwhelmed by their sins and swayed by all kinds of desires, who are always being instructed and can never arrive at a knowledge of the truth. (NRSV)
How easy it is for us to listen to sermon after sermon, sing those great hymns and choruses and yet still wallow in our sin – to in effect be overwhelmed by our sins, swayed by all kinds of desires, always being instructed and yet never arriving at a knowledge of the truth.
For each one of us, our sinful nature wants to resist the powerful transformation of God by His Spirit and His Word. That’s why things are slow to sink in. That’s why we sometimes appear to be spiritually thick and dull.
And the only way to change that is to open our hearts to them – both Spirit and Word – and give God complete reign to do His mighty work of freedom in us.
That’s His Word. Fresh … for you … today.
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