Jump Start # 3664
2 Timothy 3:6-7 “For among them are those who enter into households and captivate weak women weighed down with sins, led on by various impulses, always learning and never able to come to the knowledge of the truth.”
The apostle is advising and instructing his young friend and preaching collogue, Timothy, about some turbulent times ahead in the Ephesian church. Things were not being done publicly but privately. From house to house, error was spreading. The spiritual cancer was first seen in the lives of weak women. Rather than recognizing error, they were embracing it. But the spiritual disease would not stop there. It would continue to spread, quietly and quickly, until it became obvious to the faithful who would draw a line in the sand with the Lord and put a stop to it. But until that time, the destruction of the storm would cause a lot of havoc.
One of the characteristics found within our verses today is the phrase, “always learning and never able to come to the knowledge of truth.” There are three layers of this that we ought to explore.
First, as the passage states, there are those who are always learning, but that learning doesn’t change them. I think about the volumes of books written about Jesus and His word, yet, so many of those brilliant minds that explained the times, the history, the language, the culture, never fully walked with Jesus themselves. Our Lord said, “you shall know the truth and the truth shall make you free.” Yet, Timothy was warned about those who are always learning, but never getting the truth. Some just never seem to get it. Like wearing colored sun glasses, everything they see is tinted to an idea that they assume is true but has never been proven. Pride and prejudice, not just the name of a book, but a characteristic of hearts that are learning but unchanged by the gospel message.
Lest we only see denominational error here, we must be very careful that we too are not defined as always learning and never able to come to the knowledge of truth. Sitting in years of Bible classes, yet we continue to gossip. Hearing more sermons than the majority on this planet, yet we can seem to control our anger or remain unwilling to forgive. The ‘always learning, but never able’ may be a image that is reflected when we look into the mirror of life.
Second, there are those who are never learning. They have no interest in learning. They want to be told what to do, and like a mindless robot, they will do things without knowing why. A big segment of our fellowship knows more about the Bible than a vast number of people who stand before an audience on a Sunday morning and preach. It’s hard to learn when first, my heart has no desire to learn. More today, would rather watch a funny video than spend ten minutes reading God’s word. And, then there are those who have just a little bit of interest, and they’ll want someone else to tell them what the Bible says. Spoon feed us, works well for a baby. But one shouldn’t be spoon feeding a teenager. The same is true spiritually.
Open the day with a few passages. Just look at the words. Think about what is being said. “Where do I begin,” is a common thought. Start with Luke. Start with Mark. Start with Psalms. Read and think. Read slowly. Read carefully.
The slick message of the false teachers would not capture a heart that knows the truth. They’d recognize error. They see through the fog of inconsistencies and assumptions and opinions. The way to put an end to error is to know the truth.
Third, there are those who are always learning and always growing closer to the Lord. I saw this first hand on a recent trip. The man who preached on Sunday morning was in his 90s. He spoke from the heart and his message was clear and true. That evening, another man preached. I could see the 90 year old sitting ahead of me. As the other man preached, the 90 year old, had his Bible open, pen in hand, and he was writing and writing throughout the sermon. After all those years, he was taking notes as he listened to someone else preach. He hadn’t gained all knowledge. He might have thought, “I don’t need this stuff.” But he did. He was always learning. And, his kindness and sweet disposition expressed that he had spent a long time with the Lord. His name was Olie and the church was very small. But late in life, he was learning, teaching and showing the rest of us, how to walk with the Lord.
Learning. Some never have and never will. Some learn but do nothing with it. And, then there are some, like ole’ Olie, who never stopped learning and is a fountain of blessing because He knows the Lord so well.
How about you? Are you learning God’s word? Is what you learn, changing your heart? Sure is something to think about.
Roger