“And they will turn away from listening to the truth and wander off into myths.” 2 Timothy 4:4
September 7, 2022
They are annoying. We all get them, some of us more than others. They are unsolicited messages that have a product they want to sell. Helpfully, many phones will post the word “Spam” to alert us to the nature of the call. There is another kind of “spam” about which we are warned. Paul told Timothy to expect a coming time when sound doctrine will not be tolerated. Theological and worldview spam will be available in abundance. Consequently the itching ear disease will rush in to fill the moral vacuum created. It is epidemic in our day; church people seeking to hear what agrees with their own desires. They will find those teachers they like, inside and outside the church. They will buy their books, applaud their voices in the media, go to their churches, and listen to their sermons. The symptoms of this “itching ear disease” are a lack of discernment, no stomach for solid teaching from the Bible, refusal to hear the truth, and wandering off into spiritual counterfeits. “Myths” describe what they enjoy. Ideas out of touch with reality and blatant denials of divine revelation. Objective, rational, linear thinking is mocked. Virtue signaling replaces loyalty to God. Language like nonbinary sexuality, reproductive health, the “myth of meritocracy,” “hate speech” is used to hide a multitude of evils.
The answer is, don’t be intoxicated with the spirit of the age. It is imperative that believers in Jesus Christ be sober, having minds cleared by wisdom from God. H
A time to pray: “O Father in heaven, keep me from chasing after whatever makes me feel good without regard for your Word. In my distress may I not fall for easy and quick fixes.”