In 2 Timothy, Paul warns of a time when people won't adhere to sound doctrine, but they'll have itching ears and find teachers in accordance with their own desires. I think about that passage a lot -- it's easy to find someone proclaiming authority whose perspective matches your own and doesn't challenge you on anything. It's like the old saying that when all of God's enemies are the same as your enemies, perhaps you need to re-think a few things. But it's so easy to close our minds to challenging words -- and in doing so, we become like a deaf man, unable to hear, except that our impediment isn't easily noticed, partly because everyone else is doing the same, and if we're all doing it, then it can't be wrong, correct?
Jesus comes to open our ears and eyes and hearts, but we often resist. We're comfortable in having our itching ears scratched by those who know what to say to keep us comfortable. As a society, we crave comfort. We go out of our way to avoid being confronted by points of view different than our own. We isolate ourselves so that we only hear what we want. Jesus opens us up to another perspective, one defined by grace and love. May we have the wisdom and strength to let Jesus lead us, to let him teach us, to let him guide us, that we may grow in faith and knowledge.
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