Jump Start # 1788

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.”

Our passage today is found in a long descriptive characteristic of false teachers that Timothy was being warned about. Every line, every word in Paul’s portrait of these wicked men illustrates where they missed it. They did not have the faith, heart nor love as Christ did. The verse before ours, Paul plainly states, “avoid such men as these.”

There is a line from our verse that I want to give some thought to: “always learning and never able to come to the knowledge of the truth.” A few things here.

First, some simply do not get it. They don’t understand the nature, purpose or will of God. They don’t understand what the Gospel is all about. They don’t understand what the church is all about. Some have read the Bible just enough that they think they know it all. For many today, either they have picked up something from the internet, watched a TV show or just heard word of mouth and now they have become experts. It’s like a conversation I overheard the other day at a fast food place. I came for a quick bite of lunch. Two young men were discussing the Bible. I was listening. One proudly stated, “There were over 30 Gospels and the church chose which ones to put in. Have you read any of the other Gospels?” This guy was skeptical, aggressive and sure. The other guy, I guess, believed in the Bible. Like a boxing match, he was against the ropes. The challenger was throwing punch after punch against inspiration, the cannon of the Scriptures and even the authority of the Scriptures.

This is exactly the point of our passage. Some have enough knowledge to be dangerous but not enough to make a difference in the lives. Always learning but never coming—shows that the knowledge wasn’t doing much good. The knowledge didn’t change the thinking and it definitely didn’t change the behavior.

Even among believers, we must give thought to these words. We sit through years of sermons, Bible classes and have read volumes of articles in church bulletins, and yet, here we are, still slammed with worry, consumed with greed, jealous, hateful at times, and stressed to the max. Are we too, always learning but never coming? The learning ought to change us. The learning ought to have an impact upon us. This isn’t school, where we learn facts to pass a test and then forget it about as quickly as we learned it. This is life. What is taught in sermons and Bible classes ought to shape our hearts, change our thinking and lead to us becoming more and more like Jesus. It is because of our learning, that we should be better people. There should be a direct connection between our learning and our becoming.

Second, there is something special about that phrase, “always learning.” That has stuck with me for a long time. What a noble venture that is, to always be learning. Paul was not critical of the learning part. He was pointing out that the learning didn’t do these people any good. Don’t toss the learning. Take the learning and do something with it.

Here are a few “always learning” areas that will help us:

1. Parents need to always be learning about parenting. Our kids do not come with manuals. God’s word gives us great guidelines, but there are specifics that parents are looking for practical help. Be careful who you learn from. Make sure it’s Biblically based. Learning about communication is great. Kids speak a different language than parents do. Learning how to get the lazy bone out of them is important. Dealing with attitudes, peer pressure, modesty, dating—tough topics. Always learning is a great thing for parents. Christian parents need a network among each other to help.

2. Preachers need to always be learning. Not just always learning the Bible, which is first, but they need to continually learn about preaching. In so many other fields, there are “continual education” classes. It’s good for preachers to listen to other preachers preach. I do that often. My preference is to do it in person rather than listening to a CD. Watch. Learn. See. How does he begin the sermon? How does he connect with the audience? How does he move from point to point? How does he manage his time up there? How does he end? Is he convincing? Learn. Get better at what you do, Mr. Preacher. Just because you have preached for more than a decade, don’t think you have learned all there is. Talk to preachers older than you are. Learn how to stay fresh. Learn how to stay relevant. Learn how to connect with teens. Don’t stop learning, Mr. Preacher.

3. Shepherds need to always be learning. There is so much for them to know. They have to understand the nature of sheep. They have to know what’s going on among believers. They have to recognize trends that steal the faith of some. They need to always be learning. Learning how to mentor. Learning how to lead. Learning how to connect. Learning how to communicate. Learning how to warn. Learning how to deal with the broken hearted. Learning how to plan and have vision. A church that is led by those who are no longer learning, will soon stall out and become sluggish. Shepherds ought to have their own classes together. They ought to bring in people to teach them more. Learning to deal with the problems of addiction, pornography, homosexuality and now transgender are what today’s elders must deal with. Do you know how?

I have seen too many tender hearts crushed by elders who did not know what they were doing. They rough when they should have been tender. They were impatient when they should have been patient. Maybe, had they learned, these things wouldn’t have happened.

4. All of us need to learn God’s word. That never ends. It’s more than the academic stuff, such as how many times the word “believe” is found in this chapter. That’s interesting, good to know, and points to themes, but what is essential is learning and turning. Because of what we know, we turn from our old ways, old thoughts, old ideas, and come to understand God’s way. We become more and more like Christ. We must not allow the preacher to be our only source of learning. We must not allow “church time” to be our only place of learning. Get a plan. Open the book. Get a notebook and a pen. Read. Write. Read. Write. Read and write questions you have. Write words that are important to you. Write things you want to remember. Write other passages that come to your mind. Then write applications. Paul’s words, always learning but never becoming speaks of application. Practical, front porch kind of stuff. This is what we need. This is where change takes place.

We are more than life long students, we are disciples of Jesus. We are molded, shaped and conformed to His image. We learn this through the Scriptures. We become this by changing our thinking and our behavior.

Always learning is good, if something positive follows.

Roger