As people, and especially as Christians, we’re to always remain teachable.
What does that mean?
It means, we should never think we have it all figured out.
If we do, we most certainly fell into a trap.
What kind of trap?
An ego trap.
Ego traps are the worst, and the most common traps known to mankind, though most people will never admit when they step into one. As, it might mess up their ego. So the best advice here, is never have an ego to begin with.
Moreover, never allow someone to set you up on an ego trip. That way, you won’t step into an ego trap.
I know, easier said than done, but not really if you just stay humble, (James 4:6, 10). Now think about it, as a Christian, you’re to remain humble no matter how great everyone thinks you are.
You know why?
Let’s be honest here…
- We’re not that great.
- We make mistakes, all the time.
- We’re wrong about things, all the time.
We’re no match for God’s Greatness, so don’t even pretend. Don’t even consider the thought that little ol you has the world and the Bible all figured out. Otherwise, you’re kidding yourself.
Take that advice and you’ll remain teachable.
That’s right!
You will remain teachable by staying humble, never thinking you’re always right, and leaving your mind open. That goes for everything in life, especially the Bible.
As I’ve said a million times by now, there’s thousands of Christian denominations, and hundreds of English Bible translations.
They’re not all the same.
If they were, then all Christians would believe the same way, yet we don’t.
Even more troubling, out of those thousands of Christian denominations, none of the people within each denomination even believe the same thing. Though they’re united in their denomination, they all believe a little differently.
Are you starting to see my point here?
So then, when you lock your mind to your exclusive interpretation, you’re showing your ego. You’re saying that you’re right, and everyone else is wrong. Look, I have to tell you, I never met a person like that who was mostly right. Instead, they were mostly wrong, they just refused to see it and accept it.
Ohh, and I’m not even referring to Scripture, but especially Scripture.
In case you’re wondering, or if you’re a new reader, no, I don’t have it all figured out either.
In fact, there’s only been one man in world history who had it all figured out…
His name, Jesus Christ.
So unless you’re Him, you’re lacking, just like the rest of us, so stop pretending. You’ll find much rest in it, and if you open your mind a bit, you’ll learn more than you even thought was possible. So never ever stop learning, that way, you’ll always be a teachable Christian.
God wants people like that, He wants people He can mold into form, (Jeremiah 18:1-6, James 1:1-27).
Story time…
I recently received an email from a reader with a lot of questions. They were very inquisitive. Unfortunately, my spidey senses told me they didn’t really have questions, they were just trying to set me up so they could tell me what they believe.
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Friends, I hate to think about people like that, I really do.
However, I’ve received thousands of emails at this point, so I can spot a trend a mile away. So unfortunately, I was right, the person wasn’t interested in learning.
This is what happened…
I gave the reader the benefit of the doubt. I spent about 30 minutes typing up an email response. I provided Scripture, a general overview of the subject, and various links to studies where I’ve gone in depth on the topic I was asked about.
So off goes the email…
A couple hours later, I get an email back. It became obvious, the reader didn’t really have any questions. They just wanted to tell me what they know and believe to be true. After all, they’ve been studying the topic in question for numerous decades, so that means they know it all.
I can’t tell you how many times I’ve run into these types of Christians. They always tell you how long they’ve been studying, even though you never asked.
It goes like this…
“I’ve been studying for 25 years.”
What they’re really saying is,
“I know more than you.”
In reality, if you have to tell someone that, it means you don’t know much. It also means you have a very large ego. Otherwise, you wouldn’t feel the need to tell someone how long you’ve studied said topic. Again, especially since you never ask.
You know, you’ll even get Christians telling you how long they studied with a specific church.
Don’t walk away, RUN from those types!
The idea is, that church has it all right. So in turn, it means that individual has been studying right all these years, and well, you haven’t.
I’ve seen it all my friends.
Well, I better not say that, lest someone thinks I’m unteachable!
So anyway, it became clear the reader in question never read any of the material I provided. Not even the Bible verses and explanations. By the way, I’m not saying I’m right on the topic at hand. However, if you ask a genuine question and you’re given a response, you don’t railroad it.
Instead, you discuss the point of view, not just dismiss it because it’s not what you believe.
That’s the difference folks.
In the case of this reader, they already had their set belief and they had no intension of changing it. All they wanted was for me to confirm their belief, in order to make them feel better about their position.
What a waste of time.
Hey, if you already have your set belief, then don’t waste other peoples time.
Seriously.
If you want to learn or bounce an idea, hey, reach out, but don’t waste my time or someone else’s time so you can massage your own ego.
Folks, you can take this entire article and apply it to every subject in life.
However, for our purpose, we’re talking about being a teachable Christian. So do that, make God proud by showing Him you’re not so headstrong that you’re willing to keep on learning. That you’re willing to keep on maturing in the Word of God.
For the day you have it all figured out, you surely don’t.
Forever and always, remain a Berean, (Acts 17:11).
Don’t Be An Unteachable Christian
As people, and especially as Christians, we’re to always remain teachable.
What does that mean?
It means, we should never think we have it all figured out.
If we do, we most certainly fell into a trap.
What kind of trap?
An ego trap.
Ego traps are the worst, and the most common traps known to mankind, though most people will never admit when they step into one. As, it might mess up their ego. So the best advice here, is never have an ego to begin with.
Moreover, never allow someone to set you up on an ego trip. That way, you won’t step into an ego trap.
I know, easier said than done, but not really if you just stay humble, (James 4:6, 10). Now think about it, as a Christian, you’re to remain humble no matter how great everyone thinks you are.
You know why?
Let’s be honest here…
We’re no match for God’s Greatness, so don’t even pretend. Don’t even consider the thought that little ol you has the world and the Bible all figured out. Otherwise, you’re kidding yourself.
Take that advice and you’ll remain teachable.
That’s right!
You will remain teachable by staying humble, never thinking you’re always right, and leaving your mind open. That goes for everything in life, especially the Bible.
As I’ve said a million times by now, there’s thousands of Christian denominations, and hundreds of English Bible translations.
They’re not all the same.
If they were, then all Christians would believe the same way, yet we don’t.
Even more troubling, out of those thousands of Christian denominations, none of the people within each denomination even believe the same thing. Though they’re united in their denomination, they all believe a little differently.
Are you starting to see my point here?
So then, when you lock your mind to your exclusive interpretation, you’re showing your ego. You’re saying that you’re right, and everyone else is wrong. Look, I have to tell you, I never met a person like that who was mostly right. Instead, they were mostly wrong, they just refused to see it and accept it.
Ohh, and I’m not even referring to Scripture, but especially Scripture.
In case you’re wondering, or if you’re a new reader, no, I don’t have it all figured out either.
In fact, there’s only been one man in world history who had it all figured out…
His name, Jesus Christ.
So unless you’re Him, you’re lacking, just like the rest of us, so stop pretending. You’ll find much rest in it, and if you open your mind a bit, you’ll learn more than you even thought was possible. So never ever stop learning, that way, you’ll always be a teachable Christian.
God wants people like that, He wants people He can mold into form, (Jeremiah 18:1-6, James 1:1-27).
Story time…
I recently received an email from a reader with a lot of questions. They were very inquisitive. Unfortunately, my spidey senses told me they didn’t really have questions, they were just trying to set me up so they could tell me what they believe.
Study and news with a fresh Christian perspective in your inbox.
Friends, I hate to think about people like that, I really do.
However, I’ve received thousands of emails at this point, so I can spot a trend a mile away. So unfortunately, I was right, the person wasn’t interested in learning.
This is what happened…
I gave the reader the benefit of the doubt. I spent about 30 minutes typing up an email response. I provided Scripture, a general overview of the subject, and various links to studies where I’ve gone in depth on the topic I was asked about.
So off goes the email…
A couple hours later, I get an email back. It became obvious, the reader didn’t really have any questions. They just wanted to tell me what they know and believe to be true. After all, they’ve been studying the topic in question for numerous decades, so that means they know it all.
I can’t tell you how many times I’ve run into these types of Christians. They always tell you how long they’ve been studying, even though you never asked.
It goes like this…
What they’re really saying is,
In reality, if you have to tell someone that, it means you don’t know much. It also means you have a very large ego. Otherwise, you wouldn’t feel the need to tell someone how long you’ve studied said topic. Again, especially since you never ask.
You know, you’ll even get Christians telling you how long they studied with a specific church.
Don’t walk away, RUN from those types!
The idea is, that church has it all right. So in turn, it means that individual has been studying right all these years, and well, you haven’t.
I’ve seen it all my friends.
Well, I better not say that, lest someone thinks I’m unteachable!
So anyway, it became clear the reader in question never read any of the material I provided. Not even the Bible verses and explanations. By the way, I’m not saying I’m right on the topic at hand. However, if you ask a genuine question and you’re given a response, you don’t railroad it.
Instead, you discuss the point of view, not just dismiss it because it’s not what you believe.
That’s the difference folks.
In the case of this reader, they already had their set belief and they had no intension of changing it. All they wanted was for me to confirm their belief, in order to make them feel better about their position.
What a waste of time.
Hey, if you already have your set belief, then don’t waste other peoples time.
Seriously.
If you want to learn or bounce an idea, hey, reach out, but don’t waste my time or someone else’s time so you can massage your own ego.
Folks, you can take this entire article and apply it to every subject in life.
However, for our purpose, we’re talking about being a teachable Christian. So do that, make God proud by showing Him you’re not so headstrong that you’re willing to keep on learning. That you’re willing to keep on maturing in the Word of God.
For the day you have it all figured out, you surely don’t.
Forever and always, remain a Berean, (Acts 17:11).