2 Timothy 4:3 For the time will come when people will not put up with sound doctrine. Instead, to suit their own desires, they will gather around them a great number of teachers to say what their itching ears want to hear.
This verse does apply to our generation as a whole, but I think the message can go so much deeper if we allow it. Very few look at this verse, let it soak in, look for ways their own ears are being tickled, and start making necessary changes. "Lord, make me righteous and not a bit self righteous." It is just so much easier to believe it is about someone else who needs to change than to do that hard work in our own lives to make choices to live right before the Lord. It takes effort to police our own selves to live more righteously and few of us want to do that any more. "We must realize that it is the failure of Christians to uphold God's moral standards that has led to the spiritual downfall of our nation. The reason we have so much public wickedness in America today is because we have had private wickedness among Christians for generations."
I'll be honest. When I examine myself, I find a lot of work that still needs to be done. The battle between the flesh and the spirit is fierce. Finding yourself with room for improvement is a great place to be, because if you feel you don't have any room to do better, Christ can't use you.
Christians, grow. Get closer to the Lord. Sacrifice your way of doing things for His. The blessings of obedience are so worth having. Teach your children, and then teach them to teach their children.
