Caution, Ego Ahead.

Proverbs 18:2 (KJV) A fool hath no delight in understanding, but that his heart may discover itself.

This verse speaks to me even in the KJV.  When I looked at the CSB, it gave me an even better insight.

Proverbs 18:2 (CSB) A fool does not delight in understanding, but only wants to show off his opinions.

As someone who occasionally gets a chance to preach or teach Sunday school, this advice struck home.  When I was preaching regularly, one of the temptations I always had was to allow my pet peeves to become the center of the sermon.  I don’t know how many times I had to stop, look at what I have written so far, get honest about the scripture, and go back and start over again.

To be honest I wish that more pastors and teachers took this to heart.  When you get up to preach on a text you’re supposed to preach on the text.  You’re not supposed to, at worst, just give your personal opinions.  You’re not supposed to, at second worst, talk about things that are in the Bible somewhere, but not in the text you are preaching on.

So?  OK, you are not the preacher.  Spend some time praying for the preacher.  Pray that your pastor would actually focus on the lessons that the Bible has to offer to make it possible for you to live a more holy life.