The Parameters of Teaching and Temptations to Breach Them

I was hoping for something different today. I was hoping that the entry today would provide the food for what I am to say at the men's breakfast today. Instead, it's about what I need to know to face it appropriately. While I don't think Chambers has sufficient Scripture support for some of his claims, I think experience on his part fills in some of the blanks. Temptation is normal, that much Scripture is clear on. What I am tempted with depending on my particular personality traits and spiritual level is not something Scripture is clear on; perhaps I can infer it, but it's not obvious.

My particular bent to want to teach theological concepts is really more like showing off than a spiritual gift. Therein lays my temptation today. When I saw what the entry was about I considered going with that, but I can't; once I accept what the entry means for me. I have the personality trait is to draw attention to myself. My spiritual level doesn't keep this temptation out of my usual bag of enticements; I'm not that mature yet. So this choice of what to share today can be a big deal for me. I have to find the solution to this dilemma somewhere else other than the current entry.

Even the entry from yesterday was not a direction to go in, since it again covers another theological issue. I have a simplified view, but the support for that view can get overwhelming, and the point can get lost in the details. Instead, I need to find the "escape" my Master has left for me. There is an answer to this dilemma, and perhaps the last few days have been my Master defining parameters rather than topics. In talking with my wife last night, I think I hit on the right topic. I believe the right topic is what I have learned these past six to eight months.

The lesson I have learned is that my Master is the Trustworthy Master. I have learned this in a few ways, like learning to wait for the timing of His provision, seeking what He provides rather than what I can manufacture, and that He often waits for my relinquishment of an issue before providing for it. The trick is sharing this lesson from the background rather than the forefront. I want people afterwards to think of my Master and how trustworthy He is rather than whoever said that. The success is like when they can't remember what I look like particularly, or even my name; they remember that God is trustworthy though; transparency gone wild.

Oswald Chambers, My Utmost for His Highest, September 17