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Teachable

Teachable
Pixabay
Simon Arscott
Simon Arscott Simon has been sent by the International Presbyterian Church to lead All Nations Church, Ilford. Born and bred south of the river in Camberwell, London, he studied in York.
02 April, 2025 2 min read

Teachability is a precious quality that’s hard to cultivate. It’s like a large absorbent sponge that soaks up all the water around it. It’s a spirit of learning, which is alert, keen, and hungry for the truth.

What it isn’t

There’s a false version of teachable. Paul nails it when he describes characters who are ‘always learning and never able to arrive at a knowledge of the truth’ (2 Timothy 3:7).

I saw some people like this at seminary, who had a faux humility; their opinions were always provisional. They never wanted to be close-minded. They were really just pushing a postmodern agenda. Their minds were so ‘open’, their brains were in danger of falling out!

Being teachable doesn’t conflict with making up one’s mind. It doesn’t mean being a ‘yes’ man or agreeing with everything your teacher says. A teachable person doesn’t get tossed to-and-fro by the waves and carried about by every wind of doctrine (Ephesians 4:14). Rather, over time, his convictions will grow and stabilise.

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