“Wow, Kevin! Your teaching on [insert topic here] is spot on! I couldn’t agree more. I had previously been taught to believe something different than what you’re saying; however, your analysis of what the Scriptures actually say is exactly right. There can be no argument from the Word. You are 100% correct that this passage does not say what I have always thought it says—on the contrary, it says something completely different…. Nevertheless—and I’m definitely not saying that you’re wrong—I still believe what I previously believed, and your teaching has not persuaded me otherwise.”

I’m not kidding. In response to a recent teaching of mine, to my surprise, I received multiple replies along these lines. My reader would affirm that while my teaching was accurate in its correction of a long-held and firmly ingrained belief among believers, it didn’t change their mind. Even though I demonstrated the truth from the Scriptures themselves—and my reader recognized that truth—they remained unswayed. In so many words, the response was, “I now see the truth of the Scriptures, but… I will continue to hold on to a false teaching, because I still believe it.” Read more