9/30/2008
<br>Author: Devin Pickard
<br>Title: Speak the Truth in Love
<br><br>I am not sure what had happened, but I want to give the guy the benefit of the doubt.  Surely he was just having a bad day....perhaps this man's household was out of his favorite cereal or the paper boy forgot to leave his newspaper that morning.  Maybe his favorite football team had lost that weekend or his investments had recently taken a major hit.  Whatever the case was, this man was mad....or he at least sounded that way.  Granted, I was just listening to his audio sermon and was not physically able to see his facial expressions or body language, but his words and tone sure came across as someone who had a serious ax to grind....and boy did he grind it.  As I listen to this minister's rant, I could not help but wonder what had lit his fuse.  I can appreciate anyone who is passionate about a particular cause.....and certainly there is no greater cause than that of Christ Jesus and the salvation of mankind.  But, passion was something I did not hear.....anger on the other hand, was something I heard loud and clear.  To me, passionate speaking is still very positive in tone and encouraging in application.  Paul told the young preacher Timothy in 2 Tim. 4:2, that he as a minister was to “Preach the Word; be prepared in season and out of season; correct, rebuke and encourage – with great patience and careful instruction.”  I am not sure that this particular minister, and others like him, have taken the time to hear completely what the Apostle Paul was trying to tell us all.  Please let me explain.<br><br>In my opinion, these are the only words that many minsters choose to see in 2 Tim. 4:2.<br><br><center>PREACH....PREPARED....CORRECT....REBUKE</center><br><br>Fact of the matter, I think many see the last two words even more clearly than they do the first two.  Now, some of us have no problem with the “correcting and rebuking” part of the marching orders, but somewhere along the line we forget about that last word in that same equation....ENCOURAGE.  Every good teacher will follow up any criticism and chastisement with some positive encouragement.  As well, most any successful coach will tell you that after they have chewed up their players right good from time to time, that they also realize the need to book-end the “back-side kicking session” with some type of positive reinforcement.   I can applaud anyone who is trying to motivate others to take a look at their own life and the impending state of their eternal resting place, but I must hold my hands still when someone irreverently uses God's Word and His Church as a platform to simply brow-beat people when ever they wish.  I think Christ took enough of the brow....and back....beating for all of us.<br><br>I understand that every now and then we all need our toes stepped on.  I am a firm believer in the occasional need of good ole' “hell fire and brimstone” preaching.  I get the fact that we all need a little “loud” encouragement from time to time.  But I get this too....God said through the Apostle Paul that we are to “speak the truth in love”.  I heard no love in that man's sermon.  I think I heard a lot of frustration and a lot of irritation.  I could not help but giggle a little bit when this gentleman closed his lesson with an invitation for his listeners to come visit his congregation some time.  He stated that it was a warm and friendly church and a group of people that deeply loved the lost.    Well, that may very well be.  I am sure there are many good members in that congregation who no doubt love the lost.  But be that as it may, if that same venom is spewed from the pulpit on a weekly basis, I doubt very seriously there will be a very long line out the front door of that church building....unless of course it is the one going out.  I too, have been guilty of  preaching a sermon like the one I am referring to, at least once that I can remember.  And , looking back on it, I was just venting, not preaching.  Not long after that, a good sister in Christ wrote me a short note saying the same thing to me that I have said above.  You know what?  She was right and I was wrong.  I have since repented of that sin and am trying my best to not mis-use God's pulpit again.  I hope the above servant of God, and others like him (like me), will recognize the damage we do to the Lord's body of believers when we stray away from the proper motivation of preaching his Word.  Satan has plenty of pulpits all over this world without us allowing him to take over ours too.<br><br><br>Go the extra mile - Devin