Preachers come in all shapes and sizes. A buddy of mine named Buddy played the banjo and served in a Baptist Church. After he retired, he made a tour of the churches to listen to the sermons. He said the preachers were talking about everything but Jesus. In the name of relevance, they forgot to talk about the One who is always relevant. In his thinking, they devalued the currency. Jesus is all we really have to offer to the world. They can go to hospitals and banks for health and wealth.
Paul had been preaching for a while when he entered Ephesus by the backroads. He was a man on a mission with no time to waste. For three months, every Sabbath, he walked into the synagogue and talked about the kingdom of God. What kind of preacher was Paul, anyway? Luke says that he spoke boldly. Paul did not beat around the bush when he preached. He argued persuasively about the kingdom of God. When we talk about Jesus as Lord of all, we should contend for that truth with all the unction God gives us. Paul, like John the Baptist before him, was not particularly concerned about being sensitive to the seekers. His message was more like a blowtorch than a candle. Paul preached so decisively that people made decisions. Some decided against the Way and publicly maligned it, refusing to believe. Paul did not renegotiate the contract of the gospel. Instead, he left them, took his disciples and had daily discussions in a lecture hall. What happened? Everyone in the province of Asia heard the word of the Lord.
In his book, East of Eden, John Steinbeck wrote about frontier preachers in America: “They fought the devil, no holds barred, boots and eye-gouging permitted.You might get the idea that they howled truth and beauty the way a seal bites out the National Anthem on a row of circus horns. But some of the truth and beauty remained, and the anthem was recognizable.”
Many people have given up on preaching. Some of them are preachers. Paul would be appalled at how quickly we have deserted the message that transformed our lives. I am not under the illusion that everyone who worships with us at Tallowood will believe all that I believe. But I never want them to doubt that I do. Pray that we will speak boldly and argue persuasively that Jesus is our King. Pray that what we say will make somebody decide about Jesus. Kierkegaard said Jesus was never looking for admirers. Our King is looking for followers. Are you in or are you out?
