Preach, Preacher

When was the last time you said "preach preacher" in the middle of a service? Was it the time when pastor was laying out those people who are always cussing and fussing and pretending to be saved? Or was it when he was preaching on how the crooked men are always finding a way to talk somebody out of their money? "Preach preacher! Go ahead and lay 'em out" you said. That is until the preacher started talking about how y'all unmarried women need to keep them men out your beds. At that moment, you didn't say a word or nod your head. It was as if the preacher's words were suddenly filled with lead. God ahead and yell "Preach preacher!" The word is true even if it pushes you to the edge.

But, that's not what we want to hear. That's not what we want to cosign or line our thoughts up with. We think the role of the preacher is to call everyone else to the carpet. We are saved and they are sinners. We are set aside. We are called. We are too holy to ever be the subject of a message that pulls back the cloak and exposes our sins. "Preach preacher!" is our war cry just as long as it does not require us to look within.

We challenge what the preacher says about our faults because it is the preacher who says it. In those moments, he is just a man or she is just a woman. We forget that if the preacher's words line up with the word of God, then the preacher is only God's messenger. The preacher exposes our wrongs to give us the space to seek God. The preacher delivers the good news that cussing is wrong, being dishonest with money is wrong, sex before marriage is wrong. It is up to each of us to receive the correction that we are given. The pastor can not save you, but the pastor's message should lead you to seek salvation from God.

Adayinthelife :-)