Have you ever had someone say to you, “I have some good news and some bad news?” If you had the choice, which would you rather hear? I suppose the answer is obvious. It’s never hard to hear the good news, but no one likes to get bad news.
I remember when I first learned of my late wife’s cancer when the biopsy came back positive. Strange how they use that word “positive.” It sure didn’t feel positive to her or to me. That was bad news that scared me to my very core.
Of course, there are times when the bad news isn’t quite that bad, but it’s bad just the same. Maybe you can remember a time when you took your car into the shop for a “minor” problem. Something as simple as the car not heating up like it used to. Well, you thought, perhaps $100 and a new thermostat and things will be back to normal. But then the mechanic calls and tells you it’s going to be $900 for a new radiator. Okay, so it’s not the end of the world, but at that moment, it sure feels like it is.
And as hard as it is to receive bad news, it’s sometimes almost as difficult to deliver it. I’m sure the service manager at the shop doesn’t enjoy telling someone they are going to need a new radiator. And I know doctors struggle when they have to tell a family that the thing they feared the most has become a reality.
Pastors have a choice when it comes to bad news. The Bible is filled with thousands of sermons. Pastors could choose to deliver just the easy ones. The ones that make you feel good. And to be honest, those are the ones I like the best. But, sometimes a pastor will deliver a message intended to convict his flock. Sometimes the message, while true to Scripture, will make some people just a little uncomfortable.
As I’ve grown in my faith I’ve learned that I need those sermons; sometimes I need them more than the easy ones. Paul said in 1 Thessalonians 2:3 that his teaching never came with “impurity or by way of deceit.” He then went on to say, “so we speak, not as pleasing men, but God who examines our hearts. For we never came with flattering speech.” I’m sure there were some in his audience who would have liked some of his messages sugar coated or maybe even with the convicting stuff left out. But Paul wasn’t going to mislead these young believers. He thought these brothers and sisters deserved the truth.
And, to be honest, I’m glad the pastors at the Creek aren’t afraid to tell it like it is. Because I know that’s how God wants us to hear it. God’s Word isn’t like the grocery store–take what you like and leave the rest on the shelf. In 2 Timothy 3:16, Paul says, “All Scripture is inspired by God and profitable for teaching, for reproof, for correction, {and} for training in righteousness.” And I’m absolutely certain all means all. So I guess we need to just put on our big-boy pants and take the bad with the good. After all, God loves us enough to tell us what we need to hear. We ought to love Him at least enough to listen.
Thom Fishow
May 30, 2010