There are times when I am tempted to back off. It may be after a particularly pointed sermon,
or Bible class. It may be after someone comes up to me and challenges the way I’ve said or written
something, (and I say and write a lot). There are times when I question myself. “Was I too hard on
certain people in the audience? Did I clarify that properly? Is my preaching balanced, or am I over
emphasizing certain areas? Should I just omit that?”
Jeremiah felt this same inner tension. As an Old Testament prophet, he was given certain
inspired revelations from God, which he knew were true. But they were not always well received
by his hearers. If our understanding of inspiration is correct, everything he said and thought was
not inspired, but God delivered certain words at certain times and directed him to proclaim these
messages from time to time, “here a little, there a little.” Jeremiah was not perfect. He battled his
own thoughts and insecurities like everyone else. There were times when he thought about
“throwing in the towel” and just keeping his mouth closed.
I can relate to Jeremiah’s quandary. There are times when the application of God’s word to
a particular current issue is very clear. When the word is presented, nearly everyone can see it, and
say “Amen!” But there are other times when Satan has so corrupted our culture, our thinking, that
when the truth is presented, many are not so sure. They feel we’re being too hard, too unreasonable.
They withhold their commendation, their support. Sometimes they make critical remarks behind
our back, and sometimes even to our face. They plant seeds of doubt in the minds of others, and
undermine our preaching work. Sometimes even leaders in the church are caught up in this, and
they may fear a loss of financial or other support from members who don’t believe we should be
preaching the truth.
It is tempting at times to slack off, or stop preaching on certain subjects. Many years ago, I
remember speaking to an older gospel preacher who had gone through some challenging times.
He basically told me he had stopped preaching on “doctrine.” “I just preach Jesus Christ,” he said.
I wondered then what that meant, and I still wonder. How can we “preach Jesus Christ” without
preaching, for example, the church for which he lived and died? How can we fail to preach the
doctrine or teaching of Christ—even the challenging parts?
But, of course, he was searching for that noncontroversial middle ground. He was really
saying that he had stopped preaching on controversial subjects. He had grown weary of the
criticism and questioning, and had decided to just avoid those subjects altogether.
Jeremiah probably wanted to avoid some subjects too. Like telling God’s people that he
would no longer pray for them because they had demonstrated a refusal to repent, (Jeremiah
14:11). How would a preacher handle this? No wonder he is known as the “weeping prophet.”
But when Jeremiah was tempted to stop preaching the word of God, or making mention of
Him to his would-be hearers, he found it to be an impossibility. “And if I say, I will not make
mention of him, nor speak any more in his name, then there is in my heart as it were a burning fire
shut up in my bones, and I am weary with forbearing, and I cannot contain” (Jeremiah 20:9). There
was an inner fire or energy that simply had to burst forth. He could not be silent!
As a gospel preacher, there are certain subjects I would like to avoid altogether, to be very
honest about it. Whenever I get into them, I get in trouble. And although the feedback is generally
kind and well-intended, it bothers me that certain members are so sensitive and resistant to certain
parts of the truth. I know they do not appreciate me preaching on those subjects, and it is tempting
to just pass over the passages which apply.
But what would God think if I did that? Would God be pleased with me preaching some of
His counsel? Are those other parts not in the Bible for a good reason? Do they not need to be
emphasized as well? And if our preaching is to be balanced and pleasing to God, do we not also
have to emphasize the unpleasant portions, the unpopular ones, as well as the others?
Brethren, I have been preaching long enough that most of these negative reactions no longer
bother me. I must say, they don’t impact my sermon preparation as they did before. But it still
concerns me that some in the church become so defensive when certain portions of the word of
God are preached. All I can say is I appreciate your sincere feedback. I respect your right to your
opinion (even if it’s wrong). But please don’t expect me to stop preaching the Bible. It’s like a fire
in my bones.
