Whether loved or despised, men of God throughout the Bible had certain kinds of reputations. They didn’t live their existence hoping not to rock the boat, not to offend, not to cause someone discomfort in any way, but rather they did as they were commanded, without the need to mollycoddle the individual or nation they were tasked with delivering a word to.
They weren’t known for being pushovers or playing well with
others because it takes a certain kind of grit to stand before a king, a queen,
or someone who has the power to call for your head on a plate and tell them to
their face that they’re about to be judged. It requires a certain type of
constitution, one that does not lend itself well to skinny jeans, limp wrists,
and lensless horn-rimmed glasses worn for esthetic rather than practicality.
You’re just jealous because you can’t fit in skinny jeans!
It’s not that I can’t fit in them; it’s that nobody wants to see me fit in
them. It may cause irreparable trauma, but that’s beside the point. You know
what I mean when I say what I say. Those who don’t choose not to because if
they can find one thing they can point to as slightly unkind or unloving, it’s
all the excuse they need to throw the baby out with the bathwater and avoid
being confronted with the truth.
Fair warning: truth bomb incoming, and you may need to find
your nearest fainting couch forthwith. The modern-day church has neutered the
gospel due to an overriding need to pander to specific demographics, not
realizing that in neutering the gospel, those searching for the meat of God’s
word will bypass their lavender-infused sanctuaries with the gender-neutral
bathrooms because they aren’t getting fed.
This past weekend, I took my daughters to the park and ran
into someone who, unbeknownst to me, has seen me preach from time to time.
Evidently, they watched me interact with my daughters on the playground for
some time before approaching me. After introducing themselves and their three
children, they said they were amazed at how gentle I was with my daughters,
given how direct I was behind the pulpit. At first, I didn’t know how to
interpret that. I had to think about it for a while because I didn’t know how
to take it. Were they expecting me to be going around kicking puppies and
punching babies in the face? Were they expecting a permanent scowl and
offputting demeanor?
I’m an easygoing guy about most things. I’m not rattled if
the waitress doesn’t show up with the menu within a minute of sitting at a
lunch counter, nor do I withhold a tip when the bill comes if the food arrives
late. Unless something’s crawling on my plate, I don’t send food back or raise
a ruckus if the server doesn’t top off my coffee at regular intervals. The one
thing that consistently bothers me is slow drivers in the fast lane, but I’ve
gotten better at not reacting to it over time.
When it comes to preaching the Word and rightly dividing it,
however, the teddy bear in me goes on hiatus. There is no room for compromise,
for I will one day stand before the God of all just as you will and have to
answer for the things I spoke in His name. It’s not that we ought not to show
love, compassion, and empathy. We should when the situation calls for it, but
we cannot use love and compassion as an excuse to water down the gospel or be
permissive regarding things the Bible explicitly condemns.
It’s neither love nor compassion to see someone drowning in
sin, yet doing nothing more than patting them on the shoulder and telling them
they’re drowning well. When sin within the camp is not confronted, when the men
tasked with calling it out are missing the requisite spine to do so, it’s only
a matter of time before both the blind leader and the blind follower end up in
a ditch.
1 Kings 22:13, “Then the messenger who had gone to call
Micaiah spoke to him, saying, “Now listen, the words of the prophets with one
accord encourage the king. Please let your word be like the word of one of them
and speak encouragement.”
For good or ill, Micaiah had a certain reputation among his
fellow prophets. Otherwise, there would have been no need for the warning to
make sure that he went along with what the others were saying. If he’d been
known as a go-along-to-get-along sort of guy, there would have been no need for
the messenger who went to fetch him to go out of his way to explain the
situation to him.
Look here, buddy. The king is enthused about the prospect of
an easy win, and don’t you go ruining it with your negativity. All the
prophets, in one accord, encouraged the king to go into battle. Don’t be a
stick in the mud and ruin it for the rest of us.
Notice that the man didn’t say to speak what the Lord speaks
to you or even inquire of the Lord. There’s a consensus, and you’d better go
along with it, or else. Micaiah wasn’t threatened outright, but it was
nevertheless implied. Knowing that Ahab already held him in disfavor, it should
have been obvious that there would be consequences for not parroting what all
the other prophets were saying.
The one thing about those with ulterior motives within the
household of faith is that they know how to read a room or a situation and, on
the fly, conclude what position would best further their agenda or profit them.
Their allegiance is to themselves rather than God, and serving their interests
becomes their defacto religion.
One compromise leads to the next, one omission leads to
another, and by the time the dust settles, Christ is no longer in the picture,
not to be named for fear of offending anyone at any time, and His gospel is
transformed into something unrecognizable.
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