A Forgotten Breed
"His clothes were woven from camel hair, and he wore a leather belt; his food was locusts and wild honey." Mark 1:6 (NLT).
This description of John the Baptist has the ring of authenticity to it. John was not interested in the things of this world, or in the comforts that most of us seek. He wasn't looking for a new car, or easy chair, or big screen television.
His one purpose in life was to proclaim the arrival of the Messiah. He told people that they needed to repent of sins and be baptized to be ready. He wasn't interested in pleasing people, or becoming popular. He didn't care what people thought about him, he only cared about what God thought of him. He didn't shy from tough issues, nor did he beat around the bush, nor did he avoid confrontation of sin.
John cared about one thing only - - pleasing God. He sought to do what God sent him to do, and he didn't care whose feathers he ruffled, or how many people were offended. He wasn't interested in the religious leader's opinions of him, or in gaining their approval, or in filling sanctuary chairs or pews. He sought only to preach the word of truth, and make God happy by fulfilling the job God gave him.
We desperately need more preachers like this today. Too often our pulpits are full of timid preaching that lacks power. Too many preachers are afraid to confront and handle tough issues without mincing words or calling it straight by the book - - the Bible that is. They hem and haw and tap dance around important issues - some doctrinal, some moral - - and never get to the bottom line; even when the Word is very plain on the issue.
Instead, they pursue what is known today as "positive preaching." The idea in this philosophy is that when we get in the pulpits we cannot confront; we cannot offend; we cannot be negative in any way. We must make people feel good, or they won't come back. Such is the :positive preaching" style of many today.
John the Baptist would have been appalled. He cared nothing for such a style, nor would doing such a thing even enter his mind. He laid the truth out for people to hear, and left the results to God. And the results were amazing.
Revival came to Israel, and thousands were baptized!
Now don't misunderstand. We must assuredly preach and share God's message with others in love. We must be gentle, forbearing, and kind. We should not proclaim his word in a way that deliberately seeks to offend. We must be sensitive to where people are in their thinking, and attempt to build bridges to them for Christ. Humor and compassionate preaching is a must!
However, we must also be like John in boldly proclaiming the truth that will set people free. Unfortunately, some preachers won't do this because they know if they do, people will leave their church, and if that happens then the offerings will go down and maybe they won't get paid! This may not be often, but it happens.
We need men and women of God who are willing to wear camel's hair and eat wild locusts and honey if that's the price they must pay to proclaim truth! We must be willing to abandon comfort for the sake of the kingdom. We must be willing to offend people at times, knowing that only by being offended will people sometimes be shaken enough to confront the sin in their lives so they can be saved. And most of all, we should be more concerned about pleasing God, than people.
We must become the forgotten breed.
We must be bold, not wimpy; courageous, not timid; confident, not tentative. God needs men and women who will stand up for him at the appropriate time, and speak the truth that needs to be spoken - - in love, and with respect for the hearers - - but spoken, nonetheless.
When we do this, we will suffer as John did. We will lose some of the friends and comforts of this world. But also like John, we will experience holy victory as people are drawn to the gut-level, bottom line truth that their lives so desperately need.
Are you willing to be one of a forgotten breed?