Dead to Self; Speaking Truth

DEAD TO SELF

Today, I attended the ordination service of a pastor.

A sermon was delivered by the ex-headmaster of the Bible seminary from which the pastor graduated.

The sermon dealt with God's calling for pastors, as well as for all Christians who are bought by the blood of Christ.

There was something he said that I found quite uplifting. I can't quote it word for word, but it was something like this:

There was a missionary, and he was going to preach in a dangerous place.

His church members warned him against it and tried to convince him not to go, saying, "You might die there!"

The missionary's reply was: 

"I'm already dead."

What a great reply.

We know that our old self was crucified with him in order that the body of sin might be brought to nothing, so that we would no longer be enslaved to sin. For one who has died has been set free from sin. Now if we have died with Christ, we believe that we will also live with him.
(Romans 6:6-8) 


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NOT PEACE, BUT A SWORD

“Do not think that I have come to bring peace to the earth. I have not come to bring peace, but a sword. For I have come to set a man against his father, and a daughter against her mother, and a daughter-in-law against her mother-in-law. And a person's enemies will be those of his own household. Whoever loves father or mother more than me is not worthy of me, and whoever loves son or daughter more than me is not worthy of me. And whoever does not take his cross and follow me is not worthy of me. Whoever finds his life will lose it, and whoever loses his life for my sake will find it.
(Matthew 10:34-39)

Whose words are these? These are the words of Jesus.

Why is this so? Because the Gospel is controversial. As Paul Washer put it, the Gospel is a scandal to the world. It is so extreme and so intense that the response it incites reciprocates that intensity.

This is my struggle. When I think about speaking the truth to people, I don't want to consider the possibility that no matter how hard I try, some of these people simply will recoil and despise this truth.

Perhaps this is part of my unwillingness to suffer humiliation. I want what I have to say to be accepted by all. And I'm scared that if, in the end, some people do grow even more hard-hearted by what I say, then it's actually my fault that I didn't say it well enough.

This too, is faithlessness. I rely not on the work of the Holy Spirit, but human skill.

And because of this faithlessness, I actually consider the idea that I can be well-prepared enough to cause every single person around me to accept God. But that's not the case. This is not in my hands.

The verse that brought this to my attention:
“Woe to you, when all people speak well of you, for so their fathers did to the false prophets.
(Luke 6:26)