If you are a person who regularly teaches the Bible to other people, you know the tension between the message you have been entrusted to proclaim and the reality of your own struggles in life. There are times that I feel somewhat hypocritical in my preaching simply because I know that I am teaching the ideal and that I do not always live up to that ideal.
I talked with a mentor one time about this surreal dynamic – how do we preach a message that we know we are struggling to live in our own life? It was refreshing to hear him say that he lives constantly with this same tension. Here’s the reality: pastors are human too. We are fallen, sinful humans who are in constant need of God’s refining grace and provision. We preach a perfect gospel as imperfect humans. The gospel is flawless. We are prone to wander.
This Sunday we begin a series called Modern Family. I am teaching this week on the priority of the husband-wife relationship. Let me be raw for a moment: I am not that great of a husband. I want to be. I have seasons where I am better than other times. But the truth of the matter is: it takes a lot of grace for Starla to live with me. I could list the many ways that I fall short as a husband but the bottom line is this: I am constantly in need for God to grow me in this area of life.
This weekend I will be preaching the ideal. Specifically this Sunday I will be talking about how to prioritize your spouse. To be honest, I am not that great at making Starla my highest human priority. So I will be preaching a message this week that I am consistently striving to apply as well. I have been reminded as I have prepared for this series that I am simply another Jesus follower on the journey that is in constant need of the gospel. I just happen to be the guy that gets to stand on the stage and preach the ideal. I am sure there will be many other guys there this Sunday who are far more “qualified” to teach this message than me. But then again – that’s kind of what grace is all about isn’t it? We are all people in need of Jesus.
So join me this Sunday as we talk about God’s ideal and then we cry out to Jesus to enable us to live it.