I'm a small-church pastor in a declining rural community. People don't want to hear about sin or judgment or that their lives need changing. They want comfort and affirmation. Paul's instruction to preach in season and out of season, to correct and rebuke, isn't just about those dramatic moments when people need confronting. It's about staying faithful to the message even when it's not popular.
There's a way I can preach only what people want to hear and feel like a good pastor because I'm popular and people like me. But that's not faithful preaching. Faithful preaching sometimes means making people uncomfortable, naming things they don't want to hear named, calling them toward change they're resisting.
I've started being more courageous about this. Not in a way that's cruel or judging, but in being honest about what scripture demands. Some people have left the church. But others have been confronted with something they needed to hear. That's what preaching in season and out of season actually means.
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