People want comfort.
Comfortable clothes.
Comfortable conversations.
Comfortable social environments.
Even when it comes to preaching or talking about scriptures, most people want that to be comfortable too.
A well known comfort scripture is John 3:16. It’s beautiful, true, a foundation verse of faith and makes for an amazing sermon. If you continue to read down a few more verses, you start entering territory that can cause discomfort.
Dun Dun Dun!
The place of discomfort is where most want to avoid.
18Whoever believes in him is not condemned, but whoever does not believe stands condemned already because they have not believed in the name of God’s one and only Son. 19 This is the verdict: Light has come into the world, but people loved darkness instead of light because their deeds were evil. 20 Everyone who does evil hates the light, and will not come into the light for fear that their deeds will be exposed. 21 But whoever lives by the truth comes into the light, so that it may be seen plainly that what they have done has been done in the sight of God. John 3:18-21
As lovely as it is to preach sweet, cute sermons or have conversations about Jesus that tip toe around certain verses, as Christians we are employed to be whole truth tellers and live according to that truth. The truth can cause discomfort, but when done in love, with biblical backing and with the goal to represent Jesus and the truth of his kingdom fully, it’s a transformative seed planted.
This applies to me as well, we have to absorb and apply every word of the bible. Not just the parts we like, the parts that benefit us, the parts that allow us to point out sin in other’s lives or the parts that keep us in comfort.
Let’s get uncomfortable and step into His light with no fear.
See you next week!

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