Today’s Scripture Reading (March 11,
2017): Jeremiah 15
President Donald Trump’s White House Press Secretary, Sean
Spicer, summed up his understanding of his job quite well earlier this week in
front of the White House Press Corp. The question that was posed was “What do you think about the (fill in the blank with
the subject matter of the day.)” Spicer’s response was basically “It is not my
job to tell you what I think, it is my job to tell you what the President
thinks.” The tactic has become a normal one for the press. Donald Trump says
something that bends the limits of their credulity, and the question to Trump
supporters and employees is “Can you believe that? Do you agree with the President?”
And the way that the question is asked
leads us to believe that it is a negative answer that is expected. “You can’t honestly agree with the point of view of
the President?” Spicer’s response reiterates that from the podium, he speaks
what the President would have him speak. His job is to understand the mind of
the President and answer questions and give out information from the
perspective of the President. When Sean Spicer speaks,
we should hear the voice of Donald Trump. And he is right. As much as we would
all love to hear him say that he agrees or disagrees with the Presidential position, that is simply not his
job. His job is to speak with the voice of the President.
As Christians, we have the same expectation placed on us. We talk with
the mind of God. The expectation is that we would be in tune with what the
Bible says and speak with the voice of the
one who inspired the writing of these ancient words. This ideal is what has led some of us within the
church feel disappointment and even betrayal at words spoken in recent days by influential
Christians like Franklin Graham. Some believe that
the words being spoken, words that have seemed to go back and forth from, at
the very least indifference to at times hate, are not flowing from the mind of
Christ. The words are not influenced by the one who taught us that ‘Truly I
tell you, whatever you did for one of
the least of these brothers and sisters of
mine, you did for me’ (Matthew 25:40). Sometimes it seems that Graham’s
focus is on remaining “a friend of the President” rather than speaking the
heart of God.
God reminds Jeremiah that this is his task. He is to speak
words worthy of the Creator of the World. He
is to know the Creator’s heart and speak what is worthy of him. As long as
Jeremiah does that, then he will be God’s mouthpiece
– his press secretary. But if his words are worthless, if they do not reflect
the heat of the Creator, then he will be removed from his position.
Speaking the heart of God is what we are all called to do. It
is not optional. And what we (I) think is important really doesn’t matter. As Christians, we are the Press Secretaries
of Heaven, and our opinions have become secondary to the voice of God speaking
through our lives. And when we speak with
his voice, we have the potential to change the world.
Tomorrow’s Scripture
Reading: Jeremiah 16
Personal Note: Happy Birthday to my Dad.
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