BY GREG MILLER
When it came to his messages, there was no middle ground for those who heard Pastor Truthteller’s sermons; Listeners either fully embraced the messages for the truth they contained or rejected them for no valid reason.
Pastor Truthteller preached simple, powerful messages that were definitely inspired by the Lord. Before the minister had ever preached his first sermon, he had prayed, “Lord, Please help the messages I preach focus on Christ crucified and risen from the dead, the Christ who is soon coming to claim the Church as His spotless bride!”
The Father’s whispered reply was, “Your prayer has been answered my son. It shall be even as you have asked.”
The pastor declared, “The Bible shows us that the only way to God the Father is through the Lord Jesus Christ. In John 14:6, Jesus tells Thomas, ‘I am the way, the truth, and the life: no man cometh unto the Father, but by me.’”
Pastor Truthteller didn’t believe in assuming that everyone or anyone who attended the services had accepted Jesus as his or her own personal savior. “If I don’t give an invitation for people to accept the Lord, and if someone is there who isn’t a Christian, it’s my fault,” he told his wife, Mrs. Truthteller.
Mrs. Truthteller encouraged her husband, “You just keep on preaching the truth of God’s holy Word! And the Lord will richly and continuously bless you for honoring Him!”
The Sovereign Lord graciously honored Pastor Truthteller for faithfully ministering the gospel to the congregation. Slowly but surely, the church’s congregation began to grow and gradually became more of a missions-minded church. The deacons of the church encouraged Pastor and Mrs. Truthteller to begin taking two missions trips every summer; One trip was to a Third World nation, the other to a major metropolis in the United States.
The Truthtellers were excited about their annual missionary journeys, so they encouraged other members of the church to begin participating in the trips. “You’ll have opportunities to preach the gospel and to share Jesus with people in other cultures,” said Pastor Truthteller.
“And you’ll be blessed to eat other types of cuisine that otherwise you might never be able to enjoy!” smiled Mrs. Truthteller.
“So you’ll get to share the spiritual Bread of Life with others!” beamed Pastor Truthteller.
“And they’ll get to share their daily bread with you,” grinned Mrs. Truthteller.
One new member of the congregation was ready to take her first mission trip. “All of this sounds great!” exclaimed Truth Enjoyer. “But one of the best parts of it is I won’t have to cook in my own kitchen for at least a week!”
(To contact the writer of this column about speaking engagements (in the U.S.A.), including Christian Comedy Fundraising Outreaches, Christian Creativity Seminars and/or puppet ministry, please type “Speaking Engagements” in the subject line and e-mail raysofson@gmail.com, kidcool4jesus@yahoo.com or ministry4jesus@yahoo.com.)