What is it about the thirty-something crowd that seems to launch beadlines? For example, Martin Luther was 34 years old when he nailed his 95 thesis to Wittenberg’s door. Jonathan Edwards was 30 when his Northampton pulpit helped launch the Great Awakening. By age 31, Charles Wesley had written many of his 6,000 hymns…And, at age 33, Billy Graham founded his Evangelistic Association.
By age 30, most preachers have developed their gifts, even distilled their theology. They may have stepped through an open door or two, but some seem shot from a cannon, while most of us – even well beyond our 30’s – labor in relative anonymity.
For us there’s only a faint drum-roll and rarely any flash bulbs. Consequently, those who don’t know better might think ours is a nine-to-five job…blue-collar all the way. But…our goal was never to hog the spotlight, but rather to aim it on the One who deserves it. That’s all John Bunyan, a commoner from Bedford, England, wanted to do. Bunyan was introduced to Christ through two books – the full extent of his wife’s dowry. Those books…opened his eyes to his sinful condition and stirred his insatiable desire to tell others about his Savior.
So at age 30, Bunyan started preaching. But, as any seasoned pastor knows, preaching is never easy. And, because Buyan lacked governmental approval to preach, he was picked up by the police, hauled off to jail, and tossed into a prison cell for the disgraceful act of preaching without a license. The nerve!
Finally, after three months of confinement, he was brought before the local magistrate and offered a full pardon on one condition: “Stop preaching the gospel!” But that was something John Bunyan couldn’t do. So, back into the slammer he went – 12 more years of incarceration in the Bedford city jail.
He waived his chance at freedom because, more than freedom, preaching was an even greater gift. No conditional pardon could satisfy the heart that must proclaim God’s Word.But our God is never hemmed-in by seemingly impenetrable walls. In fact, it was from that cell that Bunyan wrote “Pilgrim’s Progress” – next to the Bible the most widely read book in the world, serving as the #2 best seller for centuries. But more than writing, John Bunyan had to preach.
His small cell had one window through which he could see only the outer stone wall. And so, each day Bunyan would do what came naturally; he would preach – through a barred window to anyone who could hear his voice.
Day in and day out, the unmistakable sound of the license-less preacher was heard through the streets of downtown Bedford. Passers-by would stop their shopping to gather outside the prison wall to hear his message of hope. Bound souls looking for release would find Christ while kneeling beside the very symbol of their soul’s imprisonment.
It must have been the same for the apostles in Acts 4 and 5. They were beaten within an inch of their lives, their integrity insulted, their livelihoods threatened, and their families intimidated. And yet, to hear them talk about it, they praise God for being worthy to suffer for Christ’s sake.
I wonder how many of us would do the same under the same conditions. I often ask myself if I would be bold enough to continue proclaiming God’s Word if I were under the same persecution as those who have gone in faith before us. But then again, they probably would have wondered the same if they were asked ahead of time.
The work of the Holy Spirit is a powerful thing to say the least. And His power still lies in His Word. For His Word is a life-changing Word – a Word that can transform a cold and darkened heart into one that is forgiven, renewed, and glows from the fire within.
And because of this, though we may never be listed among the Martin Luthers, Billy Grahams, or John Bunyans in the history books of Christianity, we are now written in one book that matters most. Because we too have been claimed by the Holy Spirit through our Baptism into the Living Word – Jesus Christ – our names are now listed with those saints that have gone before us in faith in the Book of Life.
This is a great truth all due to the work of our Lord Jesus…and it’s enough to make you want to tell somebody. It’s my prayer that you don’t hold back on this one.
Saved to serve,
Pastor Wenzelburger