Many years ago, when I was rather new in the ministry, we had a man in our church who was very outspoken. By that I don’t mean he was influential, but that he just spoke his opinions right out in the church service whenever he disagreed. And he tended to be cranky.

One Sunday I preached a really good sermon from the Old Testament. I thought there were some really good insights. When I shook his hand at the door afterwards, he said with disgust, “We would see Jesus!”, quoting from John 12:21. That hurt.

When I got home I was still murmuring about why he had to be so critical. And the Lord spoke to my spirit, “This was Me speaking, if you will receive it.” From that point on I have always tried to find some way to speak Jesus and the cross in every sermon I preach. God sometimes uses messengers we personally don’t like to hear from, just as a test for us.

Have you ever had God speak to you through a person you really didn’t want to hear it from?

Tags: prophecy