Ye Should Have Hearkened

Acts 27:21 KJV
But after long abstinence Paul stood forth in the midst of them, and said, Sirs, ye should have hearkened unto me, and not have loosed from Crete, and to have gained this harm and loss.

My thoughts today are on the phrase, "...ye should have hearkened unto me.." He said the truth. If they had listened to him, they would not have been in the storm.

Paul was not a sailor, neither does the Bible say for sure that the Lord had spoken to him about the dangers of the voyage but only that he "perceived" the "voyage will be with hurt and much damage" (vs 10). However Paul was a man of God, a preacher. And their words and counsel should never be taken too lightly.
Even when a preacher can't give exact reasons for his opinions
Even when a preacher doesn't have a specific verse for his thoughts

Still a wise person would do well to give his words serious thought.

These were not even saved people to whom Paul had spoken. But they would have been wise to have hearkened
This was not regarding a church matter. But they still would have done well to have listened

I am not saying that preachers are infallible. I know better than most (being a preacher myself) that is not true.
I am not saying that every pastor is a man of God and is in tune with the mind of the Lord. There are plenty of false teachers in the world today
Nor am I saying that we must follow every piece of counsel a pastor gives us.

What I am saying is that a wise person, whether or not he is a Christian, should hearken to the voice of a preacher to avoid much harm and loss. Even as a pastor, I want to be sure I expose myself to other pastors and hearken to the things they say. And thereby I may avoid harm and loss.