Different Strokes, Different Folks

Ezekiel 20:49

Then said I, Ah Lord GOD! they say of me, Doth he not speak parables?

John Gill writes,

“…Ezekiel seems to desire that he might be sent to them with a message more plainly expressed; and which might excite their attention and regard, and not expose him to their ridicule and contempt;

…They say of me, doth he not speak parables? as before, of a lion and her whelps; and of a vine, and its rods and branches, and now here again, of a fire, and a forest, and trees of it, green and dry; things not easily understood, and so not attended to and regarded; as if they should say, this man brings us nothing but parables, riddles, and enigmas, and such sort of unintelligible stuff, not worth minding; and rather appears as a man delirious and mad than a prophet.”

Ezekiel has a problem. He doesn't like preaching the way he does. His trouble is not that the message is too blunt or forthright, but that his style is filled with so many parables, pictures and things that require careful thought that he doesn't think people take him seriously enough. He just wants to get the message out there and be done with it.

Every preacher is possessed with:

·       A different style

·       A different temperament

·       A different strength

·       A different perspective

Some men are quite funny as they preach; others are intensely serious. Some are popular and sought after at meetings. Some preach only to their own congregations and those congregations might not be substantial in number. Some preachers are extemporaneous in nature; others are more driven by notes. Some preachers are very direct in their approach; others speak so metaphorically that it is difficult to follow them.

We all could stand to improve, I am sure. We can learn from other preachers and we can tweak things in our own messages to make them more effective. But we ought not copy some other preacher just because he is popular or we like his style better than our own. God made us the men He made us to be. Our best would be to accept the kind of man we are and improve on that. If we are given to directness, let us use it for the glory of the Lord. If we are given to metaphors, polish that style and let it glorify the Lord.

Our problem too often is that we think so poorly of ourselves that we can never be happy with the person God made us to be. We focus so much on our weaknesses that we cannot be content with the strengths God gave us. In this light, the Apostle Paul can be of help. Paul never got past seeing himself as the chiefest of sinners, but he never let that hinder him either. God counted him faithful and God's pleasure was all he sought.