Substitute Speaker

Substitute Speaker
Saturday, March 14, 2020
by Dr. Paul Chappell

“And all things are of God, who hath reconciled us to himself by Jesus Christ, and hath given to us the ministry of reconciliation; To wit, that God was in Christ, reconciling the world unto himself, not imputing their trespasses unto them; and hath committed unto us the word of reconciliation. Now then we are ambassadors for Christ, as though God did beseech you by us: we pray you in Christ’s stead, be ye reconciled to God.”

2 Corinthians 5:18–20

If you’ve been going to church for any length of time, you’ve probably heard a sermon from someone you didn’t expect to hear. Perhaps a severe illness or injury prevented the regular speaker from making it to church. It may have been the unexpected early arrival of a baby, or perhaps even a car wreck. But for some reason, the scheduled speaker was not in his place. When that happens, someone else steps in to preach God’s Word. But the substitute speaker is expected preach the same biblical doctrine as the pastor would have. The same could be said for a substitute school teacher or speaker at an event. The substitute is expected to give a message that aligns with the content or convictions of what the one who asked them to fill in would share.

In the same way, as Christians we have been tasked with speaking for God in our world. Though the Holy Spirit is in each believer and empowers our work for God, the voice that those around us hear is ours. That means that we must be faithful to speak up and to speak the truth. Eternal destinies are at stake. “But if our gospel be hid, it is hid to them that are lost” (2 Corinthians 4:3). We should never speak to others without an awareness that we are speaking to them in the place of God. We must make sure that what we say is an accurate reflection of what He has commanded. There should be no difference between what we say and what He would say.
Today's Growth Principle:
We have been given the awesome responsibility to speak to others on God’s behalf, and we must fulfill it.