GOD USES THE WILLING
In the
days of John Wesley, lay preachers with limited education would sometimes
conduct the church services. One man used Luke 19:21 as his text: “Lord, I
feared Thee, because Thou art an austere man” (KJV). Not knowing the word austere,
he thought the text spoke of “an oyster man.”
He
explained how a diver must grope in dark, freezing water to retrieve oysters.
In his attempt, he cuts his hands on the sharp edges of the shells. After he
obtains an oyster, he rises to the surface, clutching it “in his torn and
bleeding hands.” The preacher added, “Christ descended from the glory of heaven
into . . . sinful human society, in order to retrieve humans and bring them
back up with Him to the glory of heaven. His torn and bleeding hands are a sign
of the value He has placed on the object of His quest.”
Afterward,
12 men repented. Later that night someone came to Wesley to complain about
unschooled preachers who were too ignorant even to know the meaning of the
texts they were preaching on. The Oxford-educated Wesley simply said, “Never
mind. The Lord got a dozen oysters tonight.”
