Put The Sledgehammer Away

One of the greatest challenges I face in ministry is the issue of motivating people to do things for the Lord. This is especially true because many people have adopted a relaxed worldview. Basically it means that they have a laid back attitude about life in general.

Personally I see some benefits of this attitude because it keeps a person from over reacting then things don’t go their way. Also it usually allows the person to have an area of “margin” in their life (extra money, time, energy). Of course if taken to an extreme that same attitude can lead to complete laziness.
Another drawback of this lifestyle is that it becomes very hard to motivate someone to do anything that goes above and beyond the average commitment. The question then becomes, “how do we motivate those people so that they will attempt to achieve greater things?”

Many people prefer a sledgehammer when motivating someone to action. By this I mean they share verses of Scripture and then go into great detail about how the listeners aren’t obeying God’s Word. Often the goal is to make a person feel guilty (or possibly convicted) about this wrong, and become motivated to change.

It is my personal opinion that this kind of motivation doesn’t work well most of the time. Now observe that I didn’t say it doesn’t work (I believe that it does) but that this philosophy doesn’t work well. A number of times this kind of motivation will lead to action on the part of those listening. But that commitment doesn’t last long. Often the decision is forgotten and abandoned a few weeks later.

Does this mean we shouldn’t confront people strongly with the Word of God? Absolutely not! There are definitely situations where proclaiming the truths of Scripture in an unapologetic way are demanded. This is especially true when dealing with “strong willed” (which is a nice way of saying stubborn) people (like myself). We should definitely keep the sledgehammer in our toolbox, but maybe it just shouldn’t be the first tool we reach for.

My other observation about the sledgehammer method is that in a number of cases it is the person who does the job of confronting. Again, I absolutely agree that Scripture needs to be taught in a powerful and uncompromising way. But it is the job of Holy Spirit to convict people (John 16: 7-11). And the Word of God is the tool of God to convict individuals (Hebrews 4:12).

The problem with the sledgehammer philosophy is that often it results in our doing too much. I believe that it is the job of a teacher or preacher to clarify the meaning of Scripture. This allows the Holy Spirit to use that truth to convict the hearts of others. While there are situations that require a more direct confrontation, our responsibility is point the eyes of people to God through the text.

When I begin to give personal opinions on issues or directly confronting sin then I am in danger of overstepping my bounds as a minister. For in a sense I am trying to do the job of Holy Spirit by making people feel bad so that they will change. And yes this may lead the person to change, but often it is one that they do in their own strength, which in the end creates a worse problem than before. The sledgehammer is a very useful and necessary tool in the ministry, but it must be handled with great care, and skill. So don’t throw your sledgehammer in the trash can, and make room for it in your tool box. Just make sure it isn’t the first thing you reach for.