Hammering Away

About a week ago I went by a Lutheran church to see their set up with flat screen TV's.  The church I serve is looking into either a projection system, or flat screen TV's.  So I wanted to check out a church that had the flat screens and just see how it looked and how it worked.

Anyway, while there, I met the pastor and we spoke briefly.  He was very nice and took the time without an appointment to show me the sanctuary and answer some questions.  One thing he said really struck me.  He said: "We just keep hammering away at sin." 

It wasn't until later that I thought, "didn't Jesus hammer sin away on the cross...literally."  Now that is not to disresepect that pastor or to say that his way is unbiblical or that he wasn't right, because the Bible does teach that sin is to be avoided.

However, it got me thinking about the content I focus on when I preach.  Now to be fair, I've only been preaching weekly for 6 weeks, however, while I do reference sin and some of the problems it creates, I probably focus more on God's love and goodness and mercy and faithfulness than on anything else.  I think that's the good news.  I think that's not only what people want to hear, but need to hear as well.  And I think its biblical.

Anyway, that pastor's comment really helped me take a closer look at the content of what I preach and I may just be a little more careful about how I handle sin in my preaching.