Moses was frustrated. Israel had complained repeatedly, questioned his leadership, and tested his patience. When they complained again because there was no water, God told Moses to speak to the rock, but Moses struck it instead. More importantly, before striking it he cried, “Hear now, you rebels!” (Numbers 20:10). God later told Moses that he had failed to hallow Him before the people (v. 12). Moses allowed his frustration with the congregation to affect the way he represented God to the congregation.

There is a warning here for every preacher: A congregation’s failures never give the preacher permission to mishandle the congregation. People will disappoint us, misunderstand us, criticize us, and sometimes hurt us. But they are still His people. Paul told the Ephesian elders to shepherd “the church of God which He purchased with His own blood” (Acts 20:28). Peter called them “the flock of God” (1 Peter 5:2). They are His church, His flock, His purchase. We are stewards, not owners.

Paul gives us an even more intimate picture when he says, “I have betrothed you to one husband, that I may present you as a chaste virgin to Christ” (2 Corinthians 11:2). The Church is Christ’s bride. The preacher is not the Bridegroom; we are servants preparing the bride to meet Someone Else. She is not there to satisfy our emotional needs, validate our calling, feed our ego, or absorb our frustrations. The pulpit must never become the place where a wounded preacher takes revenge on Christ’s bride.

This does not mean we avoid correction. Paul told Timothy to “convince, rebuke, exhort,” but added, “with all longsuffering and teaching” (2 Timothy 4:2). Shepherds must warn, correct, and protect. But there is a difference between correcting the sheep and beating the sheep. Correction seeks their restoration; beating seeks our emotional release. Sometimes we preach something difficult because the congregation needs to hear it. We must guard against preaching it simply because we need to say it.

Before stepping into the pulpit, perhaps we should ask, Am I trying to restore someone or punish someone? Am I representing God’s heart toward His people, or merely expressing my frustration with them? Moses had a rod in his hand and anger in his heart. Preachers have something equally powerful—words, influence, and a sacred trust.

So preach the truth. Confront sin. Protect the vulnerable. Drive away wolves. Feed the hungry. Bind up the wounded and search for the wandering. But remember whose sheep they are, whose blood purchased them, and whose bride she is. We have not been called to beat the bride. We have been entrusted with preparing her for the Bridegroom. ©

–PGR