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A Clarion Call for Clarity
8/12/2006
Ephesians 4:15 but speaking the truth in love, we are to grow up in all aspects into Him who is the head, even Christ
1 Corinthians 14:33 for God is not a God of confusion but of peace
And the one place where historically people have been able to turn to for clarity…the Church…is just as confused and muddy in their thinking as they are! How in the world did we Christians become so afraid of the truth? In the name of pragmatism, cultural relevance, and political correctness we have abdicated our roles as the bastions of truth and joined the world at the altar of tolerance. We have done away with those rough edges of the Cross (such as sin, judgment, repentance, denial of self, and sanctification) and instead served up to the world an offering of milk toast and swill consisting of inoffensive affirmations and positive thinking designed to make them feel good about themselves. We are told from the pulpit that God loves us just as we are and that He died on the cross to set us free to be anything we could imagine! Instead of the fearsome and holy Alpha and Omega who will judge the living and the dead, we’re painted a picture of a cross between Santa Claus (who just wants us to be good boys and girls) and a Genie who wants to grants us our hearts desires. Isn’t than nice!
Jeremiah 5:31 The prophets prophesy falsely, And the priests rule on their own authority; And My people love it so! But what will you do at the end of it?
Galatians 5:17 For the flesh sets its desire against the Spirit, and the Spirit against the flesh; for these are in opposition to one another, so that you may not do the things that you please.
No where is our lack of conviction concerning the truth more apparent than in our current approach to evangelism. We have surrendered the battlefield without ever firing a shot in our cowardice. I know of what I speak because I, too, have been guilty. Over the past few decades, we have slowly retreated from the idea of preaching the gospel to the world until now all that we have left is a mere shadow known as relationship evangelism. In a nutshell, this approach advocates making relationships with people, letting them begin to see that you’re a good person in your day-to-day affairs, and then hoping that they will ask you why you’re such a nice person. Then you have an opportunity to slowly introduce them to our amputated version of the gospel. Poppycock!
Is this how Jesus and the Apostles presented the Gospel? Did they go into a village or a city and just set up shop as a tentmaker (such as Paul) or a fisherman (such as Peter) and then wait for people to see what good people they were as they did business with them on a daily basis before presenting Christ? Or perhaps, as those who emphasize discipleship seem to believe, they took the next step after establishing a relationship with each person they presented Christ to, by taking them under their wing and mentoring them until they were ready to do the same for others? Or perhaps, as those who emphasize meeting physical needs before addressing spiritual needs seem to believe, they went into each city and looked for those who were sick, hungry, or poor and spent most of their time and energy on that in the hope that it would establish credibility and that they would then ask about why they were helping them?
No, my brothers and sisters, they were not martyred for being nice people, helping the needy, or mentoring people one on one. They were killed for PREACHING THE GOSPEL! The WHOLE Gospel! They went into a town and preached “Christ and Him crucified!” They called out for people to “REPENT for the kingdom of heaven is at hand!”
Matthew 4:17 From that time Jesus began to preach and say, “Repent, for the kingdom of heaven is at hand.”
Matthew 10:7 “And as you go, preach, saying, ‘The kingdom of heaven is at hand.’”
Luke 24:46,47 Thus it is written, that the Christ would suffer and rise again from the dead the third day, and that repentance for forgiveness of sins would be proclaimed in His name to all the nations.
Acts 2:38 Repent, and each of you be baptized in the name of Jesus Christ for the forgiveness of your sins; and you will receive the gift of the Holy Spirit.
1 Corinthians 2:2 For I determined to know nothing among you except Jesus Christ, and Him crucified.
In our postmodern fugue, we have determined that the most effective way to win people to Christ is to say nothing at all. Instead, just be a nice good person and hope that someone will ask you why you’re so nice. The second most effective way, is to bring them to church and let them see how much fun it is to be a Christian and let the preacher tell them how much God can do for them! Oh, you’ll fill the pews and the offering plates with that sort of approach but the pages of the Book of Life will remain unchanged.
Matthew 7:21 “Not everyone who says to Me, ‘Lord, Lord,’ will enter the kingdom of heaven, but he who does the will of My Father who is in heaven will enter.”
We have forgotten that history clearly shows that the only thing which has ever converted the souls of men is the preaching of the untainted Gospel! The heart of every major revival and outpouring of the Holy Spirit has been fearless men of God who are willing to unflinchingly speak the whole truth of God’s Word! People must be convinced of their sin and its consequences before they can see the desperate nature of their need for a Savior! Many today say that postmodern man (and especially the emerging generation) will never be reached with theology or doctrine. But what they call theology, the Bible calls the Gospel and it’s the only thing which can grow the Kingdom of God.
Romans 10:14 How then will they call on Him in whom they have not believed? How will they believe in Him whom they have not heard? And how will they hear without a preacher?
1 Corinthians 1:21 For since in the wisdom of God the world through its wisdom did not come to know God, God was well-pleased through the foolishness of the message preached to save those who believe.
In a world convinced that they’re basically good people and that only REALLY bad people would go to a place like Hell (if such a place even exists), Jesus is seen as an “add-on” to their life. If believing in Him will smooth their ride through life and make them feel better about themselves, then they’ll stay on the “Christian” bandwagon. However, if it doesn’t, then they’ll move on to the next philosophy or religion. On the other hand, if they become convinced of the depth of their sin and that they generously deserve Hell, then genuine repentance and rebirth is more likely. You don’t build the Kingdom of God by spreading half-truths in His name.
2 Corinthians 7:10 For the sorrow that is according to the will of God produces a repentance without regret, leading to salvation.
Should there be people whom you mentor and disciple during the course of your life? Obviously! Does that mean that you must mentor every person that you lead to the Lord? No! Jesus and the Apostles preached to tens of thousands during the course of their life and only discipled a handful. Trust God to lead you as to whom you disciple and those whom God will lead to others to disciple.
You see the distorted view of evangelism that we find ourselves in? Do you see the huge sin that we have allowed ourselves to indulge in? How can we expect to escape God’s discipline when we have ignored the primary calling He has placed on us? We are majoring on the minors! God has not just called us to act in a Christian manner but to speak…to PREACH…the Gospel! Evangelizing those we interact with daily and mentoring are NOT described by God’s Word as substitutes for preaching the Gospel! God meant them to ENHANCE the preaching of the Gospel…NOT replace it!
Romans 6:23 the wages of sin is death
Matthew 25:41 “Depart from Me, accursed ones, into the eternal fire which has been prepared for the devil and his angels.”
Luke 24:46,47 Thus it is written, that the Christ would suffer and rise again from the dead the third day, and that repentance for forgiveness of sins would be proclaimed in His name to all the nations.
1 Corinthians 6:20 For you have been bought with a price: therefore glorify God in your body.
Matthew 16:24 If anyone wishes to come after Me, he must deny himself, and take up his cross and follow Me.
John 15:18 If the world hates you, you know that it has hated Me before it hated you.
Acts 4:31 and they were all filled with the Holy Spirit and began to speak the word of God with boldness
John 10:27 “My sheep hear My voice, and I know them, and they follow Me”
Matthew 7:13 “Enter through the narrow gate; for the gate is wide and the way is broad that leads to destruction, and there are many who enter through it.”
Luke 8:15 But the seed in the good soil, these are the ones who have heard the word in an honest and good heart, and hold it fast, and bear fruit with perseverance.
Now…do you have a better idea of why great men of God have always been the subject of intense opposition and often martyred? Satan is content to allow us to play church and to help the needy, but when we start to preach the Gospel then you become a real threat to him and those under his sway.
Matthew 24:9 Then they will deliver you to tribulation, and will kill you, and you will be hated by all nations because of My name.
Luke 10:1,2,17,18 Now after this the Lord appointed seventy others, and sent them in pairs ahead of Him to every city and place where He Himself was going to come. And He was saying to them, “The harvest is plentiful, but the laborers are few; therefore beseech the Lord of the harvest to send out laborers into His harvest.” The seventy returned with joy, saying, “Lord, even the demons are subject to us in Your name.” And He said to them, “I was watching Satan fall from heaven like lightning.”
Acts 26:18 “to open their eyes so that they may turn from darkness to light and from the dominion of Satan to God, that they may receive forgiveness of sins and an inheritance among those who have been sanctified by faith in Me.”
In everything we do and say, we need to be crystal clear and transparent! This is especially true when it comes to evangelism. It kills me every time I see a famous preacher or theologian on television and they’re asked a direct question and they dance around the truth like some sort of snake oil salesman! Be direct…be clear…speak the truth with love! But make sure your priorities are in the right place. Love God before man. Think of what’s in the ETERNAL best interest of those who hear you instead of their temporal best interest. As Christians, we should have a reputation as someone that they can always get a straight and truthful answer out of…even when it’s something they don’t want to hear.
Proverbs 3:5 Trust in the LORD with all your heart, and do not lean on your own understanding.
Jeremiah 17:9 The heart is more deceitful than all else and is desperately sick; Who can understand it?
2 Corinthians 11:4 For if one comes and preaches another Jesus whom we have not preached, or you receive a different spirit which you have not received, or a different gospel which you have not accepted, you bear this beautifully.
2 Timothy 2:15 Study to shew thyself approved unto God, a workman that needeth not to be ashamed, rightly dividing the word of truth.
Galatians 1:6,7 I am amazed that you are so quickly deserting Him who called you by the grace of Christ, for a different gospel; which is really not another; only there are some who are disturbing you and want to distort the gospel of Christ.
1 Peter 3:15 always being ready to make a defense to everyone who asks you to give an account for the hope that is in you, yet with gentleness and reverence
2 Timothy 3:16 All Scripture is inspired by God and profitable for teaching, for reproof, for correction, for training in righteousness
Set aside the self-deception of pseudo-intellectualism that looks down its nose at the idea of absolute truth. God has no place in it. Decide, with the aid of God’s Word and the Holy Spirit, what you believe. If there is no conception of absolute truth…no lucidity in your mind concerning the things of God…how do you expect to speak clearly to the world? Without clarity in our minds and our words concerning the fundamental truths of our faith, we might as well be (as my son would say) a bunch of tree-hugging hippies singing “Kumbaya” around the campfire.
2 Timothy 1:12 For this reason I also suffer these things, but I am not ashamed; for I know whom I have believed…
James 1:17 the Father of lights, with whom there is no variation or shifting shadow
Ephesians 4:25 Therefore, laying aside falsehood, SPEAK TRUTH EACH ONE of you WITH HIS NEIGHBOR, for we are members of one another.
If I had to choose one word to describe the mindset of the world today it would most likely be confusion. We are all struggling so mightily to juggle everyone’s point of view about every given topic in the worship of tolerance (our one remaining but distorted virtue) that we have completely lost the ability to discern or take a stand concerning the truth about anything.
2 Timothy 3:7 always learning and never able to come to the knowledge of the truth
In the name of pragmatism, cultural relevance, and political correctness we have abdicated our roles as the bastions of truth and joined the world at the altar of tolerance.
Psalm 111:10 The fear of the LORD is the beginning of wisdom
We’ve tossed most of the essential doctrines which have defined Christianity for the past 2000 years because we, too, have drank the postmodern Kool-Aid and work from the presupposition that no one can really know the truth about anything. Therefore, we see the Bible as a guide but not an absolute when it comes to the matters of right and wrong. We’d much rather be “led of the Spirit” as to what God requires of us. Unfortunately, most of us have substituted our own feelings and desires for the ACTUAL leading of the Holy Spirit and wouldn’t know the leading of the Holy Spirit if it hit us between the eyes. We’ve forgotten the fundamental truth that the Holy Spirit will never contradict the absolute truth of the Bible. Of course, it is understandable since our church leaders have told us that God came to give us the desires of our hearts.
John 4:22 You worship what you do not know
Over the past few decades, we have slowly retreated from the idea of preaching the gospel to the world until now all that we have left is a mere shadow known as relationship evangelism.
Acts 20:26,27 “Therefore, I testify to you this day that I am innocent of the blood of all men. For I did not shrink from declaring to you the whole purpose of God.”
In our postmodern fugue, we have determined that the most effective way to win people to Christ is to say nothing at all.
2 Timothy 4:3,4 For the time will come when they will not endure sound doctrine; but wanting to have their ears tickled, they will accumulate for themselves teachers in accordance to their own desires, and will turn away their ears from the truth and will turn aside to myths.
We have forgotten that history clearly shows that the only thing which has ever converted the souls of men is the preaching of the untainted Gospel!
Romans 10:17 So faith comes from hearing, and hearing by the word of Christ.
You don’t build the Kingdom of God by spreading half-truths in His name.
James 2:10 For whoever keeps the whole law and yet stumbles in one point, he has become guilty of all.
Should the people you interact with on a daily basis see Christ in you as espoused by the proponents of Relationship Evangelism? Of course! And it’s a great witness when the people you know see you go through a crisis and see you handle it with God’s grace. That is an open door to present the Gospel to them. Should it be the only method of evangelism you use? No!
2 Timothy 4:1,2 I solemnly charge you in the presence of God and of Christ Jesus, who is to judge the living and the dead, and by His appearing and His kingdom: preach the word; be ready in season and out of season; reprove, rebuke, exhort, with great patience and instruction.
So, how do we preach the Gospel? First, we need to know what the Gospel is. They can’t appreciate the Good News until they understand the Bad News! They need to understand sin and its consequences. They need to believe in Hell before they’re told about Heaven. They need to understand the need for repentance before they are given the assurance of forgiveness. They need to know that they have been “purchased with a price” and that they are no longer their own before they are promised the abundant life.
Romans 3:23 All have sinned and fallen short of the glory of God
Will it be easy to preach the Gospel? It never has been. I know that it isn’t for me. But as with everything that God commands of us, He gives us the power to fulfill His demands. The Holy Spirit was not given just so that we can experience His presence in worship but primarily so that we could speak the Gospel with boldness! Will the people that we preach to appreciate the Gospel? The majority never has. They normally react with scorn or violence. But those whom God has preordained will hear His voice. Trust Him for His courage.
2 Timothy 4:5 But you, be sober in all things, endure hardship, do the work of an evangelist, fulfill your ministry.
Satan is content to allow us to play church and to help the needy, but when we start to preach the Gospel then you become a real threat to him and those under his sway.
Mark 8:35 For whoever wishes to save his life will lose it, but whoever loses his life for My sake and the gospel's will save it.
As Christians, we should have a reputation as someone that they can always get a straight and truthful answer out of…even when it’s something they don’t want to hear.
James 5:12 …but your yes is to be yes, and your no, no, so that you may not fall under judgment
As a Christian, you need to accept the Bible as absolute truth. You need to understand that when what you feel is right differs with the Bible then it’s you who needs to change. You need to develop a clear understanding of the Gospel and how to present it. Are there grey areas that are not directly addressed by God’s Word? Yes, but they are fewer then our carnal desires would like to believe. And even then there are clear Biblical principles and the Holy Spirit to guide us.
John 17:17 “Sanctify them in the truth; Your word is truth.”
Without clarity in our minds and our words concerning the fundamental truths of our faith, we might as well be (as my son would say) a bunch of tree-hugging hippies singing “Kumbaya” around the campfire.
Joshua 24:15 And if it seem evil unto you to serve the LORD, choose you this day whom ye will serve