What
happened to solid preaching?
Posted 8/10/2009
"Preach the word; be instant in season, out of season; reprove,
rebuke, exhort with all longsuffering and doctrine.
For the time will come when they will not endure sound doctrine; but after
their own lusts shall they heap to themselves teachers, having itching ears;
And they shall turn away their ears from the truth, and shall be turned unto
fables. But watch thou in all things, endure afflictions, do the work of an
evangelist, make full proof of thy ministry." (2Ti 4:2-5)
Is there a manual somewhere that preachers follow nowadays? I mean,
other than the Scriptures.
If there is, the first rule must go something like this: "You must
preach the truth, as you see it; you must be tough on evil, but kind and
loving. You must make certain that people know that you are not talking about
anyone in particular, you are only against evil in the abstract. The evil you
speak of must be popular, incorrect wickedness, like racism, pollution, and
injustice, and definitely not include sodomy, slander, malice, filthy talking,
fornication, and unbelief. Social sins are very much in, and you may preach all
you want about those, but stay away from personal wickedness, for that makes
people uncomfortable. You must hold your finger to the wind, because truth
changes and mores change and you don't want to be talking about yesterday's
truth, yesterday's evils, and yesterday's virtues. You must be cutting edge.
Most of all, you must not speak of repentance or hell or the wrath of God, for
these things make people feel bad. There is good is all of us, and your duty is
to connect with the good."
"Thus saith the LORD of hosts, Hearken not unto
the words of the prophets that prophesy unto you: they make you vain: they
speak a vision of their own heart, and not out of the mouth of the LORD. They
say still unto them that despise me, The LORD hath said, Ye shall have peace;
and they say unto every one that walketh after the
imagination of his own heart, No evil shall come upon you." (Jer
23:16-17)
