Preach The Whole Truth, Except If It Offends admin for Shane Idleman
Update: After reading Tom Gilson’s response to my article, and re-reading his, I realize I misrepresented his position. Tom aims to provide practical, effective ways the church and church leaders can be bold in fighting and winning the good fight. We both agree on the need to stand and stand strong against the cultural currents and the critical need to train our congregations in how to boldly present, and bear witness, to the Truth. I apologized to Tom for any confusion. Nevertheless, I think it’s important to revisit this op-ed from 2018.
I appreciate Tom Gilson’s heart in his recent article, Preach the Whole Truth? Yes. Toss a Grenade In Your Sanctuary? Not Wise, but a sentence stood out that concerns me. He stated, “Churches must speak the whole truth — but they don’t have to do it in the Sunday morning sermon. The sermon might even be the worst place to do it.” I understand what he is saying, but it may motivate silent pulpits rather than inspire them. Yes, we must be filled with love and God’s Spirit, but this combination actually sparks boldness rather than hinders it. Are we pleasing God or men . . . are we cowards or watchmen? Because of this, I’m re-releasing what I wrote a year ago and have added some points.
There is a very troubling trend in the evangelical church as a whole. Today, the truth is often neglected, watered-down, or avoided altogether in the hope of not offending members and building a large audience. Judgment is never mentioned; repentance is never sought; and sin is often excused. We want to build a church rather than break a heart; be politically correct rather than biblically correct; coddle and comfort rather than stir and convict.
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“Christ Jesus came into the world to save sinners” (I Timothy 1:15), yet, many avoid words such as sin and repentance. The good news about Christ can only be appreciated with the bad news as the backdrop. There are times when the saints must be fed, and there are times when the sinners must be warned (C.H. Spurgeon). Preaching must be done with God-given authority and address hard topics to truly be effective. When we fail to proclaim God’s Word faithfully, we run the risk of “encouraging sin” and “perverting the words of the living God” (cf. Jeremiah 23).
