The preaching of the Cross of Jesus Christ created a great divide between the world and the Church—two distinctly different systems, scales of value, standards of judgment, sets of laws, which stand contrasted on the two sides of the Cross. The system of each is not only quite different but irreconcilable and forever mutually antagonistic.
It is an obvious fact that wherever the Cross of the Lord Jesus Christ has been faithfully preached it has not only brought hope and new life to some but also offended many more and aroused antagonism. The message of the Cross was a stumbling-block to the Jews and an absurdity to the Greeks in the first days, so it has ever since been unacceptable not only to men of the world but even to many so-called religious people.
A soft “gospel” has been preached for so long by so many that multitudes of religious masses fill churches, comfortable in their sin, living at ease in Zion in lukewarm pleasure-seeking religion, serving a “Jesus” that is not the Jesus of the Bible.
Paul’s Gospel had teeth. He didn’t make his message smooth and soft in order to suit the fancies of the religious majority—“with enticing words of man’s wisdom.” Paul’s Gospel was an offending message to many because it exalted Christ, lifted the cross and commanded total commitment to Jesus Christ.
The Spirit of Elijah is missing in so much of today’s preaching. Elijah preached an offensive message, a message of repentance and God’s judgment against sin. Elijah’s preaching caused Ahab to exclaim, “Is that you, you troubler of Israel?” Elijah was a troublemaker to the sin, false religion and Baal worship of that day. Elijah responded to Ahab: “I have not troubled Israel; but thou, and thy father’s house, in that ye have forsaken the commandments of the LORD, and thou hast followed Baalim.”
We never preach to purposely be offensive…
yet we cannot withdraw from preaching it IF it does…
after all the problem is not with the message (a true message of God’s love) but with the hearer.
We need those who love the gospel enough to take a stand against the Devil and, if need be, be persecuted for preaching a sharp, convicting message, that even though it offends, it also gloriously contains real power to deliver from sin and save souls. So even if persecution, in some form may follow the preaching of the gospel, but thank God; genuine salvation does too! And so does revival!
-jlg-