Why Is Preaching Ineffective? (Part 2) By Tom Roberts
Reprinted from the September, 1999 online edition of the Watchman
Magazine
http://www.watchmanmag.com/
"These things He said in the synagogue in Capernaum. Therefore many of His disciples, when they heard this, said, 'This is a hard saying; who can understand it?' When Jesus knew in Himself that His disciples murmured about this, He said to them, 'Does this offend you...' ...From that time many of His disciples went back and walked with Him no more" (John 6:61-66).
Some Have Hardened Hearts
There is a condition of heart so remote from God that the gospel cannot penetrate. Every Christian should be extremely careful not to trespass into that realm of hopelessness. It is a condition described in the Bible as "hard hearted" and is one of the few situations said to be beyond the call of the gospel.
The Hebrew writer warned "lest any of you be hardened through the deceitfulness of sin" (3:13). Even as the sun hardens clay, the human heart can be hardened by the deceitfulness and practice of sin until the very word of God is ineffective against its shell of indifference. The same writer spoke of some who "were once enlightened, and have tasted the heavenly gift, and have become partakers of the Holy Spirit, and have tasted the good word of God and the powers of the age to come" being "impossible to renew to repentance" (6:4-6). What a condition - beyond the reach of God's grace! Why? Because the gospel is ineffective? No! But because the human heart has the capacity to shut God out totally and irretrievably.
Some are Carnal Minded
Being carnal-minded is not necessarily wicked and evil in the moral sense. A carnal person is the person who only understands and comprehends worldly affairs. It has nothing to do with a lack of intelligence. One who is carnal may know what is happening on Wall Street, in the sports arena, on the golf course, in outer space or deep in the atom but unable to work up an interest in Bible reading, Bible class or saving the lost. A sheep is a carnal animal in that its only interest is the next clump of grass - it cannot have spiritual thoughts. Could this be the reason why Jesus often referred to us as sheep, needing a Shepherd (Psalms 23)?
Paul groaned over some of the Corinthians because of this same defect: "And I brethren, could not speak to you as to spiritual people but as to carnal, as to babes in Christ. I fed you with milk and not with solid food; for until now you were not able to receive it, and even now you are still not able for you are still carnal..." (3:1-3a)
In many assemblies of the saints, people sit through countless gospel sermons without obeying the gospel. Not because the gospel is unclear or the preacher is at fault. Too many are carnal as they wonder if the sermon will ever end, if the cafeteria line will be long, if the prayer leader will ever quit, if too many songs are being selected. Is there any wonder why there is a dearth of men to serve as elders and deacons? Why is it so hard to find enough Bible class teachers? Why do we lose so many from the younger generation? Folks, one does not have to take the name of God in vain to render the gospel ineffective. One can just love golf so much, watch too much television or keep one's eyes on earthly pursuits until spiritual matters mean little or nothing. To that person, all preaching is dull and boring; Bible reading is a waste of time.
Some Are Ignorant
Again, the Hebrew writer lamented over his inability to teach the desired things about the priesthood of Melchizedek because of his hearer's "dullness of hearing" (Heb. 5:11).
Many years ago, a noted brother was invited to a local congregation to confront the error of premillenialism. While expounding on the fact that Jesus was king over the kingdom and sitting on David's throne (Acts 2), one ignorant brother interrupted his lesson to make the inane inquiry, "Who is this man David you keep talking about?" How can one be effective in telling the story of the Bible is one doesn't know whether Jesus Christ was crucified or fell down San Juan's hill?
G. K. Wallace once observed, "Never underestimate the ignorance of your audience." I thought he was cynical at the time, but have since come to appreciate what he was saying.
We have underestimated the influence of television, sports and worldly pursuits upon Christians today. Not many are daily Bible readers and even less can discuss vital issues before the body of Christ with any discernment. Not very many brethren subscribe and read brotherhood papers anymore and teachers constantly complain about the lack of preparation for Bible classes. We who used to be the "people of the book" are people of the "boob tube." Ignorance of God's word abounds and it is having its effect. Do we wonder why few obey the gospel any more? Can it be that people really do not understand the story of the cross and why we need it? The best of preaching is ineffective if people are satisfied with spiritual ignorance.
What Is A Preacher To Do?
Winston Churchill is said to have made one of the most effective speeches (while being one of the shortest on record) during the dark days of WWII, when bombs were destroying London. He said, "Never, Never, Never quit."
Gospel preaching is God's choice to save the world: "It pleased God through the foolishness of the message preached to save those who believe" (1 Cor. 1:21). Please note that the saving power is in the gospel (Rom. 1:16), not the messenger. We must also realize that not every age is as accepting of the truth as other ages. We could not have a restoration movement in 1999 because there are not enough people "hungering and thirsting after righteousness" (Mt. 5:6). Paul recognized (through the Spirit) that the gospel will not always be effective to all people since he taught Timothy that he was to preach "in season and out of season" (2 Tim. 4:2).
But preach we must! "Never, Never, Never quit!" Out there in the highways and bi-ways of our busy world are lost people looking for the light. They are not hard-hearted. They are ignorant because no one has ever taught them the truth. Among Christians who are carnal minded are those who love scripture and who apply it diligently to their lives. We must not lose heart because of reverses, disappointments, personal loss or sacrifice. The gospel is still the "dynamite" of God that can save the world (Rom. 1:16). Let us "take up the whole armor of God, that you may be able to withstand in the evil day, and having done all, to stand" (Eph. 6:13).
"Preach the word! Be ready in season and out of season. Convince, rebuke, exhort, with all longsuffering and teaching" (2 Tim. 4:2).
"Send in the Clones" By
Jon Quinn
reprinted from the September, 1999 on-line edition of The
Expository Files
http://www.geocities.com/~expository/
Well, it may not have been the break through it was thought to be. Dolly is dying. Dolly is the world famous sheep cloned in Scotland. She is now three years old, but her cells are more like the cells of her "mother" and not like the cells of a three year old. What this means is that Dolly is aging fast.
A French study suggested that cloned cows are ten times more likely to be unhealthy than those that came into the world the natural way. It is sort of like copying an audiotape. The copy will have imperfections on it. I would imagine that if you cloned a clone, you would really run into problems
The scariest thing about all this is not that man is not capable of achieving some successes in this area, but rather what will he do with them. As his scientific knowledge advances his knowledge of the Creator diminishes. Of course, this is a generalization because many scientists are men and women of faith, but as a whole those involved in the scientific fields are woefully ignorant of the Creator's will. What will happen if potentially harmful knowledge falls under the control of a person without a moral basis upon which to make his decision as to what to do with it?
For example, what would have happened if the knowledge necessary to produce nuclear weapons had developed in Germany under Hitler's control? I expect the world would be a much different place today.
Will we be able to clone humans one day? First, this is not the same thing as "ought we to clone humans?" The people who attempted to build the tower of Babel after the flood were busy trying to answer "yes" to the question "Can we build the tower?" but never got around to asking the really important question of "Should we build the tower?"
The lab where Dolly was cloned had seen plenty of dead sheep embryos on its way to its first success. I wonder how many dead human embryos have already been produced in experimentation. Human life is a gift from God, and to kill it off in the first stages of life is both unethical and immoral. Hands are busy today shedding innocent blood. What will future advancement in the field that gave us Dolly really cost us as human beings?
I have heard the wonderful plans envisioned by those who are pressing on with research. Growing spare parts for ourselves to replace ours when they wear out or are damaged. Simply go to the clone bank and take the spare part off your clone. I have a better idea.
Obey the gospel. Then, when this body wears out or is damaged to where it can no longer sustain life, bury it, and wait for the resurrection, when we will be raised with new bodies; incorruptible, spiritual, glorious, beautiful, and eternal. Then, rejoice with exceeding joy forever through the ages to come.