Why we need hard preaching

Matthew 3
King James Version
1 In those days came John the Baptist, preaching in the wilderness of Judaea,

2 And saying, Repent ye: for the kingdom of heaven is at hand.

3 For this is he that was spoken of by the prophet Esaias, saying, The voice of one crying in the wilderness, Prepare ye the way of the Lord, make his paths straight.

4 And the same John had his raiment of camel’s hair, and a leathern girdle about his loins; and his meat was locusts and wild honey.

5 Then went out to him Jerusalem, and all Judaea, and all the region round about Jordan,

6 And were baptized of him in Jordan, confessing their sins.

7 But when he saw many of the Pharisees and Sadducees come to his baptism, he said unto them, O generation of vipers, who hath warned you to flee from the wrath to come?

8 Bring forth therefore fruits meet for repentance:

9 And think not to say within yourselves, We have Abraham to our father: for I say unto you, that God is able of these stones to raise up children unto Abraham.

10 And now also the axe is laid unto the root of the trees: therefore every tree which bringeth not forth good fruit is hewn down, and cast into the fire.

11 I indeed baptize you with water unto repentance. but he that cometh after me is mightier than I, whose shoes I am not worthy to bear: he shall baptize you with the Holy Ghost, and with fire:

12 Whose fan is in his hand, and he will throughly purge his floor, and gather his wheat into the garner; but he will burn up the chaff with unquenchable fire.

The scriptures say that John the Baptist was a leather lung, hell raising, fire breathing Bible preacher, which many people would find offensive in this day. Not that it matters what the world thinks because God’s word is the only truth, and the haters can kick rocks if it bothers them. Notice, the Bible says he was a voice crying in the wilderness (V. 3). The word cry in this context does not mean to sob or wine like a baby. It means to yell and scream, raising your voice loud when you speak.

John was screaming and yelling against false religion when he was preaching to the Jews in the wilderness, telling them that they needed to repent (change of mind) and believe the gospel. Not only did he preach about the gospel, but he also preached about hell and the judgment of God (V. 11-12). This kind of preaching would be considered “hateful” or “unloving” in 2024, but like it or lump it, it can help wake people up to the truth. I can speak from experience.

Even after I had gotten saved, hard preaching changed my life. I had spent several of my early years in Christianity listening to boring preaching that did not reprove me or teach me why sin was wrong. It was all about making people feel good, uplifting them, and sugar-coating the message instead of telling them right from wrong. It didn’t help me as much. Most of the sermons were about encouraging people, which I have nothing against, but there comes a time to rebuke sin. The typical church today in America (including Baptists) is watered down when it comes to preaching, and this is why red pill idiots like Andrew Tate accuse us of being soft and inclusive. Thank God, eventually, I listened to hellfire preachers on the internet such as Pastor Chuck Baldwin, inspiring me to do the same.

2 Timothy 4:1  I charge thee therefore before God, and the Lord Jesus Christ, who shall judge the quick and the dead at his appearing and his kingdom; 
2 Timothy 4:2  Preach the word; be instant in season, out of season; reprove, rebuke, exhort with all longsuffering and doctrine. 
2 Timothy 4:3  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; 
2 Timothy 4:4  And they shall turn away their ears from the truth, and shall be turned unto fables. 
2 Timothy 4:5  But watch thou in all things, endure afflictions, do the work of an evangelist, make full proof of thy ministry. 

Notice the Bible says to preach the word. Men of God are supposed to preach the whole counsel of God, and not some of it. You cannot cherry pick the parts of the Bible that are pleasant and leave out the ones that other folks find uncomfortable. That kind of preaching is not profitable. A referee is supposed to let a soccer player know when they have made a foul. He blows the whistles, stops the game, and says, “Foul! We need to do this all over again!” Likewise, a pastor is supposed to let his congregation know when they’re going astray. He gets up on Sunday morning and says, “You’re backsliding! It’s time to get right with God again!”

Not only does the Bible say to reprove and rebuke, but it also says after that to EXHORT. The purpose of hard preaching is not only to reprove you, but to get you to do the right thing after that. Friend, hard preaching will clean you up. It will set you straight. The pastor is trying to encourage you to live right and to serve God. The purpose of hard preaching is not to put you down, but to motivate you to live holy! There are many soft-soap Christians who will say, “That’s offensive!” Or they’ll say, “You need to encourage people! Stop judging them!” Listen, pal: I am encouraging people. I am warning them about the consequences of sin, and how to avoid them.

I remember years ago I heard a sermon from my former pastor (Pastor Gerak, R.I.P.) about not leaving the doors open for the the darkness to come in. He made the point that we should not make any provision for the flesh and allow ourselves to come into contact with temptation. This encouraged me. I made the decision not to go places or make friends with someone who could potentially lead me into sin. That was a life-changing message!

I can recall several years ago in the Jr. Church at my first church when I preached a sermon against celebrating Halloween. The name of it was “The wickedness of Halloween.” I preached about how our generation today celebrates Halloween by thinking it’s innocent and that it has nothing to do with devil worship. I talked about how Satanists and witches come out every year on October 31st to celebrate their gods (Baal, Baphomet, etc.) and that there is nothing godly associated with it.

The fact that many professing Christians (ex. Kirk Cameron) in church believe that Halloween is a day that was celebrated by the believers to honor the saints who died centuries ago shows that Christianity is getting soft. I ripped and screamed my lungs out against Halloween, warning the kids about trick or treating and what it actually represented in ancient times. Want to know something? Those kids decided at the end of the message not to partake in Halloween that same year and to never get involved with it again. Does hard preaching stir people up? Yes, it does!

Ezekiel 22:30 KJV And I sought for a man among them, that should make up the hedge, and stand in the gap before me for the land, that I should not destroy it: but I found none. 

Notice, the Bible says that God sought for a man that should make up the hedge and stand in the gap. He wanted to find one man that would stand up and do something to fix the idolatry and sin problem that happened in Jerusalem at this time, but He found none. There aren’t that many preachers in 2024 who want to stand in the gap, while others don’t. They are spectators. Their mentality is, “I’ll sit back and watch someone else do it.” Well, that never works, and most pastors won’t preach hard against sensitive issues such as homosexuality, transgenderism, abortion, feminism, etc. It not only shows how fearful they can be, but also shows their rebellion against God’s call. There is a famine of hearing the word of God in this country (Amos 8:11 KJV)!

I think about a brave man of God, such as Pastor Chuck Baldwin, who is not afraid to preach against the New World Order and political issues in the White House. It takes a man of faith to preach about touchy subjects from the pulpit every Sunday morning, even when the whole world is watching his sermons online. That kind of preaching is what makes people grind their teeth, pre-planning an attack against you to silence you from speaking the truth in love.

But guess what, friend? Pastor Baldwin chooses to stand in the gap. That’s because other preachers won’t preach what he addresses on a weekly basis. They are spineless cowards who are too scared to ruin their image in the public eye for the sake of growing their membership. I want to be that man of God who has the same attitude as Pastor Chuck.

A classic sermon by Pastor Chuck Baldwin about standing in the gap.

‭Micah 3:8 KJV‬
But truly I am full of power by the spirit of the LORD, and of judgment, and of might, to declare unto Jacob his transgression, and to Israel his sin.

In conclusion, it’s time for pastors to speak up and say something about the sin problem in America right now. America is drowning in her sin, which means pastors from across the USA need to be a voice crying in the wilderness. Notice, two things in the above passage of scripture: (1) The man of God is called to preach against the transgressions of his nation in hope of turning it around (2) He is given the power of the Holy Spirit to pronounce judgment on his people.

A pastor is supposed to be patriotic and say something about what’s happening to his country. He is to blow the whistle and say, “You all need Jesus! Get saved today!” Jonathan Edwards was a great example of this. He got up one day and preached a sermon called “Sinners in the hands of an angry God.” It was a message about God’s wrath on ungodliness and sinful human beings. It was a message about hell, judgment, and condemnation. A message about coming to Christ in simple faith. Guess what? Many souls got saved that same day after hearing the word of God preached by Dr. Edwards! Hallelujah!

Not only that, but we see in this passage of scripture that a man of God who preaches against sin is a man who is filled with the Spirit. When a pastor rips on sin and calls out transgenders and homosexuals for perverting nature, he’s filled with the Spirit! When he condemns abortion and calls it murder, genocide, and baby abuse, he’s filled with the Spirit! That’s evidence of a man of God who has the Spirit of the Lord upon him! What does it mean when a man of God does not rebuke sin from the pulpit? It means he’s NOT filled with the Holy Ghost. It’s time for preachers in America to pray for the fullness of the Holy Ghost in their lives and call a spade a spade!

Dearly beloved, do not take this personally. I love you and I care about you. My desire is to help the people of God in my local New Testament church, including you. We need to exhort one another and reprove one another when we are not doing what is right in the sight of the Lord. It’s not about putting people down. It’s about admonishing one another in the Lord, and helping people find God in their lives. Listen to the man of God at your church: it is the Lord that speaks through that King James Bible he teaches from. It’s his passion to guide you. God bless you all.

Enjoy listening to this powerful sermon by Pastor Adam Fannin where he teaches about fiery preaching found in the scriptures.

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