Pastor’s Thoughts – 05-24-2026

When the Word of God is proclaimed (Rom. 10:17), wonderful and radical changes occur in individuals as the Holy Spirit convicts. This is why the Word must be accurately and prayerfully proclaimed as it is the means God uses to bring about His great salvation in any person. There have been times in history when there were large movements of God’s Spirit upon great numbers of people. In 1741 there was the First Great Awakening in America. It is credited to have begun with a sermon by Jonathon Edwards titled, “Sinners in the Hands of An Angry God.” He preached it initially to his own congregation in Northampton, Massachusetts and later continued the same sermon in other churches with the same powerful results. This was more than zealous emotions, but many lives were transformed to worship and serve God. There was no other explanation other than the work of the Spirit of God bearing evidence of new births.

The content of Edward’s sermon is most interesting. It is obviously shown even by its title to be dealing with the problem of man’s sinful condition in relation to God. His sermon focuses on warning that all who are outside of Christ are in immediate danger of eternal damnation. Edwards preached forming his analysis graphically by declaring biblical reasoning behind the hopeless condition of all people in sin, and their nearness to eternal hell. When I read Edward’s sermon, which by the way he historically read aloud to the congregations, I find it different in content and removed from what most consider today as normal proclamations of the Gospel. The word, “love” is not found anywhere in his message. Instead, the makeup of his message was the severest of warnings. The main point of his message was that men are wicked, and that God because of His justice, will cast all the wicked into Hell, and can do so at any given moment. The point was made to flee from God’s wrath by seeking His mercy through Jesus Christ.

The question that should come to each of us is, does God work the same way today with messages that have a different tone and are focused differently? Do messages today which take a different nature also bring about conversions by the Holy Spirit? This is an issue I have wrestled with for years. Was Edward’s message consistent with the Word of God? Yes, it was! We may ask then if softer and different messages that portray God with little or no concern about our sins are also effectively used by the Spirit of God to convert individuals? We recognize that no message is perfect, but the need is to proclaim what God proclaims. Perhaps a better way to analyze this issue is to determine whether God’s Word can be handled differently or even compromised by degrees and still be effective in changing lives? I will not argue that God can use imperfect vessels to bring about His work in converting sinners, but I believe His message must never be changed.

We know that God is love (1 John 4:16). This is a key characteristic in defining Him and is given to those who believe in Him as part of their growth and concern to be like Him. Yet, in dealing with sinful or lost audiences, it is not His love which is predominate in the recorded Gospel presentations. It is God’s righteousness, justice, and our accountability to Him that are highlighted. John the Baptist never referred to God’s love for sinners, but their need for repentance. Our Lord also did not emphasize God’s love for sinners in His sermons. Nor do we find the love of God expressed in the recorded Gospel messages in the book of Acts. The love of God was essentially explained to Nicodemus by our Lord for defining the character of God’s willingness to bring salvation (John 3:16). In the same context Christ stated that those who do not obey God, that instead of His love, the wrath of God abides on them (John 3:36). Later, in the epistles written to believers, love is expressed as a key component of our new transformed life in Christ.

Man is estranged from God because of sin. Wonderfully God has made the way of restoration with Him through His Son Jesus Christ. The position of any person is a matter of recognizing who we are in our terrible attachment to sin and coming in humble agreement with what is revealed about us in Scripture. It requires our coming to God according to His righteous means and His will. We come to Him as His Word is proclaimed, and we grow in our understanding of His glory and our otherwise desperate estrangement from Him. We are called to warn others who are lost and dead in their sins. This is the basis of our restoration of fellowship with God that every person so desperately needs. The situation of presenting all people as sinners will bring offense. We warn them to see themselves as God sees them and come to Him empty-handed, knowing that we as sinners have nothing to offer. The natural, lost, condition of man must be presented so that others have the light of understanding that Christ receives sinners and transforms them. Those who have tasted His mercy in salvation are the most thankful people on earth. Praise God for His glorious salvation offered to all who repent and believe.