Sullivan church of Christ – Sullivan, MO
Date: August 21, 2005
“A MODERATE LIBERAL IS STILL A LIBERAL”
Ben Justice
Liberalism is like an ugly festering sore. It just will not go away. Spiritually
speaking, liberalism has no respect for the authority of the Scriptures. Liberals
disdain the laws of God and makes fun of those who strictly abide by God’s laws
by calling them “legalists” and “radicals.” Matters of faith and doctrine are
regulated to mere human opinion. Liberalism hates rules and commandment
keeping. Liberalism perverts love. Liberalism opens the flood-gates when it
comes to fellowship. Fun and games are emphasized over Bible preaching. In
fact, Bible preaching is practically non-existent in liberal congregations. Very
simply, liberalism in the church is to loose God’s people from what God in his
word would have them to do. Liberalism is taking liberties with God’s word.
Liberalism in the church is responsible for the many false and damnable
doctrines currently plaguing the bride of Christ. Brother David Brown well
describes the nature of liberalism:
The liberal mind will always allow for itself what it will not allow in others. It will
argue with you that it is wrong to argue; it will practice on you what it seeks to
condemn in you; it will become angry at you because it ascribes anger to you; it is
critical of criticism; it gossips to oppose gossiping; it pronounces judgment on those it
deems guilty of judging; it sows discord among brethren under the guise of building
unity; and it declares: “If I cannot rule, I will ruin.” Its evil, black, sinful works is
accomplished under the cloak of darkness in back rooms, back alleys, and over
telephones.
It is the coward’s way; the way of the self-willed and selfish. It will never meet on
the public polemic of honest, forthright debate. It is the tool of liars and hypocrites,
sired by the father of such, Satan himself. It is a mind full of vindictiveness and hate.
It constantly seeks its own hurt of those it professes to love. It is a mind that to one’s
face is all smiles and with a warm handshake wishes you the best, but behind your
back plots your overthrow by any means possible.
Would to God that the liberals who seem to hate the church so much would just
leave it altogether! It is quite amazing to me that liberals retain the name
“church of Christ” while at the same time constantly ridicule it. I, for one,
wished they would leave Christ out of the picture. Some have done this,
thankfully. For example, some have changed the name “church of Christ” to
“community church” or “family of God.”
There is another kind of liberal in the church and that is the “moderate liberal.”
A moderate liberal perhaps does more harm to the church than does just a plain
ole’ liberal. The word “moderate” is defined by the American Heritage Dictionary
as, “Not excessive or extreme.” This certainly describes some in the church
today. While they are not excessive or extremely liberal in their views and
teachings (like Rubel Shelly, Max Lucado, Jeff Walling, Joe Beam), they are still
nonetheless liberal. One does not have to be an extreme liberal to be counted as
a liberal. A moderate liberal is still a liberal. Please note the following
examples:
1.) When a man who will preach the truth on all subjects that he preaches on,
but will deliberately neglect to preach on controversial issues (e.g. marriage,
divorce, and remarriage, handclapping in worship, singing during the Lord’s
Supper, children’s church, immodest dress, dancing, etc.), then such a man is a
moderate liberal.
2.) When a man will fellowship and appear on lecture programs with those who
are all sound in the faith and then turn right around and appear on a lecture
program with known liberals, then such a man is a moderate liberal. In other
words, he will hold hands with anybody. Such a one is a “fence-straddler.”
3.) When a man will never call attention to error and false doctrine in or out of
the church in specifically identifying false teachers, then such a man is a
moderate liberal.
4.) When a man acknowledges that "preacher so-in-so” appears on lecture
programs that maybe he shouldn’t, and then turns around and says, “But, he
preaches the truth,” then such a man is a moderate liberal. Preaching the truth
is wonderful, but it is not the sole criteria for soundness.
5.) When a preacher or eldership is in favor of having someone hold a gospel
meeting knowing that the preacher is in error on some doctrinal point then they
are moderate liberals. Some have reasoned, “He will not preach that here.” Or,
after the visiting preacher has left, they say, “He didn’t preach any error while
here.” I wonder, have some brethren totally forgotten that Rom. 16:17, Eph. 5:
11, and 2 John 9-11 are in the Bible? Maybe not forgotten — just ignored!
6.) When one downplays or ridicules another preacher for exposing error and
false teachers in the church then such a man is an example of a moderate
liberal.
7.) When one gets upset with another preacher for calling attention to issues
facing the church and saying that such a preacher is “issues oriented,” then
such a one is a moderate liberal.
8.) When one seems to have no problem with immodesty, dancing, smoking, and
mixed swimming, even after having been shown that such things are immoral
practices, is an example of a moderate liberal.
When a person straddles the fence, it does great harm to the body of Christ.
When a person gives mixed signals about where they stand they create
confusion in people. It is a sad thing indeed that after you talk with someone
about spiritual and doctrinal issues that you are left wondering where they
stand. This is certainly characteristic of the liberal and even the moderate
liberal. May we remember that a moderate liberal is still a liberal!