Sullivan church of Christ – Sullivan, MO
Date: July 26, 2009
PREACHING THAT CONVICTS
Roy H. Lanier, Sr.
In this lesson I use the term "preach" to include only that which is directed to accountable people who have not
obeyed the gospel of Christ. I realize that preaching, as we use the word today, may be for the purpose of
comforting the sorrowing, encouraging the faint and strengthening the weak.
By the word "convict," I mean putting people to shame for not being on the Lord's side in the battle against sin
and the devil; to make them feel guilty of great sin against God and his holy Son.
And by the word "sinners," I mean all accountable people who have not obeyed the gospel as revealed in the New
Testament. And by this, I mean people who have not believed in Jesus as the sinless Son of God, who have not
confessed that faith, and who have not repented of their sins and have not been baptized in the name of Jesus
Christ for the remission of their sins. (Acts 2:38).
The preaching that convicts sinners is preaching that makes them think. The gospel of Christ is directed to, and
appeals to, the intellect of people. It is composed of facts and truths to be believed. These facts and truths must
be accepted without doubt or quibble.
Not only must people be made to think, but they must be made to feel. The gospel of Christ contains promises
and warnings that appeal to the emotions of people. The promises of forgiveness of sins, adoption into the family
of God, providential care throughout life and eternal life with the Lord and all the redeemed of all time should
cause people to love God and his Son who make these things possible.
But thinking and feeling are not enough. People must be brought to action if they ever become the children of
God. Merely saying, "Lord, I believe, please save me" is not enough. When the gospel was first preached, people
believed it, repented of their sins and were baptized for the remission of their sins, and were added to the church
which Christ saves. (Acts 2:41, 47; Eph. 5:23). What kind of preaching will accomplish this?
Preaching that makes people realize they are against God. Jesus said, "He that is not with me is against me; and
he that gathereth not with me scattereth abroad." (Matt. 12:30). There is no middle ground. One is either for the
Lord, or for the devil. Those who are usually classified as "good moral people" think they are too good to be sent
to hell to be with Satan and all the immoral people for all eternity. And there are many deeply religious people,
like the men at Ephesus, (Acts 19:1-5), who are satisfied with what they have been taught, but who have never
been baptized into Christ. These people must be made to realize that they are against God until they come into
Christ in God's appointed way. People will respond in different ways to this kind of preaching. First, the hearts of
some will be broken. They will weep for themselves and their parents who never heard that kind of preaching.
Others will rebel, curse the preacher and swear that they will never listen to him again. Many treated Jesus and
his apostles like this. Many preachers today are afraid they will lose their attendance and their jobs if they do
that kind of preaching. They must be made to realize that if they don't do this kind of preaching they will lose
their souls in hell for not having the courage to do what the Lord wants them to do, and what they must do if
they ever save people from sin.
Preaching that makes people realize they hate God. Jesus said, "No man can serve two masters: for either he
will hate the one, and love the other; or else he will hold to one, and despise the other." (Matt. 6:24). Every
accountable person hates God or the devil; holds to God and despises the devil, or holds to the devil and
despises God. There is no middle ground where a man hates neither God nor the devil or despises neither God
nor the devil. The "good moral man" says, "I realize I do not obey God, but I still love him." But Jesus said, "If ye
love me, ye will keep my commandments." (John 14:15). There is no such thing as loving the Lord and refusing, or
neglecting, to obey him. This conclusion must be impressed upon people until they respond to the gospel call, or
openly declare themselves against God and all that is pure and holy. Jesus said, "Ye are my friends, if ye do the
things which I command you." (John 15:14). Every person is either a friend of the devil, or a friend of the Lord.
But if one does not keep the Lord's commandments he is not a friend of the Lord, but a friend of the devil. The
devil needs "good moral people" in his army. There are many people who will not be influenced by murderers,
adulterers, and drunkards, but they will be influenced to stay out of the Lord's army by these "good moral
people." This conclusion must be impressed upon people until they enlist in the Lord's army, or openly declare
that they prefer to serve in the devil's army and go to hell with him.
Preaching that makes people realize they are defiled and unfit for heaven. Sin defiles and pollutes the soul.
People at Corinth are said to have been great sinners, defiled by sin, but they were washed from their
uncleanness. (1 Cor. 6:11). Paul speaks of the church as having been "cleansed by the washing of water with the
word." (Eph. 5:26). He also says we have been saved by the mercy of God "through the washing of regeneration
and the renewing of the Holy Spirit." (Titus 3:5). Paul says all have sinned and that there is none righteous, no
not one, so all need to be cleansed from the defilement of sin. (Rom. 3:10). If one never bathes his body he soon
becomes unfit for polite society. So one who is never cleansed from the defilement of sin is unfit for the society
of heaven. This truth needs to be pressed upon people until they confess they are unclean and need to be
washed in the blood of the Lamb, or until they show their true colors and openly reject the Lord.
Preaching that makes people realize they prefer to be with the devil. God created men with the ability to compare
good and evil, to conclude which they prefer, and to live according to their preference. When people say they
prefer to live for God, but go on living for the devil, they are self-deceived or they are not telling the truth. Jesus
died for every man, making it possible for every person to live for him. Paul said, "He died for all, that they that
live should no longer live unto themselves, but unto him who for their sakes died and rose again," (2 Cor. 5:15).
God has not elected certain individuals to go to heaven and certain others to go to hell. He gave his Son to die
for all that whosoever will may come to the tree of life and live forever. And those who live for the devil are doing
so simply because they prefer to. If God had not made us with the ability to choose between him and the devil,
one might be excused for living for the devil. But since we have the ability to choose, there is no excuse for
preferring to live for the devil. This point must be pressed upon people with unrelenting force after they have
been taught how to choose God.
Preaching that makes people realize that all who live for the devil will go to the devil when they die. There is no
such thing as enjoying the pleasures of sin in this world and having eternal life with God in the world to come.
The choice we make in this life between God and the devil will determine which one we will be with in the next
world.
There are two general classes who are going to the devil — the religious and the nonreligious. Jesus said there
are some who will say, "Lord, Lord..." but will not be allowed to enter heaven (Matt. 7:21). Many will claim to have
served him, done many wonderful works in his name, but he will say, "I never knew you: depart from me, ye that
work iniquity." (Matt. 7:23).
That makes it necessary for gospel preachers today to point out unscriptural doctrines and practices so plainly
that all can understand and make a choice between that which is right and that which is wrong. This is classed
by many as "negative preaching," and they avoid it as they would a plague. But Jesus did it (Matt. 15 and 23), and
the apostles did it. (2 Tim. 2:16-18), and love for religious people who are deceived should force us to do it.
The next class of people going to the devil, of course, are the nonreligious people. They have chosen to live for
the devil because they prefer that kind of life. They are not deceived, but simply prefer not to have God in their
knowledge. They love the world and the things of this world rather than the things of God. They are unfit for the
association of the Lord and the saints of all ages. The lake that burns with fire and brimstone, where the devil
and his angels are, is the only fit place left for them.
Gospel preachers are duty-bound to press this lesson upon them with such force that they will either turn from
their wicked ways, or openly declare this to be their choice.
— via “Gospel Preceptor,”
www.gospelpreceptor.com