Use Those Emotional Appeals Towards The Lost!

Historically and traditionally speaking, the "Primitive" or "Old School" ministers preached most often with great emotional appeals, appealing to all the emotions and prejudices, such as sympathy, anger, etc. This, in itself, is not an evil, though it has been abused. I would not want to listen to a discourse that lacked feeling and conviction on the part of the speaker. Some of the best preachers have been well balanced in this regard.

The old "Regular" Baptists, and the old "United" Baptists, not to mention the first "Sandy Creek" Baptists, had ministers who could, like many old Hardshell preachers, preach with great boldness and fervor and truly stir the emotions of both saints and sinners. However, today's Hardshell preachers have not imitated them in all respects. They have too much become "emotional preachers."

Stirring emotions by preaching truth is sure to happen, and we are glad to see it. But, stirring emotions can also be a dangerous thing, as mobs and riots attest,

I have been in numerous meetings where preachers became excited in their delivery and in points being emphasized in preaching and the emotions of the congregation also got excited and stirred. This is good in moderation. But, why have today's PBs limited their emotional appeals or stirrings to the already saved? Why do they not use the same emotional and spirited appeals to the unregenerate? 

Your forefathers did not fail to give warm and heart felt appeals to those who are lost. So, who was right? You, or them? What are you afraid of? What scripture will you be violating by preaching in such a manner to the lost? Are you afraid that one of the non elect might be saved? Did the bible ministers and evangelists give fervent appeals to the spiritually dead or not?

If you say, I do not appeal to the dead because they are unable to hear or understand. That is true. But, why lack ye faith in God and the Spirit? Can the Spirit not make them to hear and understand? Is this not what Elders Watson, Clark, and others asked the "ultraist" brothers to answer?

Elder Grigg Thompson Warns Sinners

Elder Grigg M. Thompson

1811-1888

 Elder Grigg Thompson in a sermon said:

"Ungodly sinner, awful as the thought may be, and as much as you may try to put it out of your mind, or look at it as being far in the future, that day is coming when you will have to stand before your Judge; your condition will then be unalterable; you will remain eternally a wicked blasphemer, and the smoke of your torment will rise Up forever and ever. This awful truth is recorded in this book that is not to be sealed, but is to be read in all the churches, and proclaimed by all the faithful servants of our Lord, saying, “Woe to the wicked, it shall go ill with him; the reward of his hands shall be given him.” There can be no mistake; for he says, “Behold, I come quickly: my reward is with me, to give every man as his works shall be.” The thing is fixed; there will be no book of accounts to run over, and debts and credits to be canceled; the works of the wicked have been wicked works, and the reward shall be according to them. The justice of God will be fully vindicated in giving to the wicked according as his works shall be." (SERMON ON Re 22:17 - see here)

Observations

1. Thompson preached to ungodly lost sinners. He preached like his contemporaries (Watson, Fain, Clark, etc.) in this regard.

2. Thompson warned the wicked about the coming day of judgment. Hardshells today do not.

3. Thompson was not being "Arminian" in preaching to the spiritually dead.

4. Today's Hardshells would accuse Thompson of trying to "scare people into heaven."

What Accompanies The Kingdom?

"Jesus was going throughout all Galilee, teaching in their synagogues and proclaiming the gospel of the kingdom, and healing every kind of disease and every kind of sickness among the people." (Matt. 4:23 nasb)

The gospel of the kingdom involves the coming of the Messiah and his rule, which reign will be marked by "healing" of every sickness and disease. When all sickness and disease are removed from this present evil world, then will the kingdom of God and Heaven be everywhere present in its destined fullness.

Said J. Dwight Pentecost (emphasis mine):

"...the miracles reveal the conditions that will prevail in His kingdom when He reigns. It will be a kingdom where there is no sickness, no hunger, no sin, no death. All creation will be under His control. These same conditions were predicted by the prophets in their descriptions of the messianic kingdom." (Things To Come, page 207, see here)

This is profound and must be understood to know what is the essence of the promised kingdom of God and Heaven.

"Jesus answered and said to them, Go and show John again those things which you do hear and see: The blind receive their sight, and the lame walk, the lepers are cleansed, and the deaf hear, the dead are raised up, and the poor have the gospel preached to them." (Matt. 11:4-5 kjv)

When healing and resurrection have been completed, then and only then will it be true that "the kingdom of heaven is with men" in its fullness and everlasting character. As long as there is sickness, disease, hunger and want, grief and pain, and death and mortality, the kingdom of God will be a matter of hope.

What will characterize the kingdom of God being on earth? It will be populated by only immortal happy people!

Accepting Jesus Is Salvation By Works?

"He (Bradley) at one time preached "salvation by works", you know "you must accept Christ as your savior to be saved." (Elder Chris Folsom in the "Forum" for Feb. 22, 2002 - see HERE)

What biblical ignorance such a statement reveals! What think ye? Remember, "accepting" is simply "receiving." To teach that men must receive Christ to be saved is teaching salvation by works?

Try getting into Heaven apart from accepting him!

Ear Tickling Preachers

"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." (II Tim. 4:3 kjv)

What does 2 Timothy 4:3 mean by itching ears?

Wrote one writer (at gotquestions.org see HERE - emphasis mine):

"The Greek word translated “itching” literally means “to itch, rub, scratch, or tickle.” To want one’s ears “tickled” is to desire massages rather than messages—sermons that charm rather than challenge, entertain rather than edify, and please rather than preach. The people Paul warns about will have, as one commentator put it, “ears which have to be continually titillated with novelties.”

"“Itching ears” is a figure of speech that refers to people’s desires, felt needs, or wants. It is these desires that impel a person to believe whatever he wants to believe rather than the actual truth itself. When people have “itching ears,” they decide for themselves what is right or wrong, and they seek out others to support their notions. “Itching ears” are concerned with what feels good or comfortable, not with the truth—after all, truth is often uncomfortable. Paul’s warning is that the church would one day contain those who only opened their ears to those who would scratch their “itch.”"

(Observation: the church world is full of these preachers and leaders!)

"Those with “itching ears” only want teachers who will assure them that all is well, teachers who say, “Peace, peace . . . when there is no peace” (Jeremiah 6:14). Where there is a demand for something, the suppliers are not far away. Paul says that not only will there be great demand for watered-down, personalized messages, but there will be “a great number of teachers” willing to provide such pap and steer people away from “sound doctrine.”"

Well, amen to that! I am glad that I am not alone in this opinion. The proliferation of Sophist and "ear tickling" preachers and their cults is phenomenal and a sign of coming judgment.

Signs Of The Parousia

Few writers on the subject divide the signs of the return of Christ into their categories. Yet, the signs are clearly in one of several categories. Of these I have already written much over the years, particularly the social signs.

Social or Moral Signs

- listed extensively in several NT books (See my postings The End Is Near 1 and The End Is Near 2

Economic Signs

which would include

- technology and scientific advancements

Political Signs

which would include

- relations between nations
- see my postings The End Is Near 7 and Distress Of Nations

Religious Signs

which would include

- rise of false teachers and false Christs
- apostasy of the visible church
- see my posting The End Is Near 3 and The End Is Near 4

On Salvation Being Conditional or Unconditional

A condition, most often in scripture, simply denotes a connection between one thing and another, and says nothing about the nature and causes of the condition.  Thus, to say that faith is a condition for salvation simply says that faith precedes salvation by way of connection.  In itself it does not affirm that the condition existed because of the free will and effort of those who have faith.  The condition for salvation is faith, but faith itself is conditioned upon the sovereign and efficacious work of God.  So, though salvation depends upon faith, faith depends upon the will and working of God.  

From Chpt. 121 of the book "The Hardshell Baptist Cult" and from the series of chapters titled "Conditional or Unconditional?" (see HERE)

Remedy For Lust

"This I say then, Walk in the Spirit, and ye shall not fulfil the lust of the flesh." (kjv)

What would a physician of the soul and spirit prescribe as a remedy for the "desires (lusts) of the flesh"?

Dr. Paul advises that the patient "walk by the Spirit."