2 Peter 2:18 KJV
[18] “For when they speak great swelling words of vanity, they allure through the lusts of the flesh, through much wantonness, those that were clean escaped from them who live in error.”
Apostates are good at declaring lofty-sounding nonsense. They fill their sermons with worthless, meaningless words that are devoid of truth. While their words may tickle the ears of the congregation, they are leading them down a path of deception. These false teachers have learned to speak skillfully without ever saying anything. They preach empty sermons that stir emotions and receive great applause. They are experts at blowing verbal bubbles! They have sound without substance.
Sadly, it has infiltrated many of our Independent Baptist Churches. We have men today who are not apostates, but they have learned how to preach without declaring what the congregation needs to hear. Our responsibility as preachers is to preach the whole counsel of God’s Word. Telling people the truth should be our primary goal. Sometimes telling the truth excites people, and sometimes it makes them angry. However, our goal is to glorify God and please Him through our obedience in preaching. There are preachers who are more concerned with pleasing themselves and their congregation than the God who called them.
Preaching is not meant to appeal to our flesh but to our spirit. A true man of God will preach the truth no matter the cost. Now, I do not think that a preacher should strive to beat up a congregation. He should be clothed with humility as he stands to preach the Word of God. He must remember that he needs the message as much as the congregation. A real man of God will speak the truth in love. He can have compassion and conviction at the same time.
Think about how far we have come in our pulpits today. We have traded preachers for philosophers. Some men depend on psychology rather than spirituality. The sad thing is that many congregations do not know the difference. They stand in awe of the personality, charisma, and vocabulary of these phony preachers. They believe that if it sounds good, then God must approve of it. We must listen carefully to the content of a sermon to see if it agrees with the King James Bible. No matter how popular a man may be, if he denies the truth, we must beware of him.