by Chris Steele

God’s word commands that we inform people about sinful behavior, religious error, and false practices (2 Timothy 4:2-5; Acts 20:29-31). The warning must be done in the spirit of love and concern for the erring soul (Ephesians 4:15). But problems arise when we try to fulfill this command. When we point out error to some people, we hear the cry we are unloving and negative, which cannot possibly (at least in their minds) bring about harmony among believers. “Why can’t you just preach Christ and leave others alone?”

Well then, by all means, let’s preach Christ! Our Lord was very firm on the subject of sin. He never overlooked wrongdoing, even in religious leaders. This reality is seen in the scathing rebuke that Jesus made to the Pharisees in Matthew 23. Jesus was never hesitant in confronting error and exposing hypocrisy. The Pharisees might have said, “Just preach God, and leave us alone,” but the problem is, in order to preach God and/or Jesus you cannot leave people alone. Like Christ, we preach repentance (Matthew 3:2) and making the necessary changes in order to be saved (Luke 13:3). When Jesus preached about the strait and narrow and the wide and broad ways in Matthew 7:13-14, he implied that there is a choice that every one makes for the right way or the wrong way. The Lord even spoke of those who thought they were right, when in fact they were not. Notice how they were condemned because of their misunderstanding (Matthew 7:21-23). He could not leave them alone. They needed to know in order to have a chance.

Preaching Christ is preaching the truth, and the truth is disturbing at times (Matthew 10:34). But people need to hear it in order to be set free (John 8:32). Jesus wanted everyone to know that he was not going to leave them alone because he loved them (John 3:16; Romans 5:8). We cannot do any less.