How the spirit of Liberalism has hindered Biblical evangelism

We live in a world that placed an emphasis on self-esteem and esteeming the beliefs of the individual on the grounds that everyone has a “right” to their own beliefs.  Indeed, we live in the age of postmodernism where everyone has their “personal truth” and everything that is true is deemed to be “opinion”. Everything that is the (often foolish) opinion of intellectuals is deemed to be truth with a capital T.

Sadly, this spirit of liberalism has crept into the modern Church. Many Christians are very sceptical about evangelism that uses the Law to confront people of their sins because it “offends” the unsaved. They tell you that it is inappropriate to use the “method”, as known as Way of the Master because it is not the Gospel message itself that will offend the unsaved, but the “method” offends. One of them told me that Australians will think that when you are asking them if they have ever lied, stolen or looked in lust, they will read it to be the confronter judging them. Even when you tell them that is can be done gently and people are often very open to answering such questions, they insist that it is “offensive” and “inappropriate” owing to lack of “cultural sensitivity”.

The Christian is a doctor of the soul. He or she is diagnosing the spiritual problem of the person whom he or she is witnessing to. Only the Christian can be a doctor of the soul because he can see spiritual things. The Greek root word of ‘psychiatry’ literally means medical treatment of the soul. Secular psychiatrists cannot see spiritual things. They are evil, perverse, wicked people who live by the flesh. Just as a slave is like a master, those who see psychiatrists will be typically unsaved people who treat psychiatrists are “high priests” of mental health.

These psychiatrists will try to boost their self-esteem. Such servants of satan will teach the doctrines of demons, such as self-esteem, stirring up lust in a person to boost one’s sexual “performance”, or focusing one’s anger on a person who has wronged them to be unforgiving. These psychiatrists tell people what they want to hear and use methods to make the person keep coming back to them so that they can earn more money and conduct their research. They are used by satan who is personified by the adulterous woman in Proverbs to whisper in their ear what unsaved people want to hear – things that make them feel good and help them suppress the knowledge of their own unrighteousness. Since secular psychiatrists are servants of satan, they are like the adulterous woman in Proverbs who flatters the unsuspecting fool of a client, as the slave is like the master.

This is not to say that the clients of secular psychiatrists are of no fault of their own. Psalm 1:1-6 tells us that: Blessed is the man who walks not in the counsel of the wicked, nor stands in the way of sinners, nor sits in the seat of scoffers; but his delight is in the law of the Lord, and on his law he meditates day and night. He is like a tree planted by streams of water that yields its fruit in its season, and its leaf does not wither. In all that he does, he prospers. The wicked are not so, but are like chaff that the wind drives away. Therefore the wicked will not stand in the judgment, nor sinners in the congregation of the righteous.

Secular psychiatrists are leading their clients to Hell with them. Their clients are drinking sweet poison that leads to Hell, rather than bitter medicine that cures them of their real condition: sin. Faithful are the wounds of a friend; but the kisses of an enemy are deceitful (Proverbs 27:6).

The Christian, on the other hand, leads people to Jesus Christ, who is the Narrow Gate to life (Matthew 7:13-14; John 10:28-30). In doing so, he must diagnose the spiritual problem of each unregenerate unsaved sinner and provide the cure. The disease of sin is destructive as the wages of sin is death (Romans 6:23). The unregenerate sinner feels comfortable in his sin and loves it – whether it is idolatry, fornication, adultery, hate, pride, lust, stealing, lying or any other sin that damns people to Eternity in Hell. To tell the unregenerate sinner that his sins are damning and that he needs to repent is extremely offensive to him, especially in an perverse, adulterous generation that denies the existence of God and claims that its needs a miracle, or “scientific evidence” of God’s existence which he already has from Creation (Matthew 12:39; Romans 1:19).

To tell people the truth about their sins is the most politically incorrect thing one can do, but it is the most loving thing one can do. This is because the world hates Truth, that is, Jesus Christ. Political correctness is not love for the souls of others, but really the love of sin and hatred of God as it elevates human standards to be above that of God’s standards. Political correctness is blatant, despicable, revolting idolatry. It is an abomination! Therefore, political correctness is against God.

The evangelist is not merely acting as a friend, he or she IS a friend of the unsaved by warning them that they are headed for Hell, a very real place where the fire never quenches and worm never dies (Mark 9:48). It is a place where there will be the weeping and gnashing of teeth (Matthew 13:42). He must never cease to bow down to the carnal human sensitivities of people, and not only show the cure, but give the cure, even when the person tries to resist it.  The evangelist may “slap” the unsaved on the face by telling them the Gospel, and this is for his good. While the kisses he receives from servants of satan may feel good, they will lead him to Hell.

Indeed, it is better to be slapped by the friend than kissed by an enemy (Proverbs 27:6).