“All unrighteousness is sin.” – I John 5:17

Years ago, I heard the following statement from a young Christian lady. She said, “Pastors should only preach on homosexuality as often as they do other sins such as gluttony.” I found her statement intriguing, and I pondered her words for quite some time.  I would like to share a few of my thoughts pertaining to her statement…

Her statement carries a level of truth. – I somewhat understand the message behind her statement.  Sadly, many pastors have focused on the particular sin of homosexuality so much that they have developed their preaching ministry into weekly gay-bashing sessions from the pulpit. No wonder the lost world associates the word “evangelicals” with the term “gay-haters.” This is why ministers should never misuse the pulpit by harping on certain sins and ignoring others. The truth is that all sin is against a holy and righteous God. So instead of shutting a possible door of ministry by radiating a spirit of condemnation, the twenty-first century church needs to find a way to leave the door of ministry open to this particular group of hurting people who are in bondage to sin. This can only be accomplished by speaking the truth in love.

Her statement is seriously flawed. – In light of the recent culture shift on homosexuality, should homosexuality be addressed from the pulpit more often than other sins? Well, I would suggest that at this particular point on the moral timeline, yes it should. Why should pastors preach on homosexuality more often than gluttony?  It is because our culture is not aggressively trying to convince society that gluttony is okay. When two-thirds of Americans are overweight, Weight Watchers and Jenny Craig are very quick to warn of the health risks associated with overeating to a society addicted to food. Our culture understands overeating is not a good thing to accept and embrace, and they would frown upon anyone who would see obesity as a positive life choice. This obviously is a stark contrast to how our culture has responded to the sin of homosexuality. Culture says homosexuality is a good thing to accept. Through the years our society has increasingly demonstrated an attitude of tolerance, and they have encouraged our culture to see homosexuality as an accepted life choice. Yet this is the very reason why proclaimers of the gospel of God must actively speak the truth in love. Because of these direct attacks from social progressives on the Bible’s position on homosexuality, Christians must defend the truth of God’s Word. I know that when I preach against the sin of homosexuality, my message is not designed to condemn the sinner, but to combat the culture shift in which our society sees homosexuality as a social norm. Sadly, the attitude of acceptance and tolerance towards homosexuality has leaked into the twenty-first century church.  It is my responsibility to stop the leak from trickling into the congregation that the Lord has entrusted into my care. I also believe pastors have a responsibility to be relevant to the social issues pressing upon culture. It has been said that as a pastor prepares a sermon, he should have the Bible in one hand and a newspaper in the other. Good preaching will always be relevant and applicable to the times in which the message is preached. These are just a few reasons why pastors should preach on the subject of homosexuality more often than gluttony.

Preaching is a great responsibility and should be taken seriously. And the goal in preaching should always be for God to be glorified. This is only accomplished when man’s sinful condition is exposed, God’s saving grace magnified, and man’s need for repentance through faith in Jesus Christ is proclaimed.

I pray this young lady’s statement has caused you to think about these matters as well.  Ponder these things with me today, and may our churches be better stewards of the preaching ministry of our churches.