We Preach Truth. The Holy Spirit Convicts.

There's something many Christians have forgotten. I even had to be reminded of it today in church.  

The Holy Spirit is in the world to convict of sin, righteousness and judgment.

When Peter preached to the crowd in Jerusalem on the day of Pentacost, he was filled with the Spirit—preaching the truth. He told them in no uncertain terms, "Therefore let all the house of Israel know assuredly that God has made this Jesus, WHOM YOU CRUCIFIED, both Lord and Christ." (Acts 2:36). He didn’t pussyfoot around the issue.

The response: “Now when they heard this, they were CUT TO THE HEART, and said to Peter and the rest of the apostles, "Men and brethren, what shall we do?"” v.37 In other words, they were convicted. The Holy Spirit was speaking through Peter and they got convicted.

Their action: repentance.

A few chapters later, Stephen is on trial for his faith, and he preaches the truth. He was “filled with the Spirit” and preached to the Sanhedrin. In no uncertain terms he told them, “You stiff-necked and uncircumcised in heart and ears! You always resist the Holy Spirit; as your fathers did, so do you. Which of the prophets did your fathers not persecute? And they killed those who foretold the coming of the Just One, of whom you now have become the betrayers and murderers, who have received the law by the direction of angels and have not kept it." (Acts 7:51-53)

Their response: “When they heard these things they were CUT TO THE HEART, and they gnashed at him with their teeth.” V.54 In other words, they also got convicted. The Holy Spirit through Stephen took the word of God that is quick and powerful and sharper than a two-edged sword and CUT to the heart of the matter.

Their action: they gnashed their teeth, hauled Stephen out of town and stoned him.

Here’s the point of it all: Both men preached the truth. They both laid the blame where it truly belonged. One group of people responded humbly in repentance, the other responded in pride and refused to acknowledge the truth. In fact, in Stephen’s case, it says they actually “stopped their ears”.

Our job is to preach the message. How people respond to the message is between them and God. Just because we get a negative response, doesn’t mean we are preaching the wrong message! Again, just because we get a negative response, doesn't mean we are preaching the wrong message!

I think it was Wesley or Spurgeon who said to a young evangelist, “When you preach, people should either repent or get angry. If neither happens, you should not call yourself an evangelist.” Jesus said if they hated Him, they will hate us too.

We as Christians, have gotten very confused over all this. We think if people get mad at us, we must be doing something wrong. Must have said the wrong thing or at the wrong time. We MUST remember, that we do not compromise or silence the message to suit the sinner. We have let the devil guilt trip us into silence for far too long. We preach truth, the Holy Spirit convicts, and the sinner either repents or gets mad. It is not our fault if he plugs his ears, gnashes his teeth and refuses to heed the truth.

BTW, that was a great message today, Brandon!



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