worthless visions

I remember an early criticism of my preaching. “You can’t confront people with their sin like that,” this pastor said. “You teach them doctrine and let God convict them. Let them make the connection to their own lives.”

I tried to take that advice to heart, but I just can’t do it. Taken out of the context of my life, the Bible is a dry historical document. Taken out of the context of the Bible, my life is anything I want it to be.

But I could never really articulate my visceral negative reaction to this pastor’s view until I read Lamentations 2:14: “The visions of your prophets were false and worthless; they did not expose your sin to ward off your captivity. The prophecies they gave you were false and misleading.”

Now I know what I was feeling back then: so then what’s the point! How does preaching help people if it doesn’t confront sin? The prophets of Judah did the people a huge disservice. They gave the people permission to continue in their sin, and the Babylonian exile was the result.

Any gospel that doesn’t start with my sin is a false gospel, because without sin I don’t need a savior. Any vision of an obedient life that doesn’t hold me accountable is as false and worthless as the prophecies that led Judah to destruction.

I think that pastor was trying to make more room for grace and saw my preaching as condemnation. But grace isn’t grace if there’s nothing to forgive; grace isn’t good news if there’s no sense of guilt.

Since that time I try always to preach about grace, but I refuse to bring a message that cheapens grace. Maybe I’m wrong about that, but it doesn’t feel wrong.