Complimentary Story
I think that as mature followers of Christ, very eager to do the will of God as His servants here on earth, we can sometimes come across negatively to the unbelieving and unsaved world. Because we’re so zealous for righteousness, truth, and the truth of God’s Word, we can sometimes become somewhat smug, under the banner of the old adage, “Truth sounds like hate to those who hate the truth.”While this is most definitely true, and while I do believe the most loving thing we can possibly ever do as Christ-followers is to speak the truth, preach the Word, in season and out, and invest the limited number of days we have in this world in the work of the ministry, I think some of us need to check our attitudes — and make sure we’re not being self-righteous, but instead, true ambassadors of Jesus in these dark days.
In today’s culture and society, truth does sound like hate to those who hate the truth. But in most every case, it’s not entirely the fault of the unbelievers. We’re dealing with generations of people who’ve been manipulated and brainwashed to hate the things of God. We’re dealing with people who’ve been taught all their lives in public schools and colleges that there are no moral absolutes, there is no God, and to simply “follow their hearts.” But we need to understand that following one’s heart is dangerous, even for the most devout of Christians. God’s Word tells us, “The heart is deceitful above all things and desperately wicked.” We’re also instructed to “Trust the Lord with all your heart and lean not on your own understanding. In all your ways, acknowledge Him, and He will direct your paths. Be not wise in your own eyes; fear the Lord and turn away from evil. This will bring healing to your body and refreshment to your bones.”
Many in today’s culture no longer have the slightest clue Who God is, Who Jesus is, or Who the Holy Spirit is. They live for worldly indulgences because it’s all they know. While they may feel “something” very important is missing from their lives, they have no idea what that “something” might be, and so they turn to the only things they do know — ideas like homosexuality, transgenderism and hedonism — to fill the void. They also throw their full support behind the latest cultural trends the lying mainstream news media is pushing on behalf of the Leftist government agenda.
These are the ones who support abortion, sold to them as “women’s healthcare.” They supported “Black Lives Matter,” because they were duped into believing all white people were responsible for the suffering that black people have endured, not understanding that the very real oppression, mental health, drug abuse and a dependency mindset that has caused the blight we see in our inner cities was actually implemented by Leftist agendas designed to keep black people and other minorities in poverty and slavery.
These are the ones who believed the lie of “toxic masculinity,” another nefarious ploy of the devil to vilify all real men, especially all white, Christian males, as the cause of all injustice in the world. These are the ones who believed the lies of mainstream news and the intensely-programmed social media sites that pushed the mask and jab mandates. These are also the ones who buy into the propaganda of the “climate change crisis,” and now fully support Ukraine — the epicenter of money-laundering and the sex-slave trade and the third most corrupt country in the world, even as the fat-cat politicians grow unbelievably rich, on the backs of the Ukrainian people as they funnel money in, and then draw it out to line their own pockets.
There are many deceptions in the world. Those at the top of the food chain seem to own everything already, and the media — mainstream and social media, and even some alternative media outlets, set up as fake “controlled opposition,” are pushing more lies and brainwashing. And when you subtract GOD from all this, the people become like sheep. We’ve now taken God out of just about everything, and even out of the majority of our churches today. Why in the world would we expect most everyday, ordinary people in our society to be able to comprehend the truth, when they’re lied to at every turn under a false veil of what appears to be legitimate?
Paul said in 1 Corinthians 2, “But the natural man does not receive the things of the Spirit of God, for they are foolishness to him; nor can he know them, because they are spiritually discerned.” As I’ve said many times, it’s not that people don’t want to know the truth — they think they already do know the truth. But just about everything in our culture today is a lie from the devil — and the politicians and globalists have purposely planned it that way. The natural man cannot discern spiritual things, because he does not have the Holy Spirit. So we shouldn’t expect unsaved people to act like Christians. Honestly, they are clueless. They may indulge in some form of “spirituality,” but in most cases, this is of the enemy — again, even in many of our churches, most of which now only speak the “easy” and “soft” things that make people feel better about themselves, but will never present Jesus Christ and His salvation in it’s full glory, because to do so would most certainly mean offending someone somewhere... even though Jesus Himself was called the “Rock of Offense.”
Have you noticed that in today’s world, you can freely speak on just about every Leftist agenda topic but the minute you mention the name of “Jesus,” it’s as if you’ve just thrown a deadly venomous snake on the table? People recoil at His holy Name. Because as He Himself said of the religious leaders of His day, they are “of their father, the devil.”
I’ve been involved in a lot of street preaching ministry — at abortion centers, at “pride” parades and festivals and at “drag queen story times.” Zealous Christians will attempt to protest and stand in the gap for the lost, who are on the broad road to destruction. Many different tactics are used in situations like this, and although many do this extremely well, some are very poor witnesses for Christ.
Some people will simply stand on the corner and read Scripture through a megaphone. Some will yell and scream and enter into arguments with unsaved sinners. Some will hold signs that may, indeed, speak the truth, but come across as insulting — once again, because the unsaved, unrepentant, and ignorant sinner cannot grasp spiritual matters. So all their works become fruitless. Perhaps this is why we’re instructed to not “throw pearls before swine.” More often than not, all these methods accomplish only one thing: violent confrontations with God-hating individuals who cannot stand to have their twisted worldviews challenged.
Other, more passive church-goers will avoid all controversy entirely, and rely on “friendship evangelism.” In other words, “love” people to God by never saying anything that goes contrary to what they think or believe. Of course, this never works, because they never muster the courage to speak the truth. Others will try to “model” the “Christian lifestyle” to the lost world. But again, doing only this, will seldom lead anyone to Christ, because the truth is never spoken and lies are never confronted.
As well-meaning as these Christians are — those who actively take their faith out of the church seats and into the streets, and those who meekly avoid all controversy but still want to win souls to Christ, as long as it doesn’t stir up any trouble — they’re missing the mark, drastically. They’re not representing our Lord and Savior appropriately and their efforts are usually always in vain.
What I’m saying here is that we must get out of the seats and into the streets. We must model our Christian faith for all to see. And we must never let any lie go unchallenged. We must “have nothing to do with the fruitless deeds of darkness, but rather reprove them.” Some Bible translations say “expose” them. But before we go to those mean streets, we need to prepare our hearts and we need to pray for wisdom, discernment and for the Holy Spirit to provide the exact words we should speak in every circumstance and encounter.
You see, there are ways to truly witness to the lost effectively, without throwing our pearls before swine who will never listen, and without creating a scene where we appear to be mean-spirited, hateful bigots. Paul said it best when he wrote to Timothy: “The Lord’s servant must not quarrel, but must be gentle to everyone, able to teach and patient, instructing his opponents with gentleness. Perhaps God will grant them repentance, leading them to a knowledge of the truth. Then they may come to their senses and escape the devil’s trap, having been captured by him to do his will.” (2 Timothy 2:24-26).
I’ve done street ministry many times, often at the very gates of hell, and each time, my heart breaks for those who are lost and perishing. Because I know they’re only in the situation they’re in because they’ve been brainwashed, indoctrinated and lied to. The leadership of those pushing for the murder of babies, the leadership of the LGBTQP+ and “transgender” movements and the leadership of organizations like “Black Lives Matter” know exactly what they’re doing. But their minions do not. They’re victims of demonic lies.
Margaret Sanger, founder of Planned Parenthood stated that their goal was to exterminate black people, but they didn’t want people to know it. Public school teachers have been caught red-handed plotting and planning how to indoctrinate children into sexual perversion without their parents’ knowledge. And the leadership of Black Lives Matter stated openly that they were trained Marxists, but they didn’t want that to become public knowledge either. Those behind the scam-demic of COVID and the deadly jabs that followed, censored truth-tellers ruthlessly in order to keep their dirty little secrets. The same is true of the unconscionable actions of hospitals following the official COVID protocols, killing milllions intentionally, for profit. The fruitless deeds of darkness that all these so-called “leaders” engage in are done under the cover of darkness, in stealth — so that their victims will never know the real agenda.
So understand that when you engage with someone who has believed the lies, you’re dealing with brainwashed victims of a much larger agenda. Show them some mercy and grace. These are not necessarily evil people, though there is no bottom to which an unsaved, unrepentant sinner will not sink without Jesus as their Savior and the Holy Spirit as their Counselor. Our Lord weeps over these lost souls, and so should we. We should not be condemning in our speech toward them. Truly, they know not what they do.
I’ve only been successful in doing street ministry when I’ve been able to speak gently, humbly and patiently with those lost souls. With a gentle and humble demeanor, you can usually have a conversation. Yes, often times they’ll try to engage you in a circular argument that makes no sense, straight from their handlers’ handbooks. But sometimes you can break through all the nonsense. On one occasion I did that simply by stating the words, “you’ve been lied to...your teachers have lied to you and your church has lied to you. You’re being used as nothing more than a pawn in their twisted game.” And then I asked, “Do you want to know the truth?” This led to rescuing a group of six homosexuals from that lifestyle.
On another occasion, I was able to gently inform a couple on their way to have their unborn baby killed that they were being taken advantage of, for money. I was able to tell them that our group was ready, willing and prepared to help them through their current circumstances. I was able to tell them how precious their baby was, made in the image of God, and how we would provide real medical care, and help with housing and all their expenses and needs — in short, that there was an alternative. That baby is six years old now.
The bottom line, friends, is that we can be the salt and light we are required by God to be and we can and must educate and inform, but we do not have to insult. Simply speak the truth, expose the lies and provide the answers to the lost, suffering in turmoil at the devil’s hands. But the key, as found in 2 Timothy, is to do it gently, humbly and patiently. And be genuine — not “holier than thou.” They see that as the hypocrisy it very often is. As Jesus said, “By this all will know that you are My disciples: if you have love for one another.” Amen.
