Standing for Truth
We need a new generation of Christians who will boldly stand for truth and oppose sin in order to preserve our civilization.
A.W. Tozer emphasizes the urgent need for Christians to stand firm in truth amidst a culture that promotes a complacent and non-confrontational faith. He critiques the modern church for its reluctance to speak against sin and false teachings, which has led to a loss of respect and influence in society. Tozer calls for a revival of boldness akin to the prophet Elijah, urging believers to confront the moral decay around them rather than retreating into silence. He questions the current state of American Christianity, lamenting the loss of discernment and the failure to recognize the spiritual battles at hand. The sermon serves as a wake-up call for Christians to reclaim their voice and actively engage in the fight against sin.
Text
We have developed in recent times a peace-loving, soft-spoken, tame and harmless brand of Christian of whom the world has no fear and for whom it has little respect. We are careful, for instance, never to speak in public against any of the false cults lest we be thought intolerant. We fear to talk against the destructive sins of modern civilization for fear someone will brand us as bigoted and narrow. Little by little we have been forced off the hard earth into a religious cloud-land where we are permitted to wing our harmless way around, like swallows at sundown, saying nothing that might stir the ire of the sons of this world.
That Neo-Christianity, which seems for the time to be the most popular (and is certainly the most aggressive), is very careful not to oppose sin. It wins its crowds by amusing them and its converts by hiding from them the full implications of the Christian message. It carries on its projects after the ballyhoo methods of American business. Well might we paraphrase Wordsworth and cry, "Elijah, thou shouldst be living at this hour; America has need of thee." We stand in desperate need of a few men like Elijah who will dare to face up to the brazen sinners who dictate our every way of life.
Sin in the full proportions of a revolution or a plague has all but destroyed our civilization while church people have played like children in the marketplace. What has happened to the spirit of the American Christian? Has our gold become dim? Have we lost the spirit of discernment till we can no longer recognize our captors? How much longer will we hide in caves while Ahab and Jezebel continue to pollute the temple and ravage the land? Surely we should give this some serious thought and prayer before it is too late--if indeed it is not too late already.
Sermon Outline
- The Problem with Modern Christianity
- The Consequences of this Approach
- The Need for a New Generation of Christians
- Men and women who will dare to face up to brazen sinners
- The spirit of discernment and the ability to recognize captors
Key Quotes
“We stand in desperate need of a few men like Elijah who will dare to face up to the brazen sinners who dictate our every way of life.” — A.W. Tozer
“What has happened to the spirit of the American Christian? Has our gold become dim? Have we lost the spirit of discernment till we can no longer recognize our captors?” — A.W. Tozer
Application Points
- We must be willing to take a stand against sin and its destructive consequences, even if it means being unpopular with the world.
- We need to pray for the spirit of discernment to recognize the captors of our society and to stand against them.
- We must be willing to face up to the brazen sinners who dictate our values and morals, and to speak out against their destructive ways.