The Absence of Flaming Pulpits in America
1 Nov 2006
You’ve probably heard the joke: “How can you tell when politicians are lying? Whenever they’re moving their lips.” Why do politicians lie? Is it not because we would never vote for one who told the truth? Any politician who dares to tell the truth is unelectable in today’s America.
Just ask yourself how much of a chance a candidate would have of being elected if he or she came out and said: (1) Abortion is the killing of unborn children and all who support a “woman’s right to chose” have hands that are stained with the blood of the innocent. (2) Islam is a militant religion out to destroy Western Civilization and to force everyone in the world to their knees before its false god. (3) Homosexuality is sexual deviancy that has signaled the end of all civilizations that have ever legitimized it. (4) The greatest problem in America today is the disintegration of the traditional family. (5) America’s only hope of survival is revival; we must repent of our sin and turn to Christ before it is too late. You know, as well as I do, that such a candidate would be crucified by the media, eschewed by both political parties, disdained by voters, and repeatedly ridiculed and poked fun at by the likes of Jay Leno, David Letterman, Jon Stewart and Bill Maher.
All of this speaks volumes about the dismal state of affairs in today’s America and our country’s bleak prospects for the future. Oh, I know that saying such a thing puts me at risk of being called unpatriotic, as well as a host of other things. Still, I must speak out, regardless of cost and consequence. Like Jeremiah of old, God’s Word is a fire in my breast that burns in my bones so that I cannot help but proclaim God’s unpopular truth to a truth-hating world (Jeremiah 20:7-9). I fear, however, that few pulpits today are occupied by fellow heart-burning preachers.
This absence of flaming pulpits is another grave problem in present-day America, as may be surmised from the famous words of Alexis de Tocqueville. Having searched for the source of America’s greatness, the famous Frenchman finally concluded, “I sought for the greatness and genius of America in her commodious harbors and her ample rivers and it was not there...in her fertile fields and boundless forests and it was not there...in her rich mines and her vast world commerce and it was not there...in her democratic Congress and her matchless Constitution and it was not there. Not until I went into the churches of America and heard her pulpits flame with righteousness did I understand the secret of her genius and power. America is great because she is good, and if America ever ceases to be good, she will cease to be great."
Has today’s America ceased to be good because the fire in her pulpits has all but gone out? In today’s “Purpose Driven” pulpits, where church growth trumps all things, including truth, pastors refuse to proclaim unpopular truths for fear of ruffling congregational feathers. Fiercely competing with one another to grow the largest church in town, today’s pastors feel they must keep church folks comfy and refrain from saying anything that may cause squirming in the pews. Any hint of pessimism in the pulpit may cause angst in the pews that results in an exodus of congregants to a sister church whose positive preaching pastor is more adept at coddling a congregation. Thus, America’s pastors are becoming more and more like her politicians; men who do what is personally expedient rather than what is pleasing to God and best for our country.
I understand that I’ll never be elected to political office. Moreover, I’ll never pastor a mega church or make People Magazine’s lists of most popular people. But that’s okay with me. You see, I’m a preacher, not a politician. I don’t care about being a celebrity, it comes at far too high a price; namely, the cost of conscience and convictions. All I want to do with the balance of my life is to make each day count all that it can for Christ. Therefore, I’ll keep telling the truth, well aware of the fact that this truth-hating world will treat me the same as it did my truth-telling Savior. Still, I’d rather be a heart-burning preacher than anything I know. God forbid that my fire will ever be doused out by selfish ambition. As far as I’m concerned, becoming the president of the Southern Baptist Convention or even the president of the United States of America is a horrible demotion if I have to step down from a flaming pulpit to get elected.
Don Walton
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