How do we come across when we engage in Christian apologetics (old definition: giving an answer)? How do we go about proclaiming the Gospel? Is our overall tone strident and loveless? We need to warn others about false gospels, false teachers, biblical deception, and their need to repent and turn to Christ for salvation. But what about ourselves? Do we need to repent in how we go about it? If so, and after having done so, is there a biblical role model, an example, we can emulate? I believe there is: Jeremiah, the weeping prophet.
Jeremiah 13:17–18: “But if you will not listen to it, my soul will sob in secret for such pride; and my eyes will bitterly weep And flow down with tears, Because the flock of the Lord has been taken captive” (NAU).
What is Jeremiah’s response to Israel’s rejection of his prophetic warnings (or rather God’s prophetic warnings through him)? Weeping. As we read through Jeremiah, God directs him to give many stern reproofs, including God’s death sentence to the false prophet Hananiah (Jeremiah 28:12–17). But underneath, Jeremiah is weeping for Israel’s sins, for their refusal to repent, knowing that God’s judgment is coming, the destruction of the Temple, the city of Jerusalem, and the nation.
While we can hope and pray for national repentance, that is not the direction signs are currently pointing. It is likely that our biblical God-directed warnings will become stronger, increasingly at odds not only with where the culture is heading, but sadly, where much of the church seems to be going as well.
Weeping makes sense. The culture, along with significant segments of the church, are on a path that leads directly to hell. The culture not only embraces sin, but praises those who do it. Several church denominations do the same, also denying that Jesus is God, and what the Scriptures have to say about heaven and hell. Eternal hell is not a place a believer should wish on anyone, no matter how severe that person’s sins might be (even Taliban fighters). If God takes no pleasure in the death of the wicked, see Ezekiel 32, why should we? Better that we weep over those who love darkness and embrace evil. Their end will be very different from what they are expecting.
We must proclaim the truth to a lost world, to a world that loves sin and darkness. But as Jesus wept over Jerusalem and its impending destruction, Luke 19:41–44, let us also weep.
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The Murder of Charlie Kirk, Part 3b: The Philosophies Behind Our Culture of Lies
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How Are We Doing? Part 13
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How Are We Doing? Part 12
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How Are We Doing? Part 9
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How Are We Doing? Part 8
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How Are We Doing? Part 7
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How Are We Doing? Part 6
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How Are We Doing? Part 5
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A Brief Summary of Islam, Part 6
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A Brief Summary of Islam, Part 4
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