DISCLAIMER : :
All opinions expressed here and or in other gists are mine alone and do not necessarily reflect the church as individuals or the church as an organization or institution.
At the root of this discussion is a deeper question than staging, sensitivity, or audience response:
Do we trust God to communicate His own message?
Altering the message out of fear that it may offend—whether emotionally, culturally, or personally—is not ultimately an act of care. It is an act of distrust. It assumes that God’s truth requires our protection, refinement, or softening in order to be effective.
Scripture teaches the opposite.
God does not ask us to manage outcomes. He does not ask us to curate reactions. He does not ask us to anticipate every heart and adjust His truth accordingly.
He asks us to obey.
“All Scripture is God-breathed and profitable for teaching, for reproof, for correction, and for training in righteousness.” (2 Timothy 3:16)
Our responsibility is simple and weighty: Read His Word. Do what it says. Trust Him with the rest.
When we begin to second-guess how the message might be received, we implicitly claim authority God has not given us.
It is God who governs:
- the meaning of His message
- the power of His Word
- the condition of the hearts that hear it
“So shall My word be that goes out from My mouth; it shall not return to Me empty, but it shall accomplish that which I purpose.” (Isaiah 55:11)
To dilute the message in advance is to assume that God cannot accomplish His purposes unless we intervene.
That is not humility. That is presumption.
A church is not good because it has many parishioners. A church is good when it preaches the truth.
A pastor is not good because he is eloquent, persuasive, or skilled in speech. A pastor is good when he speaks the Word of God faithfully.
An Easter Pageant is not good because it is impressive, polished, or draws a large crowd. It is good only if it faithfully conveys the truth of the gospel.
Anything else—numbers, applause, emotional response—is secondary at best and misleading at worst.
Christ Himself answered the question plainly:
“What is truth?” “Your word is truth.” (John 17:17)
That is the standard. Not comfort. Not consensus. Not success as the world defines it.
Faithfulness is not measured by how little offense we cause, but by how accurately we proclaim what God has said.
The cross was not safe. The gospel was never designed to be inoffensive. And God does not need us to make His truth palatable.
He needs us to be faithful.
If we obey Him—speak His Word, portray His truth, and trust His sovereignty—then we have done our part.
Everything else belongs to Him.