Two Gospel Meeting Preachers

Two Christian men each traveled to preach a gospel meeting for a congregation of Christ a few hours away.The first preacher limited his preaching to the truths the congregation already believed, not thinking it was his job to touch on brotherhood issues. Instead he did a great job of encouraging the congregation to continue to practice all the truths they already embraced. The second preacher likewise did a good job of encouraging the congregation to continue to practice the truths they already accepted, but he also understood it was his duty to warn (Ezekiel 3:18) the congregation of their sin, to expound unto them the “way of God more perfectly” (Acts 18:26) in areas they needed it.The first preacher did a great job of preaching how Christians should love their fellow man, and the brethren ate it up. They fell in love with that preacher. The second preacher likewise did a good job of preaching how Christians should love their fellow man, but he also demonstrated great love for the members of the congregation by preaching “all the counsel of God” (Acts 20:27), not just the parts they already agreed with, even at the risk of some getting perturbed at him. He truly loved the souls of his brethren so he wasn’t about to leave there without discussing areas where he thought their doctrinal knowledge was off.The first preacher was immediately signed up to come again the same time next year (II Timothy 4:3). The second preacher was never invited back, but left having learned more of the truth than ever before, because of in-depth Bible discussions with members prompted by the topics he had covered in his sermons during the week.