When I introduced our church’s new preaching series last January, I asked our congregation to pray I’d still have a job at the end.
I was only half joking.
For the next two months, we focused on how the gospel gives us perspective for navigating some of our modern world’s most divisive and confusing issues. The ones that derail dinner conversations and clog social media feeds. The ones that stir doubts, fuel anger and suspicion, erode friendships, and generally test faith. In the series, we tackled cancel culture, politics, abortion, race, expressive individualism, homosexuality, and gender identity.
My prayer request wasn’t in vain. What happened as a result of the series was both surprising and encouraging.
Rather than encountering angry criticism or running afoul of tribal loyalties, I found the flock received these sermons with eagerness, gratitude, and even relief. They appreciated our church’s willingness to address controversial issues in a way that lowered the temperature and recalibrated us to the gospel. Several commented on how they were moved from fear and anxiety to peace and courage.
When we looked at how the gospel helps us to understand the abortion crisis in America, for example, the reaction wasn’t only a deeper resolve to protect the unborn and care for mothers. Some found the freedom to confess past abortions with confidence in Christ’s mercy.
The sermon series was risky, but Jesus moved in our church, and the congregation grew in clarity, confidence, and compassion. As difficult as it sounds to walk into a cultural minefield with the gospel, pastors should seriously consider preaching a series on tough cultural issues. Here’s why.
1. Everyone already talks about these issues.
As uncomfortable as it may feel to bring up divisive and controversial topics, the reality is that you’re not the one bringing them up.
Our news feeds and text threads are filled with endless dialogue about these subjects, and many of those threads are marked more by outrage than by insight. It’s wise and important for churches to weigh in as well—not as one more opinion in an overcrowded comment section but as witnesses to Christ and heralds of God’s Word.
We need to bring the good news of Christ to bear on each controversial matter. Otherwise, we’re leaving it to the loudest podcasters and pundits to disciple our flocks.
2. God’s people are looking for guidance.
The last thing I want is for the weekly headlines to dictate my preaching focus on Sundays. I’d much rather address issues as they arise naturally from each book of the Bible. But sometimes the cultural moment calls for more direct engagement, lest the sheep end up wandering the wilderness without a shepherd.
While there will always be some whose “itching ears” simply want you to confirm their views (2 Tim. 4:3), most are simply looking for help. With so many voices arguing confidently and obsessively, it can be difficult for many to know what to think. Your pulpit is a means of grace and an important tool the Lord has given you for pastoring your flock through dangerous terrain.
Your pulpit is a means of grace and an important tool the Lord has given you for pastoring your flock through dangerous terrain.
3. The gospel is sufficient even for controversial topics.
It can be overwhelming to think about tackling divisive and complex subjects head-on. I almost canceled the series several times before we launched. But our confidence as shepherds doesn’t come from our own expertise. It comes from the sufficiency of our chief Shepherd. Our confidence (and thus our counsel) isn’t based on our own wisdom but on the gospel.
As I ventured into each issue with our congregation, God’s Word not only pointed the way forward but also supplied the guardrails to keep us from veering off the road into either unfettered assimilation (where the church becomes indistinguishable from the world) or self-righteous condemnation (where we so distance ourselves from the world that we’re no longer acting as witnesses). Whatever the subject, the gospel frees us to simultaneously uphold the sinfulness of sin and the sufficiency of grace. It’s our hope, power, and guide for living out our faith in an ever-changing world.
Whatever the subject, the gospel frees us to simultaneously uphold the sinfulness of sin and the sufficiency of grace.
That doesn’t mean land mines will never go off. However courageous or compassionate you are in the pulpit, some may still take offense. But even then, God is giving you an opportunity to let the gospel do its refining work in both you and your hearers. Conflict is never exciting, but in the Lord, it’s never wasted (cf. 2 Cor. 4:7–18).
It’s impossible for pastors to be experts on every important subject. But take heart: you don’t have to be an expert, just a pastor. Through the truth and grace of the gospel, our Lord has given you and your flock the wisdom and perspective you need to navigate today’s cultural challenges without compromise.
The Gospel Coalition