Short Take 1: What is “moralistic preaching” and why is it a false gospel?

Let's get straight to what you mentioned in this previous answer about moralistic preaching hears Matt Chandler, pastor from the believe the Dallas-Fort Worth area talking about this idea of moralistic preaching and in fact I think the thing most common among unbelievers when they think about Christianity is a thing about Christian morals. What we believe about sacs what we believe about money. What we believe about them. The most common misperception about what Christianity is. Is it some sort of moral betterment program. All religions are being a good person.

There's few things as damning and devastating to the human spirit than in that message we want to first of all say there's nothing wrong with preaching morality, we certainly don't want to preach the opposite and morality but moralistic preaching or sometimes identified as moralism is preaching the commands of Scripture or the morals of Scripture and nothing else. Just pretty much saying the people you be a good person and God love you for that. And while we do not intend it that is not just a sub Christian message.

It's actually in anti-Christian message okay was Matt Chandler at the beginning and then another.

I can't remember his name, who was interviewed there at the end but talking about this issue of preaching moralism. It's a personal betterment program. Brennan explained that a bit more and how that has become very pervasive in the evangelical church today. Moralistic preaching is really preaching all the commands of Scripture. So you can hear about how you need to love more, serve more what you should do or what you shouldn't do that would be under the category of law, there is this very important distinction that's helped me a lot. The distinction between law and gospel. So law would be due.

What you should do the commands of God and the gospel is done. That's the good news of what God has done for you or his promises of what he will be doing. I experienced a lot of sermons where I wasn't hearing about Christ and his work who Christ is, it was really just those commands, and so there is this problem where if if that's all a person is hearing your left with these two twin damning possibilities if you hear these commands and you think that you haven't lived up to those commands you can fall into despair. But if you think that you have. It's gonna make you prideful. So on one hand, you're either self-righteous or you're on the other hand are complete despair. The gospel is coming in between those and saying you haven't been good actually. The standard for good is to be perfect, as your heavenly Father is perfect in just hearing that alone leaves you in despair but the good news is going to say that look Jesus obey the law in your place, lived a sinless life and he died a substitutionary death in your place, took the penalty that you deserve for your sin and pay that himself. What you should be hearing in a sermon is a balance of law and gospel. So you want to hear about what Christ is done and in response to that, therefore, you obey here the commands. Now you're obeying out of a loving gratitude for what Christ is done for you and that you're not just given be good message or a be like insert Bible character message