My Long Overdue Response to the Street Preachers

Let me say that this is less about what street preaching was and more about what it has now become.  Preachers,  like any other group of Christian people, you can have those that are true and honest in their heart.  Then you have those that are deceived or willingly rejecting truth. The men we have been discussing usually hold to some twisted form of theology over emphasizing the repentance aspect and the reforming of the world and all of it’s wicked sinners through in your face, shock and awe style street preaching.    

They truly view themselves as prophets!  Street preaching prophets of doom and gloom, mixed with a little angry Jesus and Paul.  It’s deplorable, and ungodly if you ask me and makes a mockery of what believers are!

If their final authority for public ministry in the 21st century is Methodist from the 1700’s and 1800’s, the minor or major  prophets, or even the Lord Jesus Christ, their actions are full of half-truths and heresy.  They use these same passages to enforce borderline legalism  in their churches, while preaching against this said legalism.  They will protect themselves with this and would say now that the fact that I mention legalism, is only brought about by my conviction through witnessing their holy walk of life.  

These men have an answer for everything that deflects the questions off of them and onto others.  They attempt to bring everyone into their “yoke” of living, and they have the King James to back everything up.  

It’s wicked practices, when a man uses God’s word to enforce his dogmatic teachings on a lost world or sheep underneath the sound of his voice.  This is “lording over the flock” in it’s most visible sense.  Most of these men are straight on deep, doctrinal and weightier matters of the book.  They even have their dispensations right when it comes to the doctrine of salvation and their own salvation, but the way they go about the public ministry is false and perverted at best.  

The problem is they can’t show you one reference for what they do.  They can show you a multitude of occasions where bible characters were preaching out side.  They can show likeness and similitude's.  They can show you where bible characters were hard in their preaching and prophesying. They can show you men before the New testament that matches their styles and that apparently justifies heir methods.  They can show you words the Lord said.  They can even show you Paul saying to “preach the word”, “reprove, rebuke!”  

They can show you bible characters and examples of men standing in the open air, preaching, prophesying, speaking, debating, disputing, persuading, contending, destroying, crying aloud, sparing not, lifting up their voices as trumpets, and to the street preacher, these are all references to street preaching.  

They can’t go to any New Testament reference for their conduct and behaviors in attempting to mirror open air ministry.  It’s a dangerous game we play when we want to find scriptures to prove what we LIKE to do or what we think we MUST do.  With more men then you think, it’s nothing more than a fleshly lust.  Something our flesh rivals in.  The “Look what I’m doing.” and “What are you doing?” The condescending, the confrontation, and the adrenaline rush of being two words from a brawl.  They revel in it and love to have it so.

The problem you run into with street preaching is there is no doctrinal grounds  for what these men are doing.  It’s just not that definitive. Much like soul winning is not found in the bible as a command, but we know it to be a good work that pleases the Lord. It is one of those aspects of ministry that falls under desire to, or preference.  So should we not be even more cautious and careful with how we conduct ourselves before a world who are experts in finding blame in us.  We are to find that balance of preaching the offence of Christ without being offensive.  He is the offence, NOT US!   

No one, anywhere is commanded to street preach or to be anything like what we see in the prophets and the occasions where Jesus our Lord used hardness.  When you talk to them they will give you 100 references to cover themselves and their behavior but upon further study you will see that they are simply instances in the Bible where a man is talking, preaching or disputing outside.  Many prominent well known street preaching sources, books, and studies are similar in thought process and opinions.  They have to maintain this illusion of a carried over commission and mandate to fulfill commissions and answer calls to street preach.  It truly is mind numbing to see how others don’t see it.  

One advocate of street preaching said;

“Public preaching is the most effective way to get the Gospel to the most people in the shortest time at the least expense. AND PUBLIC PREACHING IS THE NUMBER ONE METHOD OF OUTREACH USED THROUGHOUT THE BIBLE, OLD TESTAMENT AND NEW TESTAMENT…”

“STREET PREACHING has spawned major movements and Protestant denominations in the last 2000 years. Time and space will not permit us to give more than a few highlights in this format, but hopefully this information will enlighten those with eyes to see, the power and effectiveness of this bold Biblical, and "consistent with the message" approach (Romans 1:16; 1 Corinthians 1:18).”

Most studies you read or sermons you hear supporting street preaching deals with the prophets, and the Gospels.  They also stay around passages, or books, that deal with the Great Commission.  They masterfully use references like the above to show that they are right because they are bold as in Romans 1:16.  Boldness does not make a person right.   It takes boldness to shoot a man in cold blood and take a life.  It takes boldness to commit an assault.   It takes boldness to overthrow governments.  

These verses listed above, by a street preacher, Romans 1 and 1 Corinthians 1, have ABSOLUTELY nothing to do with open air preaching, public ministry, or the Great Commission. But they use these sorts of passages and talk in these ways to deceive people into seeing some mystical pattern that really is not there. This is their M.O.  This is how they operate.  They will give you a barrage of references.  They feel that is all they have to do since the authority of the Bible is such a strong point with them, as it should be. 

We rant as preachers and Christians about the Muslims having their loud speakers and prayer 3 times a day in some American towns, but we justify our own actions to do essentially the same thing.  Do they have freedom to do so as we do.  Do we really believe in tolerance as Independent Baptist as our spiritual and national forefathers believed?  If you are going to witness to a man at the grocery store parking lot, desiring to see him born again, would you implore the same tactics as you do in front of the 50,000 partiers.  Of course not!  

What is the difference?  Why the drastic change in styles.  Because your calling, and your unorthodoxy is more important than what the word of God says about your incorrect actions?  The same sinners you see at these immoral, worldly gatherings, are the same sinners you see at the corner store.  

They are all sinners by nature.  They are not just the sodomites and fornicators.  They can be fornicators and sodomites after salvation.  I know this is not a popularly held belief among believers.  You just happen to catch a multitude of sinners, gathered together. 

You went to them, they did not come to you as they were doing in the days of Wesley, Booth, Whitfield and other public preachers of old.  They are eating, drinking, dancing, and worshipping false idols, and what spirit directed you down there to behold all of that vileness?  

What spirit would direct the street preacher to go to a topless parade? There thinking is, “Well if I don’t then who will?” You just can’t be that assuming.  How many good seeds, planted by friends and family, have been stripped from soft hearts by bitter words of confrontational street preachers?  After the street preacher leaves, all Christians and bible believers in the area are just guilty by association now.  Same stripe, same sound, same way of treating others.  Some of these guys are raving stark lunatics who actually if the truth be known, literally belong in a asylum of some kind and in y estimation have never addressed deeper issues within themselves. 

We, fortunately are not in Old testament lands where the Lord ruled audibly and physically at times. And often, swift retribution was measured out against wickedness.  We are not in a nation that has a God for a supreme dictator or recognized creator for that matter.  

It must be recognized that there is not Theocratic state in America.  We live in an empire that is run by the devil.  It's his world! Does the Word bring conviction, yes. Does the word cut to the heart, yes.  We understand these things.  

Street preachers refer to their “style” as “unorthodox”, as to appear that they are the right and the few that are doing it God’s way, just like the Old Paths, right?  It is a special calling to them, and they are the privilege few that have been chosen by God.  They talk in the manner to your face and they write in these manners.  They are not shy about their supposed charge of God.

These men, whom many I believe, are full of right intentions, and born again based on their own professions, honestly believe they are doing the commandment of God.  Yet, no where in the New Testament, more importantly, Paul’s epistles to the church, are such actions commended or suggested as doctrinal, or practical to practice for the Church age.    Never do we see the word of God contradicting the spirit of God.  The spirit of God leads men to proper fruit bearing.

I do not say these things to boast, I can remember street preaching on the street corners, the subways, the parking lots, the bars, the gatherings, with a book bag full of tracts, and no one there was shocked that  a man was standing on a street corner.  Street preaching is now being used by all sorts of non-denominational and Charismatic churches in forms of side walk evangelism, and street pulpiting, campus preaching, etc.  Protesting engagements and such.  This attitude, or to be more accurate, this spirit of error is becoming more common in the smaller towns across America due to the twisting of the truth.  The times have changed, they are used to it now, and desensitized to it.  The cults are doing it, the non denominational churches are doing it, and every back woods church member who thinks that God speaks to them is doing it.  What confusion we have amassed!

We aren’t commanded to preach righteousness for the effect to stop any of it, but to stand fast in the midst of it, preaching the gospel of the grace of God amongst  crooked and perverse generation.  Without offense, blameless, being ready to answer any man!  Being ready to preach instant in season and out of season.  Keywords are “Being ready”.  Ready for the prompt to witness.  That door of utterance the bible speaks of.  But who has the patience to wait for the door of utterance when we have the authority to kick it down?