Extracted Verses and Quotes from “Wanted: Faithful Preachers”
SCRIPTURE VERSES
Acts 5:27-28
“Now we gave you strict orders not to preach in this man’s name, yet you have here filled Jerusalem with your teaching, and you are determined to bring this man’s blood upon us.”
Acts 5:38-39 (Gamaliel’s speech)
“I tell you, stay away from these men and let them alone; because if this plan or this undertaking is of human origin, it will fail. But if it is of God, you will not be able to overthrow them. In that case, you may even be found fighting against God.”
Acts 2:38-39
“Repent and be baptized and believe on the name of the Lord Jesus Christ.”
Ezekiel 22:30
“And I sought for anyone among them who would repair the wall and stand in the breach before me on behalf of the land so that I would not destroy it, but I found no one.”
Jonah 4:11
“And should I not be concerned about Nineveh, that great city, which there are more than 120,000 persons who do not know their right hand from their left and also many animals?”
Romans 10:14-17
“How are they to call on one in whom they have not believed? And how are they to believe in one whom they have never heard? And how are they to hear without someone to proclaim him? And how are they to proclaim unless they are sent? As it is written, ‘How beautiful are the feet of those who bring good news!’ … So faith comes from what is heard, and what is heard comes through the word of Christ.”
John 6:37
“If anyone comes to me, I will in no wise cast them aside.”
Galatians 1:10-12
“Am I now seeking human approval or God’s approval? Or am I trying to please people? If I were still pleasing people, I would not be a servant of Christ. For I want you to know, brothers and sisters, that the gospel that was proclaimed by me is not of human origin, for I did not receive it from a human source, nor was I taught it, but I received it as a revelation of Jesus Christ.”
1 Corinthians 9:16
“If I proclaim the gospel, this gives me no ground for boasting, for an obligation is laid upon me, and woe to me if I do not proclaim the gospel.”
Mark 13:11
“Words will be given us from on high.”
QUOTES FROM THE SERMON
On the Apostles’ Preaching
“They preached of a sinner-loving Savior, a guilt-taking Savior, a guilt-bearing Savior, a risen-again Savior, and a soon-coming Savior.”
On Faithful Witnesses
“Throughout history, God has raised in every generation men and women… boys and girls who are willing to speak the truth about God no matter the personal cost. They’re willing to risk everything for the salvation of sin-sick souls, even if it means personal sacrifice, official cancellation, or public rejection.”
On Thomas Becket
“Cutting down that turbulent priest magnified his life, his teachings, and his example for centuries to come.”
On John Leland (Baptist Preacher)
“Every man must give an account of himself to God and therefore every man ought to be at liberty to serve God in a way that can best reconcile to his conscience. If government can answer for individuals at the day of judgment, then let men be controlled by it in religious matters. Otherwise, let men be free.”
On the First Amendment
“Congress shall make no law respecting an establishment of religion, or prohibiting the free exercise thereof, or abridging the freedom of speech, or of the press, or the right of the people peaceably to assemble, and to petition the government for a redress of grievances.”
On Freedom of Conscience
“Freedom of conscience means freedom to think, and when you have freedom to think, everything flows from that. That’s why compelled speech is an attack on freedom of conscience.”
On Truth vs. Structures
“Whenever there is a clash between a dominant structure and living ideas, if those ideas are ordained of God, the living ideas will inevitably outlast and triumph over those stagnant structures. You can’t hold truth down. Truth will always triumph.”
On Liberty of Conscience as a Gift
“Liberty of conscience is a gift that’s passed on from generation to generation. And it’s incumbent upon us to stand up for it that the next generation can walk in the same light and privileges.”
FOUR PRINCIPLES FROM THE SERMON
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“When the prophetic voice is silenced, evil sweeps the land.”
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“When the prophetic voice is silent, the people are lost.”
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“When the prophetic voice is canceled, God’s primary means of communication is silenced among his people.”
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“When the prophetic voice is compromised, the preacher loses spiritual power.”
ADDITIONAL SERMON QUOTES
On the Danger of Silence
“When religious authorities silence Bible-faithful preachers who preach against popular sins among God’s people, those leaders are not preserving the body of Christ. They are removing the bulwark to greater spiritual decline and they are hastening God’s judgment upon a Laodicean church.”
On the Next Generation
“If we silence the voice of rebuke and the voice of faithful preachers, a new generation is raised that does not know their right hand from their left hand… If we silence those voices, we will have the blood of the generation on our hands.”
On Pleasing God vs. Pleasing Men
“If you’re preaching to please men, you’re just speaking words. If you’re preaching to please God, you’re going to preach the word of God.”
On True Love
“True love seeks first the honor of God and the salvation of souls. Those who have this love will not evade the truth to save themselves from the unpleasant results of plain speaking. When souls are in peril, God’s ministers will not consider self, but will speak the words given to them to speak, refusing to excuse or palliate evil.”
On the Call to All Believers
“You don’t have to stand behind a pulpit. You preach in Walmart. You preach at the gas station. You preach by sharing a GLOW tract… Don’t accept that some people preach and we simply consume. We all have a part to play in finishing this work.”
On the Final Hope
“When we get to heaven, I want to meet people on the Sea of Glass who said, ‘Brother, I’m here because you did this, that, or the other.'”
QUOTES FROM ELLEN G. WHITE (Spirit of Prophecy)
On Faithful Guardians
“So men who should be standing as faithful guardians of God’s law have argued till policy or the church manual has taken the place of faithfulness and sin is allowed to go unreproved. When will the voice of faithful rebuke be heard once more in the church?”
On Courage in Peril
“God cannot use men who in times of peril when strength, courage, and influence of all are needed are afraid to take a firm stand for the right. God calls for men who will do faithful battle against wrong, warring against principalities and powers, against the rulers of the darkness of this world, against spiritual wickedness in high places.”
On the Well Done
“It is to such as these that he will speak the words, ‘Well done, good and faithful servant. Enter thou into the joy of thy Lord.'”
On Prophetic Preaching
“The minister of God is commanded, ‘Cry aloud, spare not, lift up thy voice like a trumpet, and show my people their transgression and the house of Jacob their sins.'”
On People-Pleasing Preachers
“If the minister’s face is not flint, if he has not indomitable faith and courage, if his heart is not made strong by constant communion with God, he will begin to shape his testimony to please the unsanctified ears and hearts of those he is addressing.”
On Losing Spiritual Power
“In endeavoring to avoid the criticism to which he is exposed, the preacher separates from God and loses the sense of divine favor and his testimony becomes tame and lifeless. He finds that his courage and faith are gone and his labors are powerless. The world is full of flatterers and dissemblers who have yielded to the desire to please men. But the faithful men and women who do not study self-interest, but love their brethren too well to suffer sin upon them are few indeed.”
On Men-Pleasers
“Those ministers who are men-pleasers who cry ‘Peace, peace’ when God has not spoken peace might well humble their hearts before God, asking pardon for their insincerity and their lack of moral courage. It is not from love for their neighbor that they smooth down the message entrusted to them, but because they are indulgent and ease-loving.”
SUMMARY OF KEY THEMES
| Theme | Scripture | Key Quote |
|---|---|---|
| Obedience to God over men | Acts 5:29 | “We must obey God rather than men” |
| God’s work cannot be stopped | Acts 5:38-39 | “If it is of God, you cannot overthrow it” |
| Faithful preaching | Romans 10:14-17 | “Faith comes by hearing the word of God” |
| Liberty of conscience | John Leland | “Let men be free” |
| Silence leads to evil | Ezekiel 22:30 | “I sought for a man to stand in the breach” |
| Woe if I don’t preach | 1 Corinthians 9:16 | “Woe to me if I do not proclaim the gospel” |