If you want to seem contentious with a devout Roman Catholic, tell them that Mary was blessed among women, not above all women.
If you want to lose the friendship you may have with a prepper, inform them that their riches will profit them nothing in the day of wrath. A homosexual, that their lifestyle is abhorrent in the eyes of the Living God, one in whom there is no fear of God before their eyes, that there will be.
“Am I therefore become your enemy, because I tell you the truth?” (Gal. 4:16)
That is what those who have been born-again are to be, truth speakers, no matter if it hurts the recipient of the words of Scriptures feelings, no matter if you lose their friendship, if they mock you, arrest you, hate you.
“If the world hate you, ye know that it hated me before it hated you.” (John 15:18)
There is no other way for one to be hated by the entire world than to profess the truths of the Scriptures, it is most definitely not the route to win friends and influence people. And there is no other way to speak these truths than to open your mouth and let words flow past your lips.
There are only two choices, you can be loved by those in the world who reject the Son of God, or you can be hated by them.
“So then because thou art lukewarm, and neither cold nor hot, I will spue thee out of my mouth.” (Rev. 3:16)
Lukewarm is the proper word for many who profess Christ today, and above all the obvious reasons of not wanting to offend, of just wanting to get along, to not standing out in the crowd, not being hated, even above the fear of the possible consequences to themselves if they do speak is this, they do not honestly love Him whom they profess to love.
“Greater love hath no man than this, that a man lay down his life for his friends.” (John 15:13)
That does not only infer to the death of the flesh, the cessation of your life here, but to dying every day, in every circumstance and scenario.
“There is no fear in love; but perfect love casteth out fear: because fear hath torment. He that feareth is not made perfect in love.” (1st John 4:18)
The verse is clear and uncontestable, if you fear, and remain in that fear, specifically in professing boldly the truths of the Word of God, you do not know the love that you profess to have for the One who did not fear to give His life, every moment of every day of His life, for the glory of the Father.
These will say that God is love, and they are correct, but they will not tell the wicked that the wrath of God abides on them, they will be polite to the vilest of sinners that they meet, not wanting to offend, yet they will not admit they are offending the One they say they serve by not speaking truths to them. They say they love, but they will not warn, they want to be loved by those in the world, not hated. They want the best of both worlds, but the only rewards they will receive will be here, in this life, they only stand on the Rock when there is no danger of losing the friendship of the world.
“Ye adulterers and adulteresses, know ye not that the friendship of the world is enmity with God? whosoever therefore will be a friend of the world is the enemy of God.” (James 4:4)
The fear of losing what one can never possess eternally is foolishness, and to those who live this lifestyle, the preaching of the cross is foolishness, for it will cause them to lose the friendship of the world they have sought so hard to attain, to be welcome into the homes of those who deny the Lord Jesus Christ, to be honored in their communities because they are “good men,” because they do not judge, are never contentious, never too adamant.
“This people draweth nigh unto me with their mouth, and honoureth me with their lips; but their heart is far from me.” (Matt. 15:8)
Those welcomed by the world will not be welcomed into heaven.
