Did you know that there is no real nutritious value in sugar? If there were, I can assure you that my wife’s husband would be in and stay in the best shape of his life.
In the culinary world, sugarcoating is a process where sweetener is applied to certain products in order to make them more desirable for consumption. To sugarcoat anything is to make it seem more acceptable and more appealing than it really should be. A classic phrase often used is, "you don't have to sugarcoat the truth".
When Paul wrote about end-time events in his 2 Timothy, he forecasted a series of societal changes that would manifest at the very end of the age. Among these changes would be a spiritual defection taking place inside the Church. This is certainly not a new tactic by Satan. As Solomon so famously said, “What has been will be again, what has been done will be done again; there is nothing new under the sun” (Ecclesiastes 1:9). Even the Apostles dealt with Gnostics and Sophists in their day. But as we enter the last of the last days, this demonic strategy will increase with great intensity.
In many pulpits today, a gospel is being presented that marginalizes sin, no longer recognizes the need to repent, and suggests that the real problem with human beings is psychological or medical. We are further told that this can be treated by applying acceptance and inclusion, and further, it may even be treated with medication. The need to be washed in the blood of Jesus and transformed by the power of the Holy Spirit is becoming foreign to a listeners ear. “Satans' goal is to make sin less offensive, heaven less appealing, hell less horrific and the Gospel less urgent” (John MacArthur).
The trend toward pluralistic thinking is increasing so rapidly among the “churched”, many are wavering on the most basic tenets of the Christian faith. Foundational beliefs such as the virgin birth, the sinlessness of Christ, the need for repentance, moral rights and wrongs, a literal heaven and hell are all on the table.
The belief in absolute truth has already regressed to such a point that the majority of younger Christians see no need to convert acquaintances or friends of a different faith to Christ. Instead of sharing the lifesaving message of the Gospel, many find ways to rationalize their indecision by using phrases such as:
“If what they believe is working for them, why should I bother them with my beliefs?” “Who is to say that Christians are right and those people are wrong?”
“Isn’t it possible that there are alternative ways to God and that Christianity is just our particular way of believing?
The truth is being sugarcoated to accommodate the values of a changing culture. A major shift is now occurring before our very eyes. Pure, sound, Orthodox doctrine is being replaced by “ear- tickling” messages. Consequently, many who sit in church today are ignorant of even the most elementary tenets of the faith.
Liberal progressive thinkers are negatively affecting the way many practice their faith. One example among many I could cite is that today, some churches and denominations now condone and celebrate same-sex weddings at their altars. This doctrinal delusion is a slap in the face of a Holy God and His Holy Word. To be absolutely clear, everyone has the freedom to choose their path in this life. We are all free moral agents. I also believe that everyone should be loved and respected, regardless of his or her lifestyle choices. As well, I also believe everyone must be seen as a precious soul for whom Jesus died and who can be changed by the power of God. Every true born again Christian has the responsibility to love and respect a person, but that does not mean we are required to endorse everything that person does. You can reject the sin and love the sinner at the same time.
The Nicolaitans preached a doctrine of compromise. The word “Nicolaitan” is a compound word comprised of the words nikao, meaning “victory” or “to conquer”, and laos, meaning “laity” or “people”. When these two words are compounded into one, the new word means “those who conquer the people or those who have victory over the people”. The Nicolaitans were teaching the believers to sugarcoat their righteous convictions in order to co-exist peacefully with the world. The attitude of, “we just need to tone it down and stop being so scripturally black and white; sometimes you have to ‘go along to get along’ with the world” is not the stance to take if you are a true Bible-believing Christian.
A departure of this magnitude takes place slowly over a period of time and can often go unnoticed until the departure has swung far from the foundations of Scripture. Seducing spirits and doctrines of demons have gradually lured believers away from a sound position on Scripture in order to accommodate the moral mess we now have in the world. As Pastor Jim Cymbala said, “the world is now evangelizing the church”.
It is a fact that sugarcoating has no nutritional value. It has no spiritual value either. As pressure mounts on you and I to dilute the faith and be more accommodating to a lost world, we must never allow that pressure to accomplish what the enemy has designed it to do. I am more than willing to add the ingredients of love, grace, and forgiveness into any message I preach, but I refuse to sugarcoat truth that has in it the power to change a persons eternal destiny. It is not my faith; it’s Gods. You nor I have the right to adapt or alter this faith. Our job is to keep it, protect it, guard it, and hold tight to it, even if it brings with it great personal sacrifice. I urge every Christian to serve the truth in love, just as the Holy Spirit prepared it. If we stand on this wall united together, the truth will bring freedom, repentance, and revival to our land.