The great danger of pulpit-pandering really comes down to a hazardously low view of Scripture. I mess with Scripture because I suppose that I am superior to it. I apologize for it because I have determined by my judgment that there is something wrong with it. I skip over it and preach around it because I assume by my reasoning that only fractions of it are helpful and relevant. I argue against it because I suppose by my judgment that I am right and it is wrong.

It usually happens like this: a married couple or an individual shows up at church. They are struggling relationally or spiritually. At some point they say, “I have been attending so-and-so church for several years, but something does not feel right. We know that the Bible says we should be growing spiritually, and we have tried lots of things, but I go away feeling empty. And my [unbelieving] husband even recognizes it.” After many questions, it becomes clear that they have little to no understanding of God, themselves, sin, Christ, and how it all applies to their lives. Very often, it’s because their ears have been tickled. They have been pandered from the pulpit.

Pander: “to provide what someone wants or demands even though it is not proper, good, or reasonable” (Merriam-Webster).

I imagine that these individuals have sat under preaching similar to a kind I heard recently. The pastor approached a somewhat controversial and very important text. He opened by saying that just about any interpretation of the passage is fine, and one cannot really say that this or that view is correct. After reading some of the passage and skipping over other parts, he began to describe his personal ministry experiences which argued against the clear meaning of the text. On the basis of personal sentiment, it was described that the passage could not mean what it said. In so many words, he excused and apologized for the text like one might do for an embarrassing uncle at a Christmas party. The preaching continued around the text without the text being preached.

This is one of the many forms of pulpit-pandering. But I’ve wondered about the long-term effects of this approach to preaching the word of God. What might happen to people as they sit under this all-too-common occurrence week after week? To be sure, it will not be without consequence.

Here are a few perils that can result from pulpit-pandering:

1. Instead of softening and transforming hearts, pulpit-pandering hardens and endangers.

“Now when they heard this, they were pierced to the heart, and said to Peter and the rest of the apostles, ‘Brethren, what shall we do?’” (Acts 2:37)

The human heart, spiritually speaking, comes pre-packaged in stone. Our fallen nature means that our hearts are minted in spiritual flint (cf. Ezek 36:26). Consequently, we are naturally proud, stubborn, and rebellious. All that we need to do to keep our hearts in that hardened state is nothing.

Pulpit-pandering is impotent to address our perilous state. It’s the type of preaching whose tactics are things like smooth words, flattering speech, avoiding hard texts, and detouring deep doctrines. It sidesteps the great glory, holiness, and righteousness of God, as well as the depravity, inability, and sinfulness of man. Calls for repentance and obedience are evaded. But, sadly, tactics like these are no more effective for softening the human heart than a rubber mallet is to excavate bedrock.

The condition of humanity demands something more.

And God knows that. He loves us enough to bring the solution to our hard hearts. “’Is not My word like fire?’ declares the Lord, ‘and like a hammer which shatters a rock?’” (Jer. 23:29). God cares about us far too much to avoid bringing soft techniques for hard hearts. For this reason, biblical preaching needs to keep in step and lovingly bring the rock-shattering, heart-softening words of Scripture. As the old adage goes: “Soft preaching makes for hard hearts. Hard preaching makes for soft hearts.”

2. Instead of raising souls up into spiritual adulthood, pulpit-pandering keeps people in spiritual infancy (or worse).

“Therefore, putting aside all malice and all deceit and hypocrisy and envy and all slander, like newborn babies, long for the pure milk of the word, so that by it you may grow in respect to salvation” (1 Pet. 2:1-2).

Several years ago a friend let me know that he was eager for me to meet someone. Prior to introducing me, my friend said, “You need to know something about this guy. He looks like he is 11 years old, but he is 20.” He went on to explain that it was not due to any particular disease, but simply because his diet consisted primarily of candy. Sure enough, when I met the individual, he was unnecessarily atrophied and malnourished.

Pulpit-pandering can do the same thing to people spiritually.

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