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Romans 1:16 For I am not ashamed of the gospel of Christ: for it is the power of God unto salvation to every one that believeth; to the Jew first, and also to the Greek.

Monday, January 22, The O’Reilly Factor covered a story about a number of Methodist ministers objecting to placing Pres. George W. Bush’s Presidential Library on the campus of Southern Methodist University (SMU) in Dallas, TX. Rev. Fred Kandeler appeared on Fox New’s program to speak on how Pres. Bush has carried out his administration inconsistently with Methodist views on the death penalty, environmental protection, and the war in Iraq. Poverty was another big issue with this retired pastor. He speaks of economic systems in place in America that trap people in impoverished conditions.

As general rule, I would say let the social activist say what he will. There is, however, a problem when a preacher of any evangelical group appears publicly and has nothing to say of the Gospel. Rev. Kandeler was given a national stage. Rather than turning the conversation at some point to Jesus Christ dying for the world’s sins, he decided to attack Pres. Bush on social issues.

In reality, most of us Christians do this everyday. We rarely turn conversations to the Gospel–or even the goodness of the Lord. We will talk about everything under the sun or maybe just about our favorite topics, but how often will we present the Good News that lost people can be forgiven? My anger Monday night quickly subsided when I realized that I have done the very same thing to waiters, cashiers, friends, and strangers that I have not given the Gospel. May the Lord help us to reach the world.

References:

Here is a link to the petition website: protectsmu.org.
And anther link to a article co-authored by Rev. Kandeler attacking a conservative element of the UMC.