When Churches Come to Focus upon the Sins of Others

Kevin DeYoung posted a very insightful blog this morning on the tendency of churches to become a "religious cushion." Churches become a religious cushion when they stop focusing primarily upon their own sins and instead begin to focus upon the sins of others. This shift creates an environment in which the congregation takes comfort in the fact that they're not like the others against whose sins the pastor is preaching and the pastor takes comfort in the affirmation he receives from the congregation who becomes dependent upon such preaching. When this takes place, DeYoung says, "the body of Christ becomes less a living, breathing, growing, healthy organism and more a coping club, a society of mutual reinforcement, nothing but a cushion against the pains of life."

Click here to read this brilliant blog post by Kevin DeYoung.