I have been reading a book from my first pastor of about forty years ago. One of the more "exciting" forms of our outreach to the city of Denver was street preaching. We found several venues for this—one was the 16th Street Mall and the other was a section of Colfax Ave, just east of the capital building in front of an adult bookstore in the Capital Hill area of Denver. Both of these had a variety of passerby, including homeless people, drug addicts, average folks, business people and so on. It was truly a place of where people live life.
However, my recollections of "street preaching" actually go back a few years earlier to my fledgling (and failed) days at the University of Kansas in Lawrence, Kansas in the fall of 1981. It was there that I had my first encounter with a crazy man by the name of "Jed Smock" (aka, "Brother Jed"). There was a another one there, a woman, who dressed in a rather skimpy costume on roller skates and skated around the central part of the campus preaching as she went. I think the two of them "tag-teamed" their schtick.
In both cases, the modus operandi of the deal was to literally wing it by the "Spirit" or shoot from the hip—that is—the "preacher" would just blurt out whatever came to mind at the top of his or her lungs, whereby passerby would be bashed in the ears with a string of random words spewing out of a half-crazed human being ostensibly "moved by the Spirit of God." Lord help everyone if the preacher had some kind of megaphone. I was generally loud enough that I didn't need one. It was awful.
Do not give dogs what is holy, and do not throw your pearls before pigs, lest they trample them underfoot and turn to attack you.
The practical application of this in the context of dealing with human beings, especially those in a group, is considerable as well as mostly transparent. Street preaching is right in this wheelhouse. The warning of Jesus is that piggish people in a group can easily turn violent in both word and action. So, it leaves us with a scenario—similar to what played out in front of me on many occasions.
To bake this cake we take one arrogant, belligerent human being with a mouth, give them a message to match, and then mix in a group of people who take the whole thing offensively, or worse—protectively—leaving the preacher with a volatile concoction of dynamite and a fuse, waiting for a hot match. This can be especially dangerous if the street preacher is all alone in the wrong place at the wrong time.
Brother Jed (Smock) was just this kind of man when I encountered him in the fall of 1981 at KU Lawrence. The saving grace for Jed (God rest his soul) were the calm and clear headed Christian men and women that worked the edge of the crowd that would invariably form around Brother Jed as he yelled and screeched at the young people around him.
There were the hecklers and mockers, and I admittedly found myself to be one of them. Trivial amusement, born from my continuous mocking of Jed alongside others, held significant appeal; this allure was strong enough that my classes often took a backseat. Such behavior, however, not only resulted in me missing classes but eventually forced me to academically withdraw from school due to slipping grades.
During this chaotic time, one of the 'edge workers' managed to corral me and make me see the error of my ways. He extended an invitation to a Christian group that convened on campus. I decided to attend one of their meetings, not realizing that it wasn't yet my time to be touched by the hands of God.
Ultimately, I had to withdraw from school. As it turned out, I chose to put myself into serving in the U.S. Army infantry, where I spent the next ten years of my life.
My initial experiences with street preaching are a blend of memories of Jed aggressively lecturing college kids—insultingly labeling them "whores" and "whoremongers"—and observing our own Fellowship church faction, our "firebrands", emulating a milder version of Jed on the streets of Denver. The situation was exacerbated by the encouragements that came in the form of "Preach it, brother" from my fellow believers on the sidelines. As I continued, my emotionally charged outbursts became increasingly articulate. I frequently found myself as the favored person to whom the microphone was handed. This feedback greatly fueled my pride and ego.
The enflamed version of confrontational "preaching" that I adopted, directed at complete strangers, was highly encouraged not just by my local band of brothers, but was seemingly shared across the Fellowship. This became even more evident as we attended various conferences and both shared and heard stories—or "testimonies". We partook in a mutual congratulatory cycle, caught up in the echo chamber we had created. What provided us solace was the genuine love we had for each other. We wanted others to join us, to emulate our confrontational yet sincere expression of Christian love—the likeness of aggressive love that our unified group cherished.
To his credit, Jed made an effort to include others, assigning them to work the peripheries of the crowd. His aim was to draw people into one-on-one interactions, where he and his team hoped that his Shock-and-Awe approach to belittling people would yield fruit.
In these calmer, sideline scenarios, his team could focus on deescalating the tensions. The strategy had another advantage - in the event that things deteriorated completely, there might be strength in their numbers. This would provide a relatively safe option for retreat before any serious physical damage was incurred.
So—what's the point?
The article's title and subtitle juxtapose two contrasting concepts: frenzied street preaching and the more considerate, tamer version practiced by Jesus and subsequently, his disciples. Clearly, Jesus was not in the practice of self-aggrandizing oration. Rather, he was the living embodiment of benevolent compassion aimed towards the individuals he addressed. Sorry, Jed: you're not Jesus!
Matthew 10 provides a structured account of Jesus's teachings and actions. Herein, Jesus makes a proclamation: "The Kingdom of Heaven is near!" This verbal declaration of the presence of Christ's Kingdom isn't given with hostility but as a simple, truthful statement.
Furthermore, it serves as an announcement to both human beings and dark forces. For people, it is conveyed with love, compassion, and hope. For devils, it comes as an early warning. The declaration signifies the impending attack on their strongholds by God's power, with the intention of overwhelming them and rescuing all hostages who would hear and believe.
In this declaration, there was no intention of treating people as the enemy. Rather, they were perceived as hapless victims, receiving an invitation to be rescued, to switch their loyalties and allegiances from darkness to light. This beckoning was extended particularly for those with the right, humble, and honest hearts in the crowd.
As disciples were dispatched two-by-two, it was apparent that one disciple was entrusted with the task of proclamation, while the other would observe the crowd. The observing disciple would actively search for individuals who were "worthy." These worthy individuals could then be separated from the crowd, establishing a relationship where necessity dictated. Meanwhile, the proclaiming disciple would transition from announcing the arrival of the Kingdom to proving its presence by driving out demons and healing people. The final step involved connecting with those deemed receptive, essentially bringing the matter home.
Throughout all this, the scripture provides a clear guide. Unlike the approach of Brother Jed, Jesus's command and idea were not rooted in confrontational anger towards people, but compassion for them, and spiritual warfare against demons. However, Jesus did acknowledge that not everyone in that place would be receptive. Once such individuals were recognized, the command was simply to allow the peace of the disciple to return to the pair. Then they would figuratively shake off the dust and move along to the next home or town.
This model and approach significantly differ from the Combat Preacher 101 version propagated by those of the Jed Smock ilk. On one side, there is an individual bent on mercilessly attacking people with "turns-and-burns", thereby stirring them up emotionally. Conversely, there is the approach of Jesus, in which His Kingdom is proclaimed, devils are put on notice, and people are ministered to with compassion, both in word and deed, by expelling the demons and healing diseases. The process employed by Jesus concludes with the establishment of relationships with the "worthy," these being people who are receptive at heart. Then the church and the disciples grow, advancing into the darkness, ushering in the Light of Christ.
The contrast between these two methods couldn't be starker. The former involves preaching the gospel amidst contention, strife, anger, and potential violence. The latter, on the other hand, is smart, careful, caring, compassionate, helpful, and useful in cultivating the Kingdom. It exemplifies a Christian behaving as Jesus would have.
To Jed or not to Jed—that is the question
Street preaching, in itself, is not a negative endeavor. In fact, it appears in the gospels as a valid means of engaging with people right where they live their life, on a daily, even hourly basis. The effectiveness of street preaching, however, lies in the execution - whether it embodies wisdom or folly, the teachings of Jesus, or one's own selfish desires. On one hand, it can be performed with compassion and love, on the other, it can be tainted by conflict, ego, and pride. The first method portrays a loving, careful, and planned outreach into the dark corners of society. The second, however, depicts a reckless charge forward that, unfortunately, not only causes harm to people but also wrongly teaches them that such violent approaches align with the teachings of Jesus.
I personally followed the Jed Smock for several days and was among those who mocked and heckled him. Then, as a young Christian street preacher, I embarked on my own journey akin to Jed's. From this unique vantage point, I can confidently tell you that mimicking that behavior is not a mature approach to using this particularly effective method of ministry.
Yet, we have the model set by Jesus, his disciples, and even the Apostle Paul who utilized street preaching as a viable strategy for demonstrating love towards people. However, even this alone does not encompass the entire narrative found in the gospels and the book of Acts. The Christian journey involves a myriad of other experiences and teaching methods, street preaching being just one tool in the toolbox.
Send in the Watchers
The story of the Watchers and Jesus, where Jesus is portrayed as the literal anti-Watcher, proves useful in understanding street preaching. In this narrative, humans are caught in a web of dark power, and the arrival of Jesus signifies their liberation. Once this story is firmly implanted in our hearts and minds, it significantly alters our perception of evangelism tools.
Preaching Jesus does not equate to viewing people as enemies. Instead, it means viewing the enemy as the enemy and seeing people as victims. This perspective changes when you encounter individuals who are familiar with the enemy but have consciously chosen darkness over light; as a result, differentiating the "worthy" humans to engage with from those "unworthy" ones. They are deemed unworthy since they knowingly prefer darkness over Christ.
A deeper understanding of the Watchers' story and a clearer identification of the types of the Sins of the Watchers helps us distinguish who is who in the spiritual battlefield. To better comprehend this, let's consider an analogy.
Imagine a scenario reminiscent of World War II, however, instead of a war fought with physical guns, bullets and weapons, this battle is waged through words. As an Allied soldier, you possess the ability to infiltrate Nazi Germany and hold up to scrutiny the Nazi Party, ranging from its lowest ranks to its leadership. You have the opportunity to publicly denounce the Party leadership, its principles, and its "sins", such as the imprisonment and slaughter of Jews and others in concentration camps. In this context, you have two primary missions:
1. Convince Germans who are blindly following Nazi leaders that those leaders will lose the war and be judged and destroyed for their actions and crimes.
2. Inform those hearing your message that merely mouthing a lip-service allegiance to the Allies isn't enough. They must demonstrate it by not participating in the Sins of the Nazi's. To do so, negates their claim to being an Allied loyalist and secures their judgment and destruction along with the Nazi leaders.
If you ponder over this analogy, simply expanding the context from Allies and Nazis to God and Watchers, you've essentially captured the essence of it. Ultimately, your role here is to consider everyone as unsuspecting Watcher loyalists who have yet to experience the liberating power of our Savior, Jesus. They are captives who have yet to realize that King Jesus is now testing their loyalty through their thoughts, words, and actions.
Much like the Nazis, disloyalty to Christ is indicated by behavior resembling that of a Watcher, consciously and willingly obeying the orders and sinful desires of the Watchers. This includes indulging in their human equivalents in forms of lust and fleshly desires.
This then triggers the inquiry: How does this awareness affect those who preach on the streets? That's an excellent question. Shall we delve into it and give it some thought?
Watchers and Street Preachers
The primary advantage of knowing the Watcher story is that it redefines the message of the street preacher. Rather than resorting to fear-mongering and calling the masses "evil sinners" who need to "turn or burn," it encourages understanding and compassion. These individuals are no longer viewed as adversaries, but as blind, misinformed victims entrapped in a spiritual war. Their participation in sin is caused by blind passion and lust, and some might lack a clear understanding of morality framed within the Watcher and King Jesus narrative.
The Watchers story also enhances the preacher's declaration that the Kingdom of Heaven is present among them. How does this aid? The notion of freedom and eternal life being a contingency to accepting the inevitable judgment and eternal death associated with the Watchers now becomes a fundamental part of the message. The goal is not to condemn people, but to liberate and save them. To achieve liberation and salvation, it is crucial to comprehend the essence of the human condition, including understanding the Watchers narrative. One ends up respecting each person's right to Liberty, free will, and choice, rather than brow-beating them.
Moreover, this narrative aligns with the concept of Grace and emphasizes the vulnerability of mankind in the face of necessity. Only through Christ's sacrifice on the Cross can we break free from our enslavement to the sins of the Watchers, which is manifested in our own captivity to personal passions and fleshly desires. This is precisely what demons rely on to keep us in bondage. Christ liberates our spirit, giving rise to a renewed spirit within us. Further, the story teaches us that being in Christ, and Christ in us is the key to our empowerment to do what we couldn't previously: remain loyal to Jesus!
This Watcher story not only transforms the street preacher into a powerful force that can liberate people from sin and evil forces, but it also allows the preacher to operate with Christ's love within themselves. This is because, just like the people they are preaching to, they too have been freed. It allows us to empathize with others through love, compassion, and humility in Christ. The power in this transformation doesn't come from us, but wholly from Jesus, who represents the source of both power and love for all.
Wrap up
Street preaching doesn't necessarily have to play out in the form of a furious man standing on a street corner, yelling at the passing crowd. Instead, it can now be the messenger delivering the word of the Lord of hosts to those who are humble in heart and willing to hear his message. This message could encompass love, hope, freedom, deliverance, and life transformation—moving from the dim enslavement in a dark kingdom to the resplendent life in Jesus' Kingdom!
Moreover, this preacher ought not be alone in the venture. There would be others working tirelessly to connect with people on the fringes, gently extracting them from the crowd to a place where they could be ministered to by the Lord Jesus within them. This interaction would identify these individuals as friendly to the Lord and King, and worth guiding towards Christ and the path of salvation and loyalty.
Together—preacher and helpers—they disseminate the overarching message of Jesus embedded in the context of the narrative of the Watchers and the sins of these Watchers. Not only does this shape their delivery and message, but it also affects the understanding and response of the listeners. The truth in the message they hear holds the power to liberate them—not the human anger or reprimands that result from mutual instigations.
Hence, the worth of street preachers and their team is invaluable in this context. Embrace it. Learn from it. Practice it. Be smart, not dumb.