The Sin of Indifference

Introduction.

I want to begin by reading a serious passage of Scripture from God’s Word.

Ezekiel 33:1–6 “Again the word of the Lord came to me, saying, “Son of man, speak to the children of your people, and say to them: ‘When I bring the sword upon a land, and the people of the land take a man from their territory and make him their watchman, when he sees the sword coming upon the land,

if he blows the trumpet and warns the people, then whoever hears the sound of the trumpet and does not take warning, if the sword comes and takes him away, his blood shall be on his own head.

He heard the sound of the trumpet, but did not take warning; his blood shall be upon himself. But he who takes warning will save his life.

But if the watchman sees the sword coming and does not blow the trumpet, and the people are not warned, and the sword comes and takes any person from among them, he is taken away in his iniquity; but his blood I will require at the watchman’s hand.’”

Ezekiel 33:7–9 ““So you, son of man: I have made you a watchman for the house of Israel; therefore you shall hear a word from My mouth and warn them for Me.

When I say to the wicked, ‘O wicked man, you shall surely die!’ and you do not speak to warn the wicked from his way, that wicked man shall die in his iniquity;

but his blood I will require at your hand. Nevertheless if you warn the wicked to turn from his way, and he does not turn from his way, he shall die in his iniquity; but you have delivered your soul.”

The Watchman in Judah had grave responsibilities. He had to warn the people of approaching danger.

If the Watchman did his job well and the people listened to him, both the people and the Watchman would be in good shape. If the Watchman warned the people and they failed to listen to the warning, the people would be responsible for whatever happened to them. If the Watchman did not sound the warning, whatever happened to the people would be his responsibility and the blood of the people would be on the Watchman’s hands.

Let me tell you this.

It is not a good thing to have blood on your hands before God. The Lord, in this chapter, came to Ezekiel telling him to tell the people to search for a capable watchman, a watchman who would sound the alarm in times of danger.

This morning, I am coming to you as Beech Grove’s watchman, and I am coming to warn you about danger lurking in the weeds. It is lurking in the weeds of the church in general and it is specifically lurking in the weeds of this church. By warning you this morning, I am freeing myself of your blood. It is up to you to heed the warning.

Today, I am going to preach about the sin of indifference in the church, and that sin is destroying the church and the church’s testimony. It is up to you to decide what you are going to do about it.

2. Indifference defined.

The sin of indifference is a lack of concern or apathy towards God, others, or even life itself, and make no mistake about it, it is a sin.

Indifference is described as a failure to act in love, justice, and righteousness. An indifferent person makes everything about himself or herself. Indifference shows itself in the neglecting of personal relationships and in the neglecting of spiritual commitments.

I came across this by a man named Frank Powell:

“Indifference keeps us small and locked in self-preservation mode. It is the sin that forces you to settle for less than you were created to be. It is the sin that says, “What’s the use?” Frank Powell

Do you remember the Parable of the Talents in the Bible? Do you remember the guy who was given one talent? He was indifferent. He played it safe. He did not risk anything. He invested nothing. Indifference convinces us that God is unfair.

Matthew 25:24 ““Then he who had received the one talent came and said, ‘Lord, I knew you to be a hard man, reaping where you have not sown, and gathering where you have not scattered seed.”

I am the Watchman. I am sounding the trumpet. I am relieving myself of the responsibility. Indifference begins by playing it safe. When we are too safe, our image of God changes to reflect a God who values comfort and security, but Jesus said this.

Matthew 19:21 “Jesus said to him, “If you want to be perfect, go, sell what you have and give to the poor, and you will have treasure in heaven; and come, follow Me.””

If you are going to serve Jesus, you have to give it all to Him. What Jesus asked this young man to do, I do not consider being safe. When a Christian refuses to go out on a limb for God, that person turns the image of God into the things God hates.

Proverbs 6:16–19 “These six things the Lord hates, Yes, seven are an abomination to Him: A proud look, A lying tongue, Hands that shed innocent blood,

A heart that devises wicked plans, Feet that are swift in running to evil, A false witness who speaks lies, And one who sows discord among brethren.”

God hates indifference, and it is running wild in the church. Indifference means that it is all about me. That is why I can hold onto a grudge. That is why I can feel sorry for myself. That is why I can carelessly sin. That’s why I can gossip. I am indifferent toward what God says because it is about me anyway.

3. Indifference in the church.

Listen to me and let this sink in really deep.

Indifference is problemo uno in the church.

Indifference is the main sin in the church, and I am not talking abut Mount Vernon, or First Baptist, or Palestine, I am not talking about them because I am not their watchman. I am Beech Grove’s watchman, and I am warning Beech Grove about indifference.

Let me show you how this church is indifferent.

A. This church is indifferent toward sin.

Can I ask you a question? Do you think this is a good definition for sin?

Sin is being disobedient to what God commands or expects.

Do you think that is a good definition for sin in the church age? Sin is defined by what God demands, and technically, the truly saved in the church are held “more responsible” for sin than the lost world.

The lost world is in the dark. You and I are in the light. We know how God views sin. You and I have had our slates wiped clean. We have the indwelling Holy Spirit who makes it possible for the Christian not to sin.

1 Corinthians 10:13 “No temptation has overtaken you except such as is common to man; but God is faithful, who will not allow you to be tempted beyond what you are able, but with the temptation will also make the way of escape, that you may be able to bear it.”

The Holy Spirit makes it possible for the Christian to avoid sin, so when a Christian sins, that Christian is being indifferent to what the Holy Spirit says.

Let me give you just a few commands given to Christians in the New Testament, and you judge you your own level of indifference.

Now, remember, the commandments of the New Testament are different from the 10 Commandments of the Old Testament. The Ten Commandments confirmed us as sinners. No one can keep the 10 Commandments, but every Christian can honor the commandments of the New Testament because every Christian has the indwelling Holy Spirit, so let’s look at some commands and judge our indifference.

1. Ephesians 4:31

Ephesians 4:31 “Let all bitterness, wrath, anger, clamor, and evil speaking be put away from you, with all malice.”

Are you bitter? Do you feel like things just are not fair? Do you gossip? Do you get violently angry?

If you do, you are indifferent to what God says. You are being disobedient. You are sinning, and the watchman is warning you.

“Well, Jimmy, you just do not understand. Jessica Adams just made me so mad. It is not fair that she gets to do everything.”

Dear friend, it is not me that you have to convince. Try to convince God about that nonsense.

2. Ephesians 4:32

Ephesians 4:32 “And be kind to one another, tenderhearted, forgiving one another, even as God in Christ forgave you.”

Are you a kind person? Can people tell you are a Christian by the way you conduct yourself? Are there people in the body of Christ that you just cannot tolerate?

Now, you tell me friend, is that godly?

If you have people in the church that you cannot tolerate, you are being indifferent to what the Holy Spirit is telling you, and your blood will be on your hands, and the reason why you have blood on your hands is because of pride and disobedience.

Are you as quick to forgive as you are to condemn? Do you forgive as Christ forgave you, or do you like to hold onto something someone said in a business meeting so you can hold a grudge? What if God held that kind of grudge against you for you putting His Son through what He had to go through?

Dear friend, that is the point. If God can forgive you with the cost attached, surely you can forgive someone over some hurt feelings, and if you cannot, you are being indifferent. You cannot show me anywhere in God’s word where it is okay to have that kind of attitude. I challenge you to show me in the New Testament.

If you cannot forgive, you need to check to see if you have been forgiven.

3. Hebrews 10:23-25

Hebrews 10:23–25 “Let us hold fast the confession of our hope without wavering, for He who promised is faithful. And let us consider one another in order to stir up love and good works, not forsaking the assembling of ourselves together, as is the manner of some, but exhorting one another, and so much the more as you see the Day approaching.”

Do you have things that interfere with you meeting when the church meets? Is that sin?

If we are commanded to meet when the church meets, and we do not, is that a sin?

You guys know I am not talking about police officers, fire fighters, military personnel, and medical people whose job requires them to be on call. I am talking about missing church voluntarily for something else.

If you can casually miss church to do something else, you are being indifferent to what God says, and you can take that for what it is worth, but my hands will be clean.

Indifferent Christians do not want to hear anything about expectations regarding church attendance.

I know some of you get mad at me when I talk about this subject, so I guess that means I should never mention that a Christian is supposed to meet when the church meets.

Paul, who I believe wrote Hebrews, even tells us why we are to meet.

Meeting shows that we are holding fast to our confession of faith in the the Lord Jesus Christ.

Meeting shows that we are concerned for our fellow brothers and sisters in Christ.

Meeting motivates us to good works.

Meeting allows us to exhort one another

If you can neglect that commandment, you are indifferent to what God says, and I will leave at that. I will not mention anymore the things that cause people to miss church. You do them if you want to, but if you do, I want you to know, you are being indifferent toward what God expects.

Let me just say this, and I talk about this because this is what I know.

I hope I have grown enough in my faith that if had a son today who loved baseball and wanted to play travel ball. My prayer is that my faith has grown to the point that I would tell the coach that I do not care if you play 15 games on Saturday, but on Sunday, as for me and my house, we are going to serve the Lord, and that is the whole point I am making, and I will not say it anymore.

B. There is indifference in the church toward relationships with fellow believers.

Christians can be so cruel and vindictive toward each other. Can I ask a serious question?

What is the biblical basis for that?

1 Thessalonians 5:12–18 “And we urge you, brethren, to recognize those who labor among you, and are over you in the Lord and admonish you, and to esteem them very highly in love for their work’s sake.

Be at peace among yourselves. Now we exhort you, brethren, warn those who are unruly, comfort the fainthearted, uphold the weak, be patient with all. See that no one renders evil for evil to anyone, but always pursue what is good both for yourselves and for all.

Rejoice always, pray without ceasing, in everything give thanks; for this is the will of God in Christ Jesus for you.”

How could you possibly have ill feelings toward a brother or sister when you are commanded to love one another?

Do you want me to tell you how? Because your pride is more important than what God’s Word says. Your pride is causing you to be indifferent to what God expects. That is the simple answer.

We are commanded to always seek what is good for one another and for all.

Sometimes you may have to sacrifice what is good for you for the good of all people in the body. Indifference tells you that your way is all that matters. Your indifference tells you that you are the only who knows how to spend the church’s money. Your indifference tells you that you are the only who knows what temp the thermostat needs to be set on. If that is your attitude, you are not considering your brothers and sisters.

Indifference always begins when we let our guards down.

Ephesians 4:26–27 ““Be angry, and do not sin”: do not let the sun go down on your wrath, nor give place to the devil.”

When we refuse to listen to the Holy Spirit when He convicts us of sin, we have taken our first step toward indifference and we have given the Devil permission to take up residence in our lives.

If something is off in the church, it is off because of indifference, and I will take the blame for it as the watchman. I let my guard down. I was trying to juggle too many things, but, now, I am back at my post.

We need to get this indifference taken care of. I believe it is the reason we are no longer seeing the numbers of people saved that we were seeing. We have let our indifference stop the moving of the Holy Spirit, and that is a sin against the Holy Spirit that we talked about last Sunday night.

C. What do we need to do?

1. Judge ourselves.

Matthew 7:1–5 ““Judge not, that you be not judged. For with what judgment you judge, you will be judged; and with the measure you use, it will be measured back to you.

And why do you look at the speck in your brother’s eye, but do not consider the plank in your own eye? Or how can you say to your brother,

‘Let me remove the speck from your eye’; and look, a plank is in your own eye? Hypocrite! First remove the plank from your own eye, and then you will see clearly to remove the speck from your brother’s eye.”

Dear friend, you know what is going on in your life, and if you judge yourself before you cast a long eye at someone else, you will take care of your own indifference first.

2. Confess your indifference.

1 John 1:9 “If we confess our sins, He is faithful and just to forgive us our sins and to cleanse us from all unrighteousness.”

If indifference is a sin, and it is, you need to confess it and repent of it so that God can cleanse you from all unrighteousness. I am telling you, I am warning you as your watchman, indifference has stopped the church dead in its tracks.

We need to confess indifference and repent of it which means to leave it to God and never pick it up again.

3. Make amends with your brothers or sisters.

This is the hurdle that is so hard for many of us to clear, but is seeing lost souls saved worth clearing the hurdle?

Matthew 5:23–24 “Therefore if you bring your gift to the altar, and there remember that your brother has something against you, leave your gift there before the altar, and go your way.

First be reconciled to your brother, and then come and offer your gift.”

If you come to church harboring ill feelings toward a brother or sister in the fellowship, I am telling you that you are swimming in shark-infested waters. You are risking becoming Ananias and Sapphira.

How can I say that? Because you are pretending that everything is okay just like they were pretending. Just as they were lying to the Holy Spirit so are you.

Colossians 3:13 “bearing with one another, and forgiving one another, if anyone has a complaint against another; even as Christ forgave you, so you also must do.”

Whether you believe or not and whether you like it or not, forgiveness is not an option, and Paul is specifically talking about forgiving one another within the church, and it should be done the same way Christ forgives.

By that I mean, we should be able to offer forgiveness to the “whoevers” in the fellowship, and if you cannot, you are being indifferent, and you have blood on your hands.

If you forgive as Christ forgives, indifference will be buried, and the Lord will get back to work. The only things that can stop a church are pride, disobedience, and indifference.

Now, I have warned you. I have fulfilled my obligation. It is up to you to heed the warning.