The Neglected Virtue

Isaiah 53:2-3, Philippians 4:8 Sermon by Dr. George C. Anderson from Sunday, September 14, 2025. "In the aftermath of [Charlie Kirk's] shooting—as with so many other publicized acts of violence, and the countless unseen ones—we all should be asking ourselves: Do our words carry the same ugliness we say we condemn and are we contributing to this dangerous climate? "Whether you're a leader, a public voice, someone on X, or with a Facebook page, or an Instagram account, or a loud voice in the neighborhood or at the dinner table— If you speak of those you disagree with as enemies… If you repeat wild claims that stoke fear and cast others as villains… If you talk like a war is starting… You’re not calling out violence. You’re contributing to it. "...I don’t want to preach a gospel that takes partisan sides and becomes another form of ugliness. I want to preach the beautiful Gospel of Jesus Christ—the one who absorbed the world’s ugliest violence and answered it with love, grace, and peace." Read the manuscripts of our latest sermons at: https://www.spres.org/worship/sermons/