Gospel of “Butter them Up,” vs the Gospel of Christ

1 Thessalonians 2:1-7

I know people who claim to be Christians for the purpose of getting something that they want. One person uses the coming tribulation to encourage Christians to own guns to defend themselves from the government intrusion. Another person mentions her affiliation with a church when she is trying to get something from a Christian. Another person uses the scriptures to exert authority over a Christian who lives by the Spirit of Christ. Their presentation of the Gospel is full of errors, so they use scriptures with a lot of reservations. They butter me up to cause the “Spirit” to surface to get a favorable response to their requests. That is known as “buttering me up,” where they use flatteries to get what they want. They also expect me to praise them so that I would not have any reason to deny their requests. They detest criticism. As a Christian, my only motive has to be presenting the Salvation message, to invite others to come to God through Jesus Christ for the atonement of sin.

“For the appeal we make does not spring from error or impure motives, 
nor are we trying to trick you. On the contrary, we speak as those approved by God
to be entrusted with the gospel. We are not trying to please people but God, who tests our hearts. You know we never used flattery, nor did we put on a mask to cover up greed—God is our witness. We were not looking for praise from people, not from you or anyone else, even though as apostles of Christ we could have asserted our authority.”
1 Thessalonians 2:3-6

People who use the Bible while applying flattery, trickery, and impure motives are greedy people-pleasers. They get a nod of approval from the internal government of the mark of the beast. They want the Bible to be presented in an undesirable way. That sin blasphemes God and mocks Jesus Christ. That is also part of the afflictions that Christians suffer, people target us for their own unscrupulous purpose. The society of human robots, those who live by the mark of the beast, make it very difficult to share the truth of the Gospel of Jesus Christ. We who talk about the inherited sinful nature, the atonement for sin made by Jesus Christ, and the resurrection are treated outrageously. In this year 2022, there is strong opposition against the Bible. As is seen by city ordinances that prohibit evangelism, a lack of Christian categories on social media, the outright verbal ridicule and hatefulness, etc.

As people who are approved by God and entrusted with the Gospel, there is no attempt to please or flatter people, all the glory and praise goes to God. God is the One who knows my heart, and I want the sincerity of the Holy Spirit to always be present in me through Jesus Christ. It’s important to be gentle when relating to others and not to use “Buttering up” tactics nor pressure tactics etc. to try to solicit a favorable response. The Holy Spirit draws people to God through Jesus. We should be like a nursing mother caring for her children.

“You know, brothers and sisters, that our visit to you was not without results. We had previously suffered and been treated outrageously in Philippi, as you know, but with the help of our God we dared to tell you His gospel in the face of strong opposition.”
“Instead, we were gentle among you. Just as a nursing mother cares for her children,”
1 Thessalonians 2:1-2, 7