Stetzer focused on what needed to be purged from evangelicalism—starting with the nastiness. The love of a merciful God “is not what we’re known for,” he said, but it could be again if Christians would check themselves. Without naming names, Stetzer was speaking to an obvious truth. This idea, promoted by the likes of Robert Jeffress, that the Church’s unpopularity has nothing to do with its ugly behavior, simply does not pass the smell test.
