I see right now, especially over the last several days, a church divided. Christians turning against Christians. People flippantly hurling their opinions, quips, and slogans at one another, enflamed and caught up in the emotions of the moment. They’re convinced that they’re either showing compassion or wisdom – not realizing that these things were never intended to contradict. Yet, here we are, rubbing salt in each others wounds, rebuking one another (sometimes gently, sometimes not so much), and each of us has a different idea of the “right” response to all that’s transpiring. And you know what? I can’t help but feel that we are giving the enemy EXACTLY what he wants.
A house divided cannot stand. Yet we are increasingly opinionated and polarized, dismissing one another, each from our high horse – either on the basis of a lack of compassion or a lack of sound substance. More than likely, there’s some truth in both (though some poison in there, too, I daresay). I don’t think we consider with nearly enough gravity the words that come out of our mouths (this includes me). I’ve seen, in turn, apparent believers spout off things that either are unnecessarily hurtful, or defer purely to emotion while sorely lacking any sound Biblical grounding. Why is this so hard for us, Church? Why can we not grow up into the full stature of Christ, speaking truth seasoned with love. Truth that doesn’t pander primarily to feelings, but love that doesn’t dismiss people’s pain. It’s not either or. It’s both and. But instead, we are unwittingly dividing ourselves into camps – leaving a perfect channel in between through which the enemy can traffic. It breaks my heart.
I’m ever slower to make my voice heard – especially against the backdrop of so many other voices. Technology has given everyone a platform, and mostly, that’s just not a good thing. Sometimes it’s not a good thing for me, and I have to step back, and not be too quick to add my noise to the rising din. In general, I’ve discovered that the longer I wait to speak, the better. What follows are some thoughts – in no particular order – that have either arisen in the last few days, or have long been on my mind and have become particularly relevant at the moment. It’s not my intention with this post to strengthen any particular argument or advocate for any extra-biblical movement. Rather, I desire only to advocate for truth – for the Gospel of Jesus – and for His church, that she would stand fast in the truth, even when it looks different than every political opinion or cultural perspective. Here goes.
- I am an analytical person by nature. I have never had a problem relating to or feeling compassion for an individual going through a specific experience. When it comes to widespread phenomena, groups, and movements, though – my default and initial response is always to analyze. To look scrutinizingly at the substantive facts of the situation and hold them up to Scripture for careful dissection. I’ve never been one to allow my own feelings and experiences (or even those of others) to be the driving force behind the shaping of my reactions or conclusions. I’ve always felt that to do so is to make truth subservient to emotion, and I’ve seen countless examples of how this type of response has led people astray. Yet, at the same time, because of how judicious my thinking tends to be, I have to sow extra effort into connecting myself to the more sensitive aspects of God’s heart through prayer.
- As I’ve pondered my proclivities (as outlined above), I’ve come to realize what a challenging line it is that the church much walk. To show compassion to those who are hurting, stand as a shield for those who are oppressed, and serve those who are bereft. And yet, at the same time, to never concede or deemphasize the truth even for a moment. To never pander to what culture lauds. Never defer to what simply “feels” right. As soon as we do, we’ve stepped off of the solid foundation of Christ, and into sinking sands.
- In light of this challenge, one thing has become abundantly clear to me. There is no conflict or competition between love and truth. Never. Not ever. We don’t ever have to choose. If the two seem at odds, it’s most likely because we are operating under a false definition of love. Herein lies the difficulty, though: this doesn’t mean that we become insensitive, and blurt out the right truth and the wrong time, just to sow contention or rub salt in an open wound. The Bible is clear: “Know this, my beloved brothers: let every person be quick to hear, slow to speak, slow to anger” (James 1:19). Being quick to speak is perhaps the surest way to fail to show love or adhere to unadulterated truth.
- We must be slow to speak, and whenever we speak, it ought to be done in love. However, this doesn’t mean that we avoid speaking a timely yet difficult word of truth, just because it’s going to hurt feelings. “Faithful are the wounds of a friend (Proverbs 27:6)” and often, they are the most genuine expression of love. How can we as believers succeed in walking in truth and love, between which there is no conflict within the heart of God? Only in walking by the Spirit, and not according to the flesh.
- The church should not look like the world. Our love should not look like the world’s. Our responses and agendas, though their may be some apparent overlap at times, should not be identical to the world’s either. All too often, I’ve seen individual churches and the church at large pick and choose what banners they take up based on the political ideology they most identify with. What’s more, when they take up these banners, their message sounds just like the culture they’re reflecting – either totally devoid of or partially lacking sound Biblical truth, and definitely not built around the centrality of the Gospel of Jesus Christ.
- The church should not directly align itself with any movement born in the world. Why? Because “if Satan drives out Satan, he is divided against himself. How then can his kingdom stand?” (Matt 12:26). Things born from the spirit of this age cannot and will never drive out the spirit of this age. They will only ever advance it’s agenda. And it’s so important to realize that Satan’s strategy almost ALWAYS involves coming at something from two sides. It’s a ploy to get us to pick one of the two sides, and thus unwittingly advance his agenda. Am I saying therefore that the church shouldn’t choose a side and should just stay silent and ignore what the enemy is doing? ABSOLUTELY NOT! But we don’t fight according to the flesh, we war according to the Spirit. We fight with the Gospel of Truth. We are a “side” unto ourselves.
- The issue of racism has become such an apt example of the point above (as have many other things) in recent years. The scourge of racism (which is as old as history itself) has been a subject of intense focus – politically, in the media, in the church, online, interpersonally, and just about everywhere else. Given our nation’s history, and what we are now confronting, this is no small wonder. The church’s responses to this have both encouraged and discouraged me in turns. I’m heartened on many levels by the compassion I see operative, and the willingness to speak boldly and make our voice heard – a quality that has been (and continues to be) sorely lacking in many cases. By turns, I’m also disheartened to see the church’s response at times so heavily influenced by worldly movements and their rallying cries, rather than deeply rooted and grounded in the whole council of God. This is why I personally won’t use “black lives matter” or “all lives matter” or any of these other catch phrases that have so much baggage (I’m not blatantly condemning those who do, either – I’m just saying this is my personal conviction). It’s not because they aren’t true. It’s because they were born out of and have come to represent something that is fraught with anger, malice, fear, and every other thing contrary to the love of Christ. The church absolutely needs to be a voice. But our voice should be holy and unique.
- Just as I’ve at times been discouraged by the way the church is influenced by culture instead of vice versa, I’ve also been confused at times by the seeming lack of distinction between the way we relate to ourselves and to the world, and the standard which we apply to each. It seems that, by turns, we apply our standard and expectations to the world, and the world’s standards and expectations to ourselves. And neither makes a lick of sense. The church is supposed to be both a stalwart bulwark in the midst of the raging tides of culture, as well as an offensive force against which hell doesn’t prevail. This is not about finding or expecting common ground with unbelievers. It’s about TRANSFORMING unbelievers and the culture they beget with the power of the Gospel! The absurdity of thinking we can better the world by joining with the very driving force behind it’s problems is so unfathomable to me, yet it’s exactly what I see so many Christians doing. Furthermore, it honestly stuns me when Christians are shocked or surprised by the depravity of mankind. It makes me wonder if they really understand the state of this world – and that there is absolutely no cure for that ails the world other than the death and regeneration that is through Christ alone. That’s our only weapon. OUR ONLY WEAPON. And if it is not the driving force behind every action we take, and this paradigm doesn’t inform every word we speak, we are not going to be effectual.
- I feel that the church’s response to racism and other sins needs to have two distinct applications. The first centered around confronting and dealing with any such sin WITHIN the body, and also shepherding both the perpetrators and victims of such sin (insomuch as each are willing) within our midst. The second should be centered around our objective to advance the transformative light and power of the Gospel in the world. To think that there is another ultimately effectual way to transform culture is insanity. To think that there is any other appeal by which can force humanity to suddenly stop living in the death and depravity to which they were inherently born is to undermine the very testimony of Jesus. This isn’t about abnegating our duty to participate in the political process or press for laws that align with and make room for the truth and justice of God’s Word, insomuch as is possible. But it’s about realizing that those things in and of themselves can never succeed in correcting the depravity of human nature – and as such, they will always fall short of eradicating injustice (racism or otherwise). The only government that will ever succeed in doing so is the government of Jesus Himself, when He takes His rightful place on the earth. In the meantime, we of course press for legislation that raises a standard against institutionalized injustice (racism, trafficking, abortion, genocide, etc.), while realizing that the depravity that fuels these things cannot be forced from existence or even minimized by any human means – these things merely serve to curb their expression. What’s worse is that human responses to injustice typically beget more injustice. It’s the reality of fallen nature. The wheat the tares are going to continue maturing together. Prayer and Kingdom activity must form the backbone of the church’s “action plan”.
- Again speaking of the church, I’d be lying if I wasn’t frustrated at times by how double-minded we are. And that double-mindedness definitely seems to follow a cultural pattern. I never want to shut down important dialogue or action solely in the name of correcting a disproportionate amount of attention. We can only give specific and focused attention to so many issues at once, and there is a direct and valid correlation between this attention and what’s going on in the world around us. However, it is sometimes still helpful to step back following these moments, and evaluate whether or not we are applying the same standard of truth to every aspect of society. I was reflecting in light of what happened in Charlottesville on how many people have been wounded by racism. There is so much to discuss there, and I hope we as the church can get beyond platitudes and showy statements of support (though I’m not saying these are never helpful as a starting point) and respond according to the solid foundational principles outlined above (I’m thankful to be part of a church of whom the leaders of which truly strive to do so, but I’m of course speaking of both individual Christians and the body at large). With that said, it has struck me as I’ve pondered and prayed just how much softer of a tone the church adopts with other equally grievous abominations – sometimes in the name of “love” (which really just means we’re altering the truth definition of love to take on one that meets with more societal approval), other times just out of pure ignorance, and in many (perhaps most) cases out of desensitization (I know this one is often true for me). My reason for pointing to this is not to say the church should be less concerned with an issue we are carrying (namely racism, in this case). In fact, my primary point isn’t even to say we need to be more concerned about a different issue. Rather, I’m pointing to something far broader (and way more scary, to me anyway). And that is the fact that we reflect the worldly society, norms and trends around us far, FAR more than we know. It’s affected us on every level. Every way we think. Every way we respond to issues. We subconsciously tailor our responses and reactions, softening or hardening them by turn, based on cultural expectations, political viewpoints, media influence, etc. I’m certainly no exception to this phenomenon, but the Lord has been impressing this so deeply on my heart over the last decade or so, and I therefore ponder on and pray about it almost daily. I haven’t always known how to communicate it, but at the same time, I’ve been compelled with a love and jealousy for the body of Christ that forbids me to be altogether silent.
It’s been my heart’s cry and a specific burden I’ve carried for some time now that the church would mature into the pure spotless bride that matches the stature of her Groom (Christ). The more I watch the church engage with the increasing tide of depravity that surrounds us, the more I experience mixed joy and sorrow at seeing us struggle to succeed in this. It is both my prayer and my confident hope that we will see the church continue to mature, and there will be a victorious remnant (the wheat) that holds fast and grows to her full stature, right in the midst of the maturation of evil (the tares). Amen.