Restoring Kingdom Builders

When I was in seminary, we had chapel four days a week: Tuesdays through Fridays.  (The school was closed on Mondays because most pastors took Monday off after a grueling Sunday.)

I attended chapels on all those days, and sat in the very back row with my friend Dave.  (We both had to leave after chapel ended to go to work.)

While sitting there, I sometimes dreamed about being asked to speak in chapel.

What would I talk about if I had only one shot?

Hypercriticism among Christians.

Let me share three types of legitimate criticism that Christians engage in, and then deal with hypercriticism in my next article.

First, Christians must think critically.  We can’t believe everything a president, journalist, televangelist, or pastor tells us.  We have to test a person’s words both with biblical truth and with reality.

While discussing spiritual gifts – and tongue-speaking in particular – Paul wrote to the church in Corinth, “Brothers, stop thinking like children.  In regard to evil be infants, but in your thinking, be adults” (1 Corinthians 14:20).

And John writes, “Dear friends, do not believe every spirit, but test the spirits to see whether they are from God, because many false prophets have gone out into the world” (1 John 4:1).

Just because you like a Christian leader or a pastor doesn’t mean they’re always accurate in their teaching.  All teachers – however eloquent they may be – toy with heresy at times … or ride certain hobby horses into the ground.

We have to learn how to discern truth from falsehood and right from wrong.

This is why I always discuss a pastor’s sermon with my wife after I’ve heard it.

Much of the time, I agree with everything the pastor says.  (My current pastor is right on the money most of the time, which is why I’ve chosen him as my pastor.)

Occasionally, I’ll disagree with his interpretation of a biblical passage or hear a misstated fact.

But there are times when I hear someone preach and my mind is troubled by what I’ve just heard.

Last summer, a staff pastor at my church gave a disjointed message.  He was supposed to preach on a parable of Jesus, but he only spent five minutes on that text.  Instead, he went off on tangents both before and after discussing the parable.  While he was speaking, I told my wife, “Something’s wrong with him.  I have a feeling this may be his last message.”

As it turned out, I was right – and needed to cut him some slack for that reason.

It’s appropriate for churchgoers to discuss a pastor’s message after he preaches.  In fact, I still think every church in America should set up microphones after the message and let people ask questions of the speaker.  Shouldn’t communication in our day be less one-way and more two-way?  And wouldn’t we learn a lot more?

Second, Christians need to critique the culture.  Years ago, somebody taught me that whenever I see a movie, I need to discuss it with someone afterward.

Did I understand the filmmaker’s message?  Was it consistent with Christian values?

Back in the 1970s, some Christian films were released into theatres.  Most of these films were preachy, poorly-acted, and had plot holes the size of the Arizona Meteor Crater.  While they worked on a certain level, they were multiple levels beneath the filmmaking done in Hollywood.

Then along came “Chariots of Fire” in 1981.  That Oscar-winning film raised the bar considerably for films of faith.

I probably see two movies a month in a theater.  The last film I saw was “The Vow.”  Before seeing it, I didn’t know the story was based on real events in the lives of a Christian couple.

For the most part, the film presented the upside of commitment and was consistent with biblical values.

But I thought the film was plodding and plotless much of the time.  My wife liked it more than I did – but we discussed it all the way home.

When we see movies or TV shows or hear music, we need to critique both the message and the methodology involved.

(Someday, if you want to discuss the biblical references in the music of Bob Dylan or U2, let me know.)

Third, Christians may need to be critical when we confront someone.  Jesus was critical of His disicples at times.  Paul was critical of the behavior at the church in Corinth and the doctrine of the church in Galatia.

It’s tough to say to someone you care about, “I’ve been detecting a pattern in your life recently.  I hope I’m wrong, but this is what I’ve seen and heard.  Can you shed some light on this for me?”

When we criticize someone in this manner, we need to make sure our motives are pure.  Galatians 6:1 says that only “you who are spiritual” should engage in this kind of confrontation, watching yourself in the process “or you also may be tempted.”

And we need to make sure that we’re trying to “restore him gently” rather than bulldozing the person with our criticism.

Because although we may feel our motives in a confrontation are pure, the person receiving our criticism may disagree … and we may lose that friend forever.

God gave His people minds, and we need to use them constantly.  (Symbolically, our heads tower over our hearts.)  We’ll need to exercise discernment while listening to sermons, watching movies, or confronting sin in a fellow believer’s life.

This kind of criticism is necessary, healthy, and spiritual.

But hypercriticism is a completely different matter.  Let’s look at that issue next time.