Do Jesus’ and Paul’s Harsh Words Justify Ours? tagged: , , , , , , , ,

Do Jesus’ and Paul’s Harsh Words Justify Ours?

Posted by in Baptist Life, Bible & Theology

Its déjà vu all over again!

Recently, I was following a discussion on another blog and a woman jumped in with a verbal Uzi and began spraying everyone with her angry words. She was God’s avenging angel there to straighten out all of us compromised, unbiblical, and ungodly people. I confronted her about the tone and manor of her conversation. She responded by pointing to Jesus’ words to the Pharisees and Paul’s strong words about those who perverted the gospel.

Over the last couple of years I have had several conversations on this blog and others with a man who absolutely hates the CR and those who led it. In the strongest terms, he confronts the lack of love displayed by CR leaders. He insults conservatives and calls them names because of our lack of love. I called him on that, asking how he could use such unkind words to advance love. It was déjà vu. He went right back to Jesus and Paul and laid claim to their mantle. Since they were harsh in treating Pharisees and Judaizers, he was justified in his treatment of conservatives.

A very conservative woman and a much more liberal man both went to the same place to justify their unkind words toward others.  They are not isolated instances.  I have seen blogger after blogger use the words of Paul and Jesus to justify harsh words against one another.  ”I’m just defending the faith.”  ”I’m boldly standing for truth.”  They make demeaning, harsh – yes, I think unchristian – words seem so noble.

So, my question today is simple: are they right? Does the way that Jesus rebuked the Pharisees and the way that Paul confronted those who would return Christians to slavery to the Law justify mean-spirited blogging? Did Jesus’ words to the Pharisees justify me calling-names in online conversations?

Obviously, I don’t think so. I do not believe that we can justify our unkindness to one another by appealing to Jesus or to Paul. I think it is a convenient use of scripture, poor hermeneutics and most simply, a misuse of scripture to justify acting in the flesh.

Jesus and the Pharisees

There is no question that Jesus was direct with the Pharisees in Matthew 23 and elsewhere. He called them hypocrites because they did not practice what they preached. He called them blind guides because they lacked the spiritual insight to lead people in the ways of God. He called them serpents because they spread the poison of false teaching among the people of God. And, in his coup de grace, he called them “whitewashed tombs” – a powerful figure of speech describing those who present a pleasant exterior but have hearts of death and decay.

I would make the following observations about Jesus’ words in Matthew 23.

  • Jesus had a perfect insight into the heart and motives of people that you and I simply do not have. I can analyze your actions and words, but I do not really know your motives. Jesus’ divine nature gave him an understanding we don’t have.
  • Jesus was not settling small differences between friends. He was dealing with people who rejected the truth about him and had set themselves in opposition to God’s work. That is very different than the differences between BI and its opponents, or between Calvinists and non-Calvinists. The argument only has any validity at all if the other person can be defined as an enemy of the gospel. We should be very slow to do that.
  • Jesus’ strong words focused on real behavior and actions of the false religious leaders. He did not call them names to beat them down or to win an argument. His words accurately described those men. They were hypocrites. They were guides for God’s people in spite of their spiritual blindness. They spread poison. The were holy on the outside but corrupt on the inside. These were their real behaviors. Jesus was speaking the truth, not venting his anger.
  • Jesus also made it clear that his disciples would be known for their love. He entreated the Father in John 17 to unify his followers. It was Jesus who told us that our dealings with one another should be marked by love and kindness, not by vituperation.

Unless we are dealing with someone who has purposely entered the church (or a blog) to undermine the gospel and lead people astray, we are on very shaky ground in using Jesus’ words to justify our harsh words.

Paul and the Judaizers

Paul’s chief opponents, at least in the early days of his ministry, were a group within the church who advocated the idea that Christians had to observe the Jewish Law. They saw Christianity as a Jewish sect and were opposed to Paul’s teachings that in Christ there is not Jew or Gentile. Some use the term Judaizers to describe them.

In Galatians, Paul confronted these quarrelsome folks. He claimed that they advocated a false gospel, one that corrupted and denied the grace of God. In Galatians 1:6-7 he describes it as a “different gospel” – one that has been distorted. In verse 9, he wishes those who preach a false gospel would be “accursed.” In Galatians 5:12, he gives his summary statement. He wishes that those who are so concerned about circumcision would be “cut off.” Yeah, that’s what he’s saying. If they are so concerned about trimming around it, I wish they would just cut it off. Sorry – Paul’s idea, not mine! No one can doubt that these are harsh words.

Again, I would make a few observations.

  • Paul was dealing with someone who was leading his own spiritual children astray. He was not in an argument on a blog with someone who disagreed with him. He was talking to people who were trying to undermine the work he had done in Galatia.
  • Paul was operating here under the inspiration of the Spirit as he proclaimed the Word. Again, he may have had a level of spiritual insight that you and I do not have.
  • Like Jesus, he was dealing with people who were undermining the gospel itself. Yes, Jesus confronted Peter about his behavior, but he did that brother to brother, seeking resolution. It was those who denied the gospel and were trying to undermine the faith of the disciples that were addressed in this manner, not errant believers.
  • Paul gave us clear instructions on how we were do deal with one another. He tells us to deal forthrightly, but gently with one another. He tells us this over and over again. In his own dealings with the Galatian churches, with the church of Corinth and others, Paul was direct in confronting sin or false teaching, but he did it in a spirit of love. He was genuinely concerned with their growth and they knew it. He was passionate, honest, direct, but also kind and gentle.
  • Yes, in Galatians 5:12, Paul expresses a harsh sentiment about false teachers who undermine the gospel. But we would do well to remember what he said just after that. In verse 16, he tells us to walk in the Spirit, not in the flesh. He defines the “works of the flesh” and the “fruit of the Spirit.” The lists are pretty clear. The works of the flesh include such things as “enmity, strife, jealousy, fits of anger, rivalries, dissensions, divisions.” Do we see a lot of that in blogging? What does the Spirit produce? “Love, joy, peace, patience, kindness, goodness, faithfulness, gentleness, self-control.” Don’t you think it might be good for us to demonstrate more of these in our dealings with one another?

Again, Paul was forceful in confronting false teachers. But he was much more gentle in his dealings with errant brothers who needed to be corrected. He did not blast them with destructive words. He warned them, encouraged them and instructed them.

Observations

1)  While it is true that both Jesus and Paul expressed harsh words towards the enemies of the work of God, we do not have the same spiritual insight they did and we would do well not to act as if we do.

2)  Both Paul and Jesus directed their words against patently false teachers, enemies of the gospel who were leading astray the people of God. When we are discussing our views of truth with brothers and sisters in Christ, we would do well to leave this kind of speech to Jesus and Paul.

3)  When you talk this way, you are treating people like unbelievers – no, not just unbelievers, but false teachers. You better make sure you are not speaking to fellow-Christians that way, my friend. God will deal with you if you treat one of his children like an unbelieving false teacher. You offend him when you do that – it is no small thing to do so.

4)  While there are a few instances of Jesus and Paul speaking harshly, there are myriad teachings from both Jesus and Paul about humility, kindness, graciousness and the importance of watching our words. We should make those scriptures our standard of behavior.