What room is there for writing off someone who professes faith in Christ?
How much leeway should we give ourselves for negative personal remarks against a christian brother?
Is it ok to make jokes about them?
To strawman their thoughts?
To have a sense of superiority when they may not get as many things right as us?
"But God says to the wicked 'What right do you have to recite my statutes and to take my covenant on your lips?...You unleash your mouth for evil and harness your tongue for deceit. You sit, maligning your brother, slandering your mothers son. You have done these things, and I have kept silent, you thought I was just like you. But I will rebuke you and lay out the case before your eyes. Understand this, you who forget God, or I will tear you apart, and there will be no rescuer. Whoever sacrifices a thank offering honours me, and whoever orders his conduct, I will show him the salvation of God"
Psalm 50:16, 19-23
And what kind of sacrifice is acceptable?
"The sacrifice pleasing to God is a broken spirit
God you will not despise a broken and humbled heart"
Psalm 51
Slander and arrogance are dangerous.
God may find our offering of theology interesting, it may even honour him. But what he wants is our humbled hearts. Especially if the words of grace drip from our lips.
God the Father of our Lord Jesus Christ,
our only Saviour, the Prince of Peace;
give us grace seriously to lay to heart
the great dangers we are in by our unhappy divisions.
Take away all hatred and prejudice,
and whatever else may hinder us from godly union and concord:
that, as there is but one body, and one Spirit,
and one hope of our calling,
one Lord, one faith, one baptism,
one God and Father of us all,
so we may be all of one heart, and of one mind,
united in one holy bond of truth and peace,
of faith and charity,
and may with one mind and one mouth glorify you;
through Jesus Christ our Lord.
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3 comments:
Thanks for this. I have been thinking about it for a few days. I don't think it's about whether or not we criticise the theology of others, but about our motives. Is it to pull a brother out of a ditch or to exalt ourselves?
The older I get, the more exciting theology is, but also it is a lot more humbling. When the Spirit gives us insights into the Word, we beat our breasts and in gratitude cry, "Why me, Lord? The more I know, the more I understand how undeserving I am!"
The answer to that question is "So you can serve others better." Not so we can write them off.
One thing I like about my favourite theologians is their ability to remain very strict doctrinally yet with a determined, practical catholicity and the ability to learn from what is good in other denominations.
It is certainly the duty of a Christian man to ascend higher than merely to seek and secure the salvation of his own soul . . . If we wish to belong to Christ, let no man be anything for himself. But let us all be whatever we are for each other.
- John Calvin
Thanks bully, exactly the sentiments I was after. I'm quite happy for people to remain strict doctrinally, like you said, for service
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