Even within the church world there is dispute over what rules apply, and what customs are good and proper.
“What is truth?” retorted Pilate. With this he went out again to the Jews gathered there and said, “I find no basis for a charge against him. -John 18:38
The truth is not found in a list of dos or do nots. They are found in a person. That person is Jesus Christ. Consider our rules and how we live our lives. Does our rule help us love God or love others more? Remember that love includes calling sin, sin. Love speaks truth in love.
Instead, speaking the truth in love, we will grow to become in every respect the mature body of him who is the head, that is, Christ. -Ephesians 4:15
Hopefully, eventually the term “fake news” will no longer be used in our society. But as of this writing it is used quite a bit. Let me offer the real definition of “fake news.” Fake news is any news that does not line up with how I think or believe. While it is true that there will always be folks who twist any kind of news story to validate their points. The real term for this type of fake news is actually, “Lies.” However, a vast majority of things labeled as fake news are simply those things we disagree with.
The strongest remedy for lies is truth. For many years the show American Idol ruled the television airwaves. Early each season they would show the audition videos and many of the people featured there obviously had no talent for singing. I am sure they had some other remarkable traits, but singing was not one of them. However, looking at the faces of these men and women they really believed that they could sing. It became apparent to me that their friends and family had failed to speak the truth to them. A loving person speaks truth in love to others. A loving brother would sit down and give a great list of all of the things that they admire about them before they leave for the audition. The brother would look them in the eye and with love intoned deeply in their voice they would share, “You are a good cook, but you can’t sing.” If they fail to listen, you could practice an audition and film it and let your friend watch it. Play the funny videos from previous seasons. A loving friend does all that they can to prevent their friends from making fools of themselves. It is the same in sin. You see your friend tempted, you make time to pull them aside and speak truth in love to them. Love protects. There is no sin too small to make that happen. A real loving relationship is iron sharpening iron until there are only little things. Conversations about what to watch or not watch on television, a negative statement about a spouse or even something as small as a prolonged look at someone of the opposite sex. The really daring will call each other out for issues of pride and when we are confronted, we will be thankful.
Matthew 18:15-17
“If a brother sins against you, go to him privately and confront him with his fault. If he listens and confesses it, you have won back a brother. But if not, then take one or two others with you and go back to him again, proving everything you say by these witnesses. If he still refuses to listen, then take your case to the church, and if the church’s verdict favors you, but he won’t accept it, then the church should excommunicate him.
When is the last time that you heard of someone being excommunicated? It doesn’t happen very often anymore. More often than not when a church member is confronted about a sin they accuse the church of being judgmental and they go somewhere else. What would it look like though if in our small groups and our churches we took this process seriously. How many families would be restored? How many men and women could redeem their jobs, their lives and deeply impact generations? While those areas are important, even more important is a healthy confrontation and restoration process will bring honor to the King od Kings.
“The greatest single cause of atheism in the world today is Christians: who acknowledge Jesus with their lips, walk out the door, and deny Him by their lifestyle. That is what an unbelieving world simply finds unbelievable.”
― Brennan Manning
