 [I recently received an anonymous email that criticized me for certain practices and convictions the individual didn't agree with. Though I attempted to engage the person in a more personal way, there was no response. Thinking it might be instructive to others, I'm posting both their email and my response. As always—eat the meat and spit out the bones. —Steve]
The Original Email: Greetings, Steve- I can understand your fervent desire to show the congregation your beliefs when it comes to politics. When you declare an opinion with strength and passion, people are drawn to you. But let's be clear- some of those things you profess with such conviction are opinions-- nothing more. There is no biblical evidence against abortions, for example, and neither is there biblical evidence proving that life begins at conception. However, there absolutely is text about issues like gay marriage, which brings me to my next, more important point. When you say things that are so explicitly condemning and intolerant, it doesn't draw to people to Christ and his love for us at all, on the contrary. Not only is it dangerous to sprinkle your own opinions into sermons, people living transgender or homosexual lives are driven away, not drawn in. Think on it. These choices and lifestyles are important, but in the grand scheme of things, do they matter enough that it should cost people their salvation? I believe that the answer is no. These people have been cast out countless times by society, sometimes wrongly in the name of the bible itself. We as a church should open our arms to these hurting people and show them Jesus's love, not join the crowd in turning our backs. When it comes down to it, are these the issues you want people to be driven away from God because of? These people are already wary and spiteful when it comes to religion; let us not add fuel to their suspicion. Jesus's followers and disciples were sinners, and he frequently dined with murderers and thieves. We should follow his example as Christians and show that Jesus's love surpasses all boundaries and definitions. It is not our place to pass judgement or rebuke those who are in need of Christ. Thank you, -Anonymous My Response: Hi Anonymous, Thank you for your note! Perhaps surprisingly, I enjoy—even welcome—a spirited and engaging discussion, and don't think disagreement is at all bad. Solomon reminds us that "as iron sharpens iron, so the countenance (i.e. face to face encounter) of one person sharpens another." Email is a poorer substitute to our getting together, listening carefully to each other, expressing convictions and questioning beliefs; but it's better than not interacting at all. I'm guessing you chose to remain anonymous for one of the following reasons: •You think that if I knew your identity and that you disagreed with me, it would affect our relationship, or my acceptance of you, or my estimation of you. (It wouldn't. I have lots of friends who disagree with me.) •You are in a position of responsibility, and you wonder if you could express these beliefs without having someone (me? others?) judge or reject you. •You've had painful experiences with others disagreeing with you, and you'd rather avoid that possibility with me. •You just didn't want to. No reason. Whatever the reason, I want to assure you that most people who interact with me over a table do not find me censorious, belittling, or angry. I am not Donald Trump. I do not know if you even want a response. Other than the encouragement to "think on it," you did not ask me to explain my opinions, or clarify my reasoning. I have given your email some thought (as I've had some downtime since being in the hospital), and decided I would email you back. Perhaps the easiest way for me to respond is to do so directly to your thoughts as you stated them. That way, I hopefully won't misstate what you said or misrepresent your ideas. (I'll copy and paste, then respond. Your thoughts are in red italics, mine follow.) Greetings, Steve. This is a warm and non-threatening welcome! Thank you! (See how this is going to work?) I can understand your fervent desire to show the congregation your beliefs when it comes to politics. When you declare an opinion with strength and passion, people are drawn to you. Actually, I was surprised at your opening salvo because I rarely state anything about politics in a message on the weekend. We usually think of politics as anything dealing with elections, or candidates, or trying to sway legislation regarding hot-potato social or economic issues. But politics, strictly speaking, deals with any of the activities that influence the policies and practices of a government. In common language today, politics also calls to mind the legislation itself surrounding those policies and practices. The distinction between the core beliefs and the politics that address them is an important one. I can hold a conviction but disagree with some legislation about it, or disagree with a belief, but endorse a law defending it. Years ago, I did not support a law regarding "the defense of marriage" (though I believe in traditional marriage), because I thought it was a poorly written law. These days, though I believe that marriage requires two consenting individuals of the opposite sex, I would oppose the government forbidding gay marriage or demanding that I recognize or perform gay marriages. My point is that my political opinions are distinct from my core convictions, which I hope are biblical. Redeemer's has made a point to avoid politics because it often confuses the issue with seekers who need to hear about Christ (your later point regarding gays in your email). You don't become a republican or a democrat and then become a Christian, or when you become a Christian, you don't also automatically become a member of a certain political party. You are a Christian first and foremost. You follow Christ wherever he leads. That isn't to say that all political issues are off limits: many have a moral core, and we may want to address that moral issue from a biblical viewpoint. For instance, Trump claiming to be a Christian, but denying that he has ever sinned or asked for forgiveness from God needs to be addressed and corrected, not because we forbid people to vote for him, but because the very definition of Christian is at stake. But let's be clear—some of those things you profess with such conviction are opinions-- nothing more. There is no biblical evidence against abortions, for example, and neither is there biblical evidence proving that life begins at conception. However, there absolutely is text about issues like gay marriage, which brings me to my next, more important point. This is where I get to probe. An opinion is a belief or judgment or position that you personally take. It is your opinion. Labeling something an opinion says nothing about its veracity, its truthfulness. It may be sober truth or sheer craziness; it may be rooted in facts or have no grounding in anything but an individual's imagination. So, yes. I have opinions. So do you. And certainly, you are expressing your opinion when you say that what I express with such conviction is nothing more than my opinion. It may or may not be the case. You may be saying, "I don't think what you express with such force is grounded in truth"—and you may be right. But simply because it is my opinion doesn't make it groundless or less true, any more than your opinion. Your statements about abortion is a bit startling because either you haven't read better arguments for and against abortion, or you've summarily dismissed the ones you disagree with. But theologians even from Century One, and scholars who have written voluminous commentaries on the texts of Scripture have concluded that there is a very strong case to be made that in the minds of the writers of Scripture, a person's existence begins at conception, and God's involvement with that person extends back into the womb. (Check out, for instance, Psalm 139.) Without any question, life begins at conception. Something is living. It's not a grain of sand, and it will never become a spoon or a Buick. It is living. I think you're trying to say, "It isn't human" or "it isn't yet a person" (and therefore can be destroyed like you might remove a wart or take out one's appendix). I understand the point. I do believe it is a person, an undeveloped human being—yet a human being nonetheless. There is no chance the mother will give birth to a puppy or a fish. Only a human will emerge from that womb. So, I do disagree with you that there is no biblical evidence at all against abortion, or "proof" that the biblical writers thought life began at conception. There clearly is. And from the early church fathers onward until the mid-twentieth century, this was the common position of the church. I do agree with your last sentence in that paragraph, "However, there absolutely is text about issues like gay marriage," but probably not the way you mean it. More about that in a minute. When you say things that are so explicitly condemning and intolerant, it doesn't draw to people to Christ and his love for us at all, on the contrary. Not only is it dangerous to sprinkle your own opinions into sermons, people living transgender or homosexual lives are driven away, not drawn in. First, let me agree with you. It is very dangerous to sprinkle my own opinions (if that is all they are) into a sermon. If you've been around Redeemer's, you've heard me teach about (what we call) "The Target of Convictions"—that not all beliefs have the same importance or certainty. Some things are absolutely certain and are to die for (the bullseye); there are things in the surrounding ring of the target that are very important and we're very convinced about, that we would divide over, but not die for. Christians can and do hold very different positions about issues that require us walking different directions. Outside that ring is another—things we debate over—things that are important but there is no need to divide over. Then in the outer ring are things we discuss—but we shouldn't even get hot about. All the other stuff (surrounding the target) doesn't matter. This helps us hold important convictions, but also recognize and cultivate humility. My point is simply that I agree with you, that not all convictions hold the same weight or importance, and it's confusing (and dangerous) to pretend that they do. Still, that doesn't mean we shy away from expressing any convictions that aren't in the bullseye. But I should point out, when appropriate, when there is significant disagreement or confusion about an issue. In fact, I often have said, even in a sermon, "Regarding the question of remarriage after divorce, nobody agrees. Read ten books, and you'll get fifteen positions." Sometimes I survey the other positions before giving my own; sometimes I don't. But I should admit that others disagree. During the series last year, The Naked Truth about Sex, I spoke about homosexuality. To prepare, I read the best books I could find that presented why homosexuality was not prohibited either in the Old or New Testaments, and that the texts that appeared to do so were misunderstood. If you go back and listen, you'll hear me give a fair presentation of each of those passages before explaining why I thought differently. The larger question of whether or not gay or transgender individuals are driven away by my teaching the Scriptures, and therefore miss God's love is troubling. I think you're saying that God loves people just as they are (He does), and that they should come to him just as they are (they should), but when they come to him, he has no expectation of changing their lives (which is not so). And I absolutely think that we should (and I do) love any person whatever their sexual orientation. That doesn't mean I won't tell them they ought not do certain behaviors. A couple living together unmarried and sexually active comes to Christ; will God expect them to stop engaging in sexual activity outside of marriage? Absolutely. Must it happen prior to coming to Christ? No. That isn't the foundational issue. But it will become an issue as God works to sanctify them (1Thessalonians 4:1ff). By the way, clearly reflecting biblical standards and values is not necessarily condemning and intolerant. Jesus said, "I am the way and the truth and the life; no one comes to the Father except through me." That might be considered condemning and intolerant—condemning because Jesus is judging every other religion to be a dead-end, and intolerant because he allows no other exceptions for any reasons. But I think your point might be how we hold to the positions: are we dismissive and angry and condemning, or are we compassionate, loving and accepting? Can we hold to the truth in love? Can we state the truth unwaveringly, but do so with humility, and mercy and grace? Think on it. These choices and lifestyles are important, but in the grand scheme of things, do they matter enough that it should cost people their salvation? I believe that the answer is no. These people have been cast out countless times by society, sometimes wrongly in the name of the bible itself. We as a church should open our arms to these hurting people and show them Jesus's love, not join the crowd in turning our backs. When it comes down to it, are these the issues you want people to be driven away from God because of? These people are already wary and spiteful when it comes to religion; let us not add fuel to their suspicion. This is probably the real reason you've written to me, and I sense either you or someone you love and care about has been poorly treated by a church. I grieve with you that we don't do better with this, and should. We should open our arms even more and show them Jesus' love. I've often thought that if the situation now present in many Muslim countries (tossing gays off of the roofs of buildings) ever happened here, I'd hide a gay person in my home and protect them with my life. We aren't perfect, and ought to do better. But one of the recent baptism candidates is gay and is trying to sort through how to follow Christ as a gay person—one with same sex desires. Like us, she doesn't have it all figured out either, but she is following Jesus to the best of her ability. We love her and are encouraging her. She is one story among many that I know of at Redeemer’s. I think you may be hoping that we should go public with a "gay doesn't matter" position. I suppose then we ought to precede it with, "Being sexually active with a straight partner doesn't matter" policy. In both cases, we are restricted by God who has made us male and female, and has more in mind than even our happiness these few decades we live on this earth. Salvation is not a ticket to heaven, but forgiveness for sin and transformation of the mind, the heart, and the behavior of the person over a lifetime of following Christ. Offering something else is something less. Jesus's followers and disciples were sinners, and he frequently dined with murderers and thieves. We should follow his example as Christians and show that Jesus's love surpasses all boundaries and definitions. It is not our place to pass judgement or rebuke those who are in need of Christ. I'm not sure where Jesus dined with a murderer (other than Saul of Tarsus), but I get your point. And absolutely, we ought never to restrict our interactions and outreach to the "respectable" people, whoever we think they might be. (But I hope you aren't equating gays with murderers or thieves.) I do think we ought to follow Jesus' example as you said; yet even he let the rich young ruler walk away. He called some of the religious leaders who refused to believe in him, "snakes" and "whitewashed tombs." He referred to false teachers as "dogs" and "pigs." But anyone who came to him on his terms in repentance and faith, he embraced. "Go and sin no more," he said to the adulterous woman; not "go and feel free to continue with your lifestyle." Is it our place to pass judgment on or rebuke those who are in need of Christ? Have you read the New Testament? He requires us to speak the truth, even when it hurts, but to do so lovingly. He will hold us responsible to proclaim "repentance and faith." Regardless of a person's past, or what they've done, or how they feel, or what's going on in their lives right now, Christ calls them—Christ calls them through us—to come to Him just as they are. Having done so, He will not leave them (or us) as they and we are. We are to become disciples...who learn to obey Him in everything (Matthew 28:19-20). And in that process, He will be with us and never leave or forsake us. Thankfully. Want coffee? I would welcome the time, and I promise you I will not argue with or discourage you. Warmly, Steve It was one of those random run-ins with a person I hadn’t seen in some time. I asked the normal and expected question, “How have you been?” but didn’t expect his answer. Having recently retired, and looking for some new direction in his life, he decided to commit to memory some Scriptures––and not just a few random verses, but large chunks––chapters and even entire books of the Bible. He confessed it had been one of the most challenging, but personally rewarding experiences he could remember.
Before you write him off as some eccentric with a freakish memory and too much time on his hands, let me assure you that you can do the same thing––and you should. In fact, I think God expects you to employ the power of your memory in learning Scripture. King David, a man after God's own heart, expressed that heart in his desire to memorize Scriptures: "On (God's) Law, (the happy man) meditates day and night." (Psalm 1:2) "I have stored up your word in my heart that I might not sin against you." (Psalm 119:11) If Jesus is any model for us to imitate, His example is a powerful motivation. When He was weakest and tempted by Satan in the desert, He responded by quoting Scriptures that clarified His Father's will for Him (Matthew 4:4, 7, 10). If you’ve been with us in our weekend services this past year, you have received some business cards with Scriptures on them and have been challenged to commit them to memory. In fact, in the services, we’ve tried to help you get started by having you repeat the verse while blanking out key words. This is a direction we intend to continue. We are committed to memorizing Scripture! If you are still reading, I imagine the excuses are starting to bounce around in your head like popcorn over a fire: “I just can’t memorize. My brain isn’t like yours. Mine is like a cup with no bottom: what goes in falls through, holding nothing.” Frankly, unless you are severely learning-disabled, you can memorize information. Try this little test: What is your phone number? What is your address? What is your previous address? What is your Social Security number? Amazingly, most of us have already memorized a random series of numbers and words that identify our geographical location, the way we contact each other electronically, our governmentally assigned ID number, as well as a host of other disconnected information. The fact is--we can and do memorize what we think is useful and vital. The question is, do we think the Scriptures are as important as our phone numbers? If we do, we’ll have a pleasant surprise. Memorizing some statement or passage from Scripture with a discernible flow of thought is much easier than trying to commit to memory a set of random numbers with no rhyme or reason. “I just don’t have the time to sit around and memorize. I’m a busy person!” I have found over the last few months that the best times I can work on memorizing is in the small snatches of time that I am waiting in lines or for an appointment, or when I have a few moments of time not long enough to do anything else. If I’m attempting to memorize just a sentence or two (like Ecclesiastes 12:13-14), I usually take a few minutes before I go to sleep and when I awake. Besides--we always find time to do what we consider is important. If we think something important, we’ll find a way. Otherwise, we’ll find an excuse. “Why bother--what good is it anyway? I have a Bible. If I want to know what’s in it, I’ll open it up and read it.” I can only respond by admitting that I have never had the Scriptures affect my life so deeply as when I have committed them to memory: Psalm 1––concerning the two directions of life; Psalm 139––revealing what God knows about you; Romans 8––reinforcing God’s providence and love for you; these and other passages that I have memorized have deeply affected how I think and how I live. As a teabag left to steep in scalding water, so the thoughts and statements from the Bible left over time to steep in my mind--have grown stronger and more poignant with each passing day. God’s words have returned to instruct me, reassure me, comfort me, rebuke me, and--at times--even to haunt me. As one once wrote, “It is not how much you get into the Bible, but how much the Bible gets into you.” If that is true, then memorization clearly is one of the gateways to God’s Word getting “into” us. “I don’t really want to expend the mental energy to try. Frankly, by the time I get home and have some free time, I’d rather read the paper, watch TV, or turn my mind off--not turn it up!” I must admit, I have thought the same way. Still, anything worth doing is worth expending some effort on. I read once where the result of senility, often occurring as we grow older, is the loss of one’s inhibitions, so that the senile person says and does whatever has been in his mind and heart all along. In other words, those of us not affected by senility have the blessing of holding in check that which we think or are tempted to do; we are able to censor our baser thoughts and impulses. As one grows senile, he looses the ability to keep his guard up; whatever has filled his mind--good and bad, shabby and bright, exemplary and embarrassing, all comes leaking out. We all have known some who in senility have become foul mouthed, angry, and demanding; others, no longer having any guard, become sweeter, more bold about Jesus, and a joy to be around. I have to wonder: what will I be like if and when my guard dissolves? I have no idea whether or not I will be able to stop or control the onset of senility. What I can do now is bathe my thinking so that when my brain becomes a glass house, what is seen will be what is “true, noble, right, pure, lovely, admirable, excellent and praiseworthy” (Philippians 4:8). As God’s Word takes root in my mind, my thinking and entire perception of life gradually changes (Romans 12:1-2). OK, OK! So let’s say I’m willing to try. Where do I start? 1. Start with something short––any of the recent verse cards in Ecclesiastes or the Gospel of John would be a great choice; or if you have a statement in Scripture that has meant something to you, choose that one. 2. If you choose something other than one of our verse cards, copy the Scripture on a separate sheet of paper or 3x5 card. By seeing it as a whole, you will more easily be able to trace the flow of thought. So before you start memorizing, study the passage and ask yourself, “Exactly what is He trying to say?” Whatever the length, try to trace the flow of thought. I have found it helpful to paraphrase the meaning of each phrase in my own words. 3. Carry the card or paper with you in your pocket. Pull it out whenever you can and read it. Try to memorize it a phrase at a time, rehearsing what you have already learned. 4. Don’t give up. If you get discouraged and drop it for a while, return to it later. You’re not under any deadline. If you get busy and forget it, come back to it when you remember. The tortoise who finished beat the rabbit who didn’t. Don’t give up. 5. Finally, I have found that enlisting another person to memorize the same passage and keep me accountable is an indispensable encouragement. And as you are memorizing, share what you’re doing with someone else––ask them to see if you can recite the passage correctly. It will help you and encourage them. Take the challenge. Let me know what passages you’ve chosen and how you’re coming. You’ll hear nothing but clapping and cheers from me if you even try! |
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