Street Preachers Part 1
I am a little late in posting this blog article. Travel, new equipment, and new software presented some challenges. I hope to catch up this week.
I eagerly looked forward to covering the first day of the recent Gridiron Men’s Christian Conference this week. However, as I was walking towards the entrance of the Probst Arena in Huntsville Friday night (June 14th), something unexpected happened. I saw and heard this guy:
I listened long enough to determine that he intended to warn us about the false teaching we would experience if we went inside. The Gridiron program lasts for two days with three speakers each day.
The Bible repeatedly warns us about false teachers. You should always be on alert when someone is teaching or preaching. Next week, I will give you an example of a problem I had with one of the messages.
I should also say that while he is the example I am using, I am pointing my finger at all of us. We may not get out on the street but posting on social media is the same in many ways. While I would love to be able to sit down and talk to him, try to understand his perspectives, and possibly nudge him toward a more biblical approach, I am not sure that will happen. What I can do is talk to the rest of us.
I didn’t catch his name, but he looked and sounded like he was from the South, so for the sake of this post, I will call him “Bama Bob.”
It takes tremendous courage to do what Bama Bob was doing. He was willingly subjecting himself to potential ridicule and even worse. On a scorching hot and humid day, he stood there for hours, a testament to his unwavering dedication. I assumed Bama Betty was his wife, sitting nearby to support this bold endeavor. But is this an example we should follow?
First: Where’s the Love for the Speakers?
You will likely see 1 Corinthians 13 in many of my posts because it sums up Christian interactions with others so well. We are meant to be relational people. We rebuke or admonish a person directly in love. This doesn’t mean the rebuke won’t be harsh at times; it will mean it comes from a place of love and concern. If I see you doing something stupid and imminently dangerous, I might yell at you to stop. This only works if you can hear me and know that I have your best interest at heart. The speakers probably never knew he was out there. You might say that getting time with some of these speakers seems hard or impossible, but if God wants you to talk to them, He will make a way.
Love is important because it keeps pointing our compass from religion to relationship. A loving relationship has a positive purpose for everything. If correction or discipline is used, it is meant to build people and the church up. If a person needs correction or discipline, it is driven by the desire to get them to turn their backs on the things holding them back.
Second: God’s Word is Perfect. The People Who Preach It are not.
What would you do if you heard of a preacher coming recently caught disobeying God? What if you knew you and your congregation were people this preacher hated and would rather see dead? Would you grab your megaphone and become the next Bama Bob? How could such a person have anything worth saying to you?
The Bible answers this with Jonah. Jonah hated the Ninevites and would have paid movie concession stand prices for snacks if God had put on a show of destroying the city. He arrived at Nineveh after sinning against God by trying to run the other way. Despite the horrible delivery person, the message was received, and 120,000 people repented and were spared a little longer.
I do not doubt that the six Gridiron speakers have things in their past that they hate. Each of them has lies they need to unlearn and truth they need to learn. Each of them is still a work in progress, and there will be more confessing and repenting until God takes them home.
A person need only be humble and speak the truth of the Bible in full context with the help of the Holy Spirit. I would rather hear a convicted criminal read the Bible than a seemingly perfect Boy Scout preach an opinion.
If you are concerned about what you might believe that should not be taught to others, stick to what you can prove in the Bible in full context. This simple rule will keep your unverified opinions out of your messages.
Third: Judge not, that You be not judged.
There are a few biblical phrases that everyone seems to know, even if they have never touched a Bible. An eye for an eye, do unto others as you would have them do unto you, and Judge not, that you be not judged. Matthew 7:1 will often make people who study their Bibles cringe. It is rarely used correctly. However, it does apply in this situation. The only way I can get away with attacking a person instead of attacking their message is if I am also prepared to be scrutinized and attacked. I know who I have been. I may not know all the sins I have committed, but I know enough; I am no better than anyone else. I can only boast about what God is doing to and for me.
The reality is that no one can pass the test. Even Jesus was accused of blasphemy. So, imagine with me for a moment that Kentucky Ken heard that Bama Bob was going to be preaching, and he set up three feet away with his megaphone explaining why Bob was a false teacher. Imagine Tennessee Tom is three feet away from Ken doing the same thing to him, and before you know it, you have miles of street preachers exposing each other as false teachers.
Sadly, you don’t have to use too much imagination; just get on YouTube, and you can watch podcasts and video blogs explaining how almost every Christian leader in the last 100 years has been a false teacher. You can also watch other videos explaining why those who make those videos are false teachers. This isn't limited to YouTube it is anywhere in social media where divisive titles equals views and followers. What ends up happening is that non-believers mock us, and new or immature Christians are confused and are left not knowing who to trust.
How are We Expected to Correct Another Believer?
The Bible has many examples of rebukes and admonishments, but every example I can think of has a relational quality. Peter may not have liked it when Paul confronted him for giving in to peer pressure, but the two knew each other, and Peter knew better than to re-segregate. Also, not every rebuke is harsh. Nathan crafted a careful parable to get David to repent for the Bathsheba and Uriah situation. The purpose of rebuking a person isn’t condemnation; it is helping them repent and acknowledge the truth. That builds up the church. Also, we shouldn’t find pleasure in it.
We can see Paul’s heart in 2 Corinthians 7:8-9. He didn’t like writing the 1 Corinthians letter to them but liked the outcome. That is because Paul loved them. He was correcting them as a parent might have to correct their children. There was no joy in it other than producing the desired result.
I do not know what is in Bama Bob’s heart. I sincerely hope his agenda was something more than tearing down other people. I didn’t hear all of what he said, and he might have a real point that one of the speakers needs to address, but that can’t be accomplished unless he is talking to the people he needs to address.
What Makes a Person a False Teacher?
There is no question that there are false teachers in the world. We can easily identify some as people who promote prosperity gospel and progressive Christianity. But they are not all in big identifiable organizations and churches; some are people much closer to you.
In 1 Timothy 6, Paul gives Timothy a rundown on what to look for in false teachers. Most notably, what they teach does not agree with what Jesus taught us or with teaching that promotes godliness. In other words, they won’t use the Bible faithfully or at all. If they use the Bible, they will use it selectively. They will reinterpret verses, use verses out of context, prioritize, dismiss, and add their own revelations. Their agenda is self-promotion, control, and money. They will tell people what they want to hear or create controversies.
Avoid being your false teacher.
The Bible is not here to justify what you want to do. The Scripture in 1 Timothy 6 says that a false teacher is not or less interested in a godly lifestyle. 2 Timothy 4:3-4 says that some will want to put the way they want to live above what the Bible says, and they will seek out teachers that tell them what they want to hear. However, if you intend to control what you hear as true, you have taken charge of your education. You will surround yourself with others who believe the way you do and steer clear of the truth.
Social Media the More Convenient Place to Street Preach
I intend to write another blog article about street preaching evangelism, but this struck a chord with me. Not many of you will grab a megaphone and hit the street, but it is the same thing when we do it on social media. There will always be a way to tear someone down, but that is not who we are supposed to be as Christians.
The following Scripture was used or considered in the writing of Street Preachers Part 1 by RD Montgomery
2 Samuel 12:1-15, Proverbs 17:10, Proverbs 27:5, Proverbs 28:23, Ezekiel 4, Hosea 1:2, Matthew 7:1-5, Matthew 7:6, Matthew 7:15, Matthew 10:1-23, Matthew 12:33, Matthew 18:15-17, Luke 10:1-23, Acts 20:28-30, 1 Corinthians 4:14, 1 Corinthians 5:3, 1 Corinthians 13, 2 Corinthians 7:8-9, Galatians 1, Galatians 2:11-14, Ephesians 2:1-5, Colossians 4:6, 1 Timothy 5:20, 1 Timothy 6:3-10, 2 Timothy 2:17-19, 2 Timothy 4:3-4, 1 Peter 3:15, 2 Peter 2, Revelation 3:20
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