Don’t Avoid Controversy
1 Kings 22:7-8, 13-14 And Jehoshaphat said, “Is there not still a prophet of the Lord here, that we may inquire of Him?” So the king of Israel said to Jehoshaphat, “There is still one man, Micaiah the son of Imlah, by whom we may inquire of the Lord; but I hate him, because he does not prophesy good concerning me, but evil.” And Jehoshaphat said, “Let not the king say such things!” … Then the messenger who had gone to call Micaiah spoke to him, saying, “Now listen, the words of the prophets with one accord encourage the king. Please, let your word be like the word of one of them, and speak encouragement.” And Micaiah said, “As the Lord lives, whatever the Lord says to me, that I will speak.”
Exodus 23:2 You shall not follow a crowd to do evil; nor shall you testify in a dispute so as to turn aside after many to pervert justice.
When is it OK to be controversial? Or rather when is it good and necessary to be controversial? On the flip side, when is it OK, good, or necessary to not speak up about something? Do you find yourself to be more anti-conflict? Or are you one that thrives on conflict (e.g., debating, arguing, etc.)? When thinking about the church, when should it be controversial?
Many within, and without of the church, believe the church should be non-confrontational and non-controversial. For example, the church shouldn’t talk about politics. Or when something is going on within the church, rather than talking to specific individuals in explicit terms, the pastor may preach a sermon that is vaguely or generally to the church rather than to those individuals. All in an effort to not offend or get people too upset. This is all seen as the better option because the assumption is that being non-controversial and avoiding conflict is what will attract the most people. It is what will keep the most people from leaving. But does it work? Does it work in a marriage for both sides to simply bottle up their emotions and what they really want or need so to avoid conflict? Or does it just delay the fights and make the disillusion of their marriage inevitable? Is being non-controversial and avoiding conflict how Jesus went about during His ministry? Is that how He trained His disciples?
The reality is that whether it is avoiding conflict within the church or avoiding being controversial, in regard to the dominant politics or societal norms, neither one is how God expects us to live. God is controversial and in conflict with the world and our own sinful nature. It is why we have a war within our own bodies (Romans 7:23). Therefore, if we have a war within our own bodies, do you think it is possible for a Christian to not be in conflict with the world, and, at times, those within his own congregation? Therefore, the idea that we should only be peacemakers is a misinterpretation of scripture. Context is key.
When the Bible talks about pursuing the things that bring peace (e.g., Romans 14:14-23) it is about discerning between the things that are worthy of conflict and controversy and the things that are not. In other words, we shouldn’t go out of our way to be controversial, but at the same time, where we must be at odds with others, so be it. Where we must call out sin due to our position or responsibility, then so be it. Where we must preach of repentance and the need for a savior, so be it. And if we have to stand in opposition to better, more influential, or more powerful people, even the people within our own family, organization, church, or tribe, we will. Not because we are seeking conflict or want to rock the boat, but because it is necessary. Not because we are troublemakers, but because we love them and want to see them and more people in heaven.
And what makes it necessary to be in conflict, to be controversial? As it says in James 5:19-20, “Brethren, if anyone among you wanders from the truth, and someone turns him back, let him know that he who turns a sinner from the error of his way will save a soul from death and cover a multitude of sins.” Do you think the brother who is sinning, the brother who wanders from the truth is always eager to hear how they are wrong? Most certainly not! Rather most often they have spent a lot of time stewing in their own minds, or surrounding themselves with people telling them this is right. So, when they are confronted, their initial response is usually anger and resentment. But does that mean we shouldn’t do it?
What if Jesus, wanting to be the peacemaker, didn’t confront the Jews, the Pharisees, or the Sadducees? Would that have helped? It certainly would have made His life easier. In fact, they probably wouldn’t have called for His death and He would have lived. Wouldn’t that have been better? Or perhaps rather than being upfront with them about their issues, He talked in vague language so as to never be controversial or offend. In other words, what if He didn’t choose to heal on Sabbaths because of the stumbling block that it placed in front of them for believing in Him? And yet Jesus did. And if we believe Jesus is God, then the idea that we should be non-controversial, and do everything we can to avoid controversy, conflict, or confrontation with sin and the sinful world, is false. It is a lie. Perhaps it is a well-meaning lie that we mistakenly believe, but it is a lie and lies come from the devil (John 8:44).
Just as Peter needed to be confronted by Jesus when he went off track, so too do we and the world need to be confronted when we go off track. It is a sin to put peace above truth. It is ineffective to put cohesion always ahead of conflict. Instead, what we need to do is to identify the truly important things. In other words, the things that really relate to what it means to be a Christian in more than just name.
It probably sounds strange and incongruent for a periodical about Christians and churches needing to work together to talk that way. However, what I am talking about here has more to do with the internal structure of individual churches, than it does with cross-congregation or cross-denominational activities. (For more on interdenominational work see the article Growing Together.) You see, we tend to be more than comfortable arguing or being in conflict with people who are not in our group. The people on the outside that we view as competition or at least not our allies. Whereas the people we want to convert or the people who are among our group (e.g., our church) we avoid conflict and controversy with. Think about it. How much does it affect you to offend someone online who you will never meet? Whereas, what about offending someone by being controversial when that person is someone you want to join your church, who is a part of your church, or with whom you want to do business with? Well, then you are more likely to just go along to get along.
I put it that way because it helps explain why many churches tend to be world-friendly or timid when it comes to talking about sin. Yes, we aren’t supposed to be of the world, and we shouldn’t be like them, but offending those in the world will make them less likely to join the church. Therefore, being controversial in ways that offend those in society or the community is a bad idea. Or, we want to save both Democrats and Republicans, so getting into politics seems foolish. God isn’t democratic or republican they say. But God is against murder, specifically abortion (Exodus 21:22-25). God is against favoring the rich (James 2:1-9) and oppressing or taking advantage of the poor (Proverbs 14:31). In other words, it isn’t that the church, and its preaching and teaching, should stay out of politics. It is that it should spend proportionate time condemning the wrongs of all sides and it should do so without fear of favor just as Micaiah.
You see, Micaiah could have been intimidated by the king or the people into just going along with what everyone else was saying. He could have been non-controversial with the King. Instead, Micaiah was hated by the king because he wasn’t a sycophant who just did and said what the king wanted. Instead, Micaiah’s allegiance was to God and he made no excuses or exceptions for it. And Michaiah didn’t just speak up in backrooms, in his own mind, anonymously, or just in front of his friends. Instead, Michaiah spoke as God wanted him to speak where it mattered, in front of the king and in front of his own people. Likewise, if we want to follow Jesus’ example, and the example of Michaiah, it is not enough to speak out against things in the privacy of our own homes or minds. We must speak out against them in public and directly to those in our own lives who have things wrong.
It is easy to say that we don’t cave to pressure, intimidation, or fear of controversy. It is easy to think that we, at least generally, put God first without operating with fear or favor to others. So let’s examine some less obvious examples. For instance, do you, your pastor, or your church not speak about a particular topic or do you create doctrines or practices that help you keep or utilize the church’s tax-exempt status? Do you go along with a particular person because they are a founder, people who have been in the church the longest, or a key provider to the church’s finances? Do you downplay a particular doctrinal truth, for example, LGBTQ issues, because you live in a very pro-LGBTQ city or community? Do you talk about the Biblical issues you have with the democratic party, but not Republicans because the membership is mostly Republican? Do you downplay disagreements or just go along with things because the congregation is small, and conflict might cause the church to lose certain members and it just can’t afford it? Do you not speak about Christ or your faith at school or work because you might lose your job or some customers?
What God and the Bible have to say is controversial. It does create conflict. Part of the good thing about having conflict and controversy within the church is that it creates an opportunity to learn how to deal with each other, forgive one another, and judge which things are important and which things are not. It should teach those of us within leadership positions to be humble, listen, and then lead from the Bible even if it goes against the majority or “important” people within the church and costs us our position. Moreover, it should teach those of us who are not significant in the church that our voices are important because sometimes God reveals the truth to the lowly to test the leadership or the majority (Ecclesiastes 9:13-15).
Finally, we should expect what the church says, what preachers preach, and what Christians speak to be controversial and in direct conflict with the world. Not because we want it to be or because we are looking for a fight. Rather, we recognize that the world and God are at odds with one another. Plus, our sinful nature, which is still within us, is also at odds with God. Therefore, we should expect that we and those of the world are naturally and regularly offended by and view what God and the Bible have to say as controversial.
What are some of the controversial things that your pastor preached on last Sunday? Why do you want to talk about controversial things within the church? How has controversy and conflict affected you or your church?
Scripture taken from the New King James Version®.
Copyright © 1982 by Thomas Nelson.
Used by permission.
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