The Slippery Slope is on Both Sides
The direction we all need to head is more biblical … not to the right or to the left … but biblical.
NOTE: I wrote most of this four months ago and filed it away. There has been some minimal editing today, but I feel it especially important to post after a week of controversy among brethren on social media. My goal is to get us all to slow down & think … and pray for those we disagree with. There is room in the kingdom for good-hearted brethren to disagree without breaking fellowship.
2024 is my twenty-ninth year of located preaching work. Brotherhood controversies have come and gone. When I began preaching, non-institutional churches in the South and Midwest were in great consternation over the deity and humanity of Christ. Things got really ugly for a few years. Just as that controversy settled down at the dawn of the new century, a new one erupted over the days of creation in Genesis. That played out over a year or two, and it seemed after that, as we moved through the rest of the 00s into the early teens, that most people had grown tired of constant controversy that only inflamed brethren. In what brotherhood periodicals were still in print circulation, I remember that generally, the focus shifted somewhat, with less of an emphasis on “issues.” (Maybe some of that was purely for business reasons, i.e., to slow down the growing number of subscription losses.)
As we’ve moved into the 20s, most of the major print publications are gone. Only a few are online. Social media, personal blogs, and podcasts are where things are discussed among brethren. Some influential preachers and leading members have thousands of followers. These are where the “issues” that come up are openly discussed. And the danger is, wherein our periodicals were primarily circulated among brethren, today’s discussions are being held in mediums where the world is watching and able to see our wranglings — forming lasting, but incomplete impressions that often cause them to construct impenetrable walls out of their distaste with all the fighting they see. So, we must be careful as we all work to understand one another. We, including myself, can all do better.
A New Controversy Blooms
Over the last ten years, I believe another controversy has been brewing, mainly behind the scenes. But it’s been there — and now approaching the midpoint of the 2020s — it is starting to move more into the public eye. As my generation of preachers has moved into their prime years, many of us have been emphasizing the biblical doctrine of grace, embraced the assurance of salvation as explained in the gospel, and opened our eyes to the personal work of the Spirit in our lives as Christians. We are discovering people all over the country who are hungry for hope, grace, and the joy of freedom from salvation through a system of works.
This is now being met with strong resistance in various lectureships, online publications, and social media. Snippets of podcasts and sermons are being pulled out of context and presented with suspicion and outright lies at worst. Multipage manifestos are being written and circulated by email to brethren all over the country. Claims are being made that these preachers are starting a holiness movement within the church. Labels such as “neo-calvinist,” “false teacher,” and “soft-calvinist” are being attached. Several preachers have had gospel meetings and other speaking events canceled. Other preachers are canceling their meetings with congregations they deem “unsound.”
Marking Churches?
Today, congregations are “marking” other congregations (I didn’t know the New Testament taught such a thing.) Elderships warn preachers that if they preach for certain congregations, those men will never be welcome to preach for them again. (Haven’t these elderships read 1 Peter 5.1-4?) Congregations that used to share meeting announcements and encourage each other in their work are now out of communication with those they have “marked” as questionable, or worse. And it is all justified under “we don’t like the direction” that brother or that congregation is going.
Poor Communication
Meanwhile, direct one-on-one communication with those held in suspicion (preachers or congregations) has been little to non-existent. (I know this from personal experience.) So much of this is being circulated on hearsay. All a self-appointed brotherhood watchman has to do is decide who to target and then publicly label that preacher’s work as suspicious or worse, and he doesn’t have to do anything else. His faithful followers will take his word for it, share the misinformation, and unknowingly do the dirty work for him. All the while, Satan smiles as brethren are doing his work in the name of “protecting truth.”
Some of us are being warned, “Don’t you know where your positions can lead?” The implication is that if we’re not already a Calvinist, we will be, that if we don’t already believe you can’t lose your salvation, we will; and that if we don’t currently believe in charasmaticism, we will; because that is always where these things lead. And since they believe this is the case, they feel justified to label, treat with suspicion, identify as dangerous, and silently withdraw fellowship.
It is right to acknowledge that some who have come before us took things too far. They went out from among us. But let’s not forget how some of them were pushed out, isolated, and subjected to slander and all manner of ungodliness by their own people first which propelled them in their journey away from the truth. What happened with them should not be denied, and where they eventually wound up should not be condoned. And, only speaking for me, I am very aware of that and am committed to a balanced approach.
Where Does the Works Emphasis Lead?
To those who are on the other side of this, I have to ask: have you considered where your positions lead? The slippery slope is not just to the left but also to the right. And the evidence of where it has led is seen throughout the church. Shall we discuss dead churches? Where works-oriented salvation leads? You can never do enough. You can never be sure. One moment you’re saved, the next you’re not. You live your entire life for Christ, and then after decades of service and approaching death, you still aren’t sure if you’ll make it. “What if I didn’t do enough?” Shall we discuss the disputes, competition, external comparisons, and division that legalism brings? Shall we discuss the cold, lonely, and hopeless disposition of those who are called upon just to study more or do more — pull yourself up by the bootstraps — instead of trusting in the help of God’s Spirit throughout the process of sanctification? After all we’re told, “God displayed his grace at the cross, now it is up to us to obey.” “Get baptized … and you’re on your own.”
Shall we discuss all of those who have dwindled down to a small group of exclusive individuals who are the “only faithful ones” — while they view every other congregation in their community as “unsound?” Shall we discuss the sterile atmosphere many of our congregations have perfected, where brethren within struggle with the worst problems of life and are afraid to reach out for help lest they be judged, shunned, and turned out of the church? Will those on the right acknowledge that some among them have taken things too far the other way? Seems that they may have embraced a gospel that is foreign to scripture.
Again, there is a ditch on either side of the road. We need to stay out of both.
We Agree On More Than We Disagree
The bottom line as we approach this new controversy that seems to be going from cold to hot, from whispered in the shadows to openly discussed, is that there is more we agree upon than disagree. We are still brothers, saved by the blood of Christ. We both want what is best for the church. Brethren on both sides have good hearts. Both sides are saying things that need to be considered and revisited by the other side. All the warnings of where this could lead are not invalid. Both sides need to communicate with each other on a one-on-one level. Instead of taking someone’s word about what someone teaches — reach out to them personally and discuss. Resolve to never be part of hearsay — especially when it is negative information about another brother. We need to quit assuming the worst of each other. Such attitudes are void of the love the apostles called for, 1 Corinthians 13.4-7.
Wrapping Up
Finally, we all need to be in the word. We have not arrived. We do not know it all. Maybe we all need a refresher on the gospel, the centrality of Jesus, and what salvation truly means. Maybe it is time for us to examine our teachings in light of what the Scripture actually teaches — not only contradicting denominational doctrine. What did Paul actually teach in Romans & Galatians? What do the apostles mean when they talk about standing in grace and being forgiven, holy, and blameless before Him? What is meant by the Spirit living within us? Yes, our denominational friends have missed some important points of doctrine. But, for us, the restoration movement isn’t over. We need to be growing. The direction we all need to head is more biblical … not to the right or to the left … but biblical.