The church and criticism

I just read this comment posted on another blog. This comment is very broad and may be stereotyping, but there are many elements of Australian society that do fall into this description.

“My wife (of Chinese descent) has made the observation in the past that many Australians are built inside-out - rough and tough on the outside, but inside they are emotionally weak and brittle, crumbling away at the slightest criticism. That's the wrong way around! Your outside behaviour should be well-mannered, gentle and kind to others, but inside you need to be an emotionally rock-solid fortress, steady and controlled during storms of argument and personal attack.”

Unfortunately, as I am experiencing lately, Australians are a very defensive bunch of people. This is not more obvious then when I raise questions about the Church they attend.

Again another comment that I just read about criticism…

“Is it biblical to turn a blind eye to things like spiritual abuse, to wrong doctrine, even to wrongdoing for the sake of not being critical? Where is the courage in that? Isn't it more biblical to speak the truth in love - to sometimes challenge and confront issues, which is not far from what The Message does for our lives? Is your concept of being a member of a church so distorted that you have to agree with everything that is spoken or implemented by church leadership? ...A final question - does saying "everyone knows the church is not perfect" mean that no attempts should be made to change or improve or challenge the method of operation or culture? Should we just accept the status quo? Surely the church is on a journey as much as the individuals who make it up. Challenging doesn't mean trashing, [and] questioning doesn't mean whinging. I hope that through this process of questioning and challenging the church as well as its individual members grow in the process of maturity.”

I love the church and desire nothing more than for God’s will to be perfectly done for it and for its influence to increase. Some church members are so zealous for that house that they will not tolerate or even listen to questioning. We are all members in the body. We are all fallible and prone to error. Listen to one another. Learn from mistakes. Jesus is the head. Jesus is our role model. Our churches should be based and planted on the things that God finds important.

My point of view: Being a Christian is about one thing: Loving God by following Jesus, and loving God by loving others. It is not about the segregation of the small “c” church. That is just the vessel where we grow and are discipled. We are part of a global church – the capital “C” Church. We are all one family. In the words of Rick Warren - "lets learn to walk hand in hand without necessarily seeing eye to eye."

My suggestion: PRAY PRAY PRAY. God may your will be done on earth as it is in heaven. Heal the broken hearted. Heal the sick. Bring salvation and redemption to all who are lost. Soften the hearts of your Church to be sensitive to your call. If we are over cynical, bring restoration to use. If we are critical without cause, heal the hurt that caused that. If we are judgemental, teach us by your love that those who show no mercy will not be shown mercy. Heal our past hurts. Anoint us to take healing to others. Grow your church. We can not do it alone Abba. We need your Spirit to lead us. Teach us that this is not about the small “c” church, but that we are all part of the capital “C” Church. Your Church. You are sovereign Lord. May your Church truly be the vessel where you move in this world. Send us to the broken hearted. Send us to the corporations. Send us to the nations. Send us to the educational institutions. Send us to the political institutions. Send us to the end of the world. We are the Church. We are Gods people. Black, white and yellow. Business man, doctor, lawyer, steel worker, or bus driver. We are saved and called by You. You are the reason for life. You came to give us life Lord Jesus. May we live it. May we all shout with one voice: “Hear we are – send us”.