Censorious Christians

We all know them in real life.  They are those people who scrutinize our words, actions and choices, and who are ever ready to impose their scruples on others.  Such Christian censors also lurk on social media, inspecting your life, examining your lifestyle and comments.

What They Do

They severely criticize.  That is what they do.  They are self-appointed policemen of your social media life.  They examine your comments, posts and life choices and then confront you in a public online forum.  Often, they hardly even know you personally, just slightly and only as acquaintances.

Sometimes I wonder if such people live anything resembling a real life, a normal life.  How can anyone have so much time on their hands to meddle in other peoples’ lives?! 

We ought to trust the Holy Spirit to bring about holiness in one another.  We ought to trust one another to grow in character, and to mature in our judgments.  Wisdom and guidance from the Spirit is needed to know when and how to insert ourselves into others’ lives.

Believe it or not I have received phone calls within minutes of posting, liking, tweeting or commenting on something.  And what is even more ridiculous is when I get a call, text or message about the social media activity of friends or family of mine.  

Using Spirit-empowered self-control, I find a diplomatic way of saying, “Contact them directly and see what happens, coward!”  This is to curtail the inordinate amount of gossip that happens under the guise of concern.

What to Do with Them

There are a number of options.  The best option is to delete and block them, thus consigning them to internet oblivion.  (Oops!, I might get a comment about that one.  Oh, well.)

If you are not comfortable with that option there are other creative options.  Another choice is to do nothing.  Let the comment hang there without a response for a few days.  It frustrates them and their purposes, while others are watching and waiting to see what you might do.

Or you might enjoy commenting directly and fully engaging with them.  This can be a lot of fun.  But you really have to have the time, because they certainly will make the time in their schedule.  It will require vigilant monitoring and quick-witted responses.  You will almost always win, but it can be exhausting and it leaves others wondering about you.

In the end, I have found it is simplest to create a special category for the “censorious,” exclude them from viewing certain things, thus protecting them from what they just can’t handle.

A Mediating Solution

Some of my best friends and colleagues qualify as censors.  And I love them dearly.  Many of them are genuinely concerned about the spiritual well-being of others.  Yet, I often pray for them to gain much greater humility and much greater wisdom.  

Sometimes I wonder how well they know the Gospel and its freedom and understand its full applications.  Do not give in to them.  (See related post and more direct application of this verse at “Christian Freedom Spies.")

Galatians 2:4–5 ESV “Yet because of false brothers secretly brought in—who slipped in to spy out our freedom that we have in Christ Jesus, so that they might bring us into slavery— to them we did not yield in submission even for a moment, so that the truth of the gospel might be preserved for you.”

Also, I counsel them that initial confrontation, if truly warranted, needs to be private and one-on-one (Matthew 18).  If they do not have the spiritual courage to approach it this way, they should probably recuse themselves from social media censorship.  They will sleep much better, and so will the rest of us.

Real and genuine accountability is only going to take place in a real and genuine local church, among friends.  This should be a high priority for all of us to find such a place and submit ourselves to its fellowship and leadership in our lives, and take responsibility to help others on their journey of holiness in Christ.

Christian Freedom Spies

Christian freedom spies are everywhere and annoying.  But they must be dealt with.

These people are looking for ways to disrupt the faith of true Christians and bring them under the control of their self-made and so-called “Christian” religious system.  

It Happens Over There

Recently I was with a team training pastors and leaders in southeast Asia, and spies showed up.  I didn’t know who they were at first, but apparently my national partner knew them and had had dealings with them before.  

At first they seemed very interested, knowledgable and glad to be joining us.  Although it wasn’t long after sitting down in the front rows of seats that their hands went up.  They kept asking question after question that weren’t on topic and didn’t seem to be going anywhere.  

Their questions became longer and longer, and it was then that their agenda showed itself with their unusual and unorthodox views of church, authority and rules.  So we authoritatively cut off their opportunity to ask any more questions.  

When that session finished it turned out they had to leave the training event early.  Good riddance.  At the end of the day my partner explained who they were, where they came from and what their intentions were.  We discussed plans on how to deal with them upfront if there is ever a next time.  And there probably will be a next time.  

In Happens Here at Home

When I was pastoring a local church it seemed like at least once a year similar folks would infiltrate our worship service on a Sunday morning.  The first sign of their ulterior motives was frequently their awkward interactions with the people of the regular congregation.  Again, this often involved odd questions about the Bible, interpreting it and following certain practices.

So I would keep a close eye on them while I was preaching.  If I sensed something strange, immediately after the worship service I would seek them out and ask a lot of my own questions.  As soon as they implicated themselves with their own words that they adhered to a false Gospel their time was short. 

I would explain the true Gospel of Jesus Christ and how it contrasts with their false one.  At this point they are typically scared and want to leave, or they want to stay and argue, which I would not allow.  So I would warn them that their stuff is not happening here and show them the door.  Even while doing this, I am praying that they will come to their senses and want to submit to the Scriptures and be learners.

Protecting the church is a priority.  And entertaining fools is not our calling.

Galatians 2:4–5 ESV “Yet because of false brothers secretly brought in—who slipped in to spy out our freedom that we have in Christ Jesus, so that they might bring us into slavery— to them we did not yield in submission even for a moment, so that the truth of the gospel might be preserved for you.”

A Church With Two Clocks

Guest preachers would almost always do a double take, and some even wondered out loud, “why are there two clocks in the back of the sanctuary?”

The congregation would laugh.  “It is because we have an eccentric pastor,” I heard shouted a few times.  Although, after the worship service people would inform him of our vision for mission work in Asia.

Why Have Two Clocks?

Each clock was labeled by its time zone, but one of them was set for an Asia time zone. This clock corresponded to the country where our global mission focus was located.

The two clocks kept us on time with our vision.  It was a constant visual reminder of our unique calling to strive to advance the Gospel and plant churches among an unreached and unengaged people group far across the world.

As church members and even as a church, it is easy to forget our vision commitment, and sometimes even to forget the larger mission of the church in the world.  We get absorbed in our own lives and organizational concerns, among other things.

Why Not Have Two Clocks?

We would hold our World Christian Prayer Meetings in the same room.  The clocks helped us to pray better.  Not only was it motivational to see them, but we could picture what was going on at that specific time and date with our national ministry partners and friends.

It is true that many comments and jokes made it into many sermons over the years, but we liked it that way.  The pulpit comments from our guests helped us stay committed to our global mission focus and ready to articulate it.  In addition, a number of my preacher friends would re-tell the story of the church with two clocks and help spread the vision.

Every vision needs a little eccentricity to help move it forward.  It strengthens a group’s identity, commitment and fun together in fulfilling their calling.  I believe this congregation loved the strangeness of its pastor and his vision.

Words For Weary Souls

We all know the suspense and worry associated with having a loved one living far away, wondering how they are doing and not able to receive much communication.  This Proverb uses this common human experience.

Proverbs 25:25–26 ESV “Like cold water to a thirsty soul, so is good news from a far country.  Like a muddied spring or a polluted fountain is a righteous man who gives way before the wicked.”

That was in a time when communication took a while and was infrequent.  Yet, we today, still share this human concern and burden for loved ones.  A good report is a remedy for the soul, whether it arrives as an email, photo, call, letter, or report from a friend who visited.

Encouragement Keeps Us Going


This Proverb is about much more.  It is intended as a metaphor for the spiritual value of encouragement, and how we all greatly need it because we all face uncertain futures. 

Good words, promising words, hopeful words place encouragement and freedom into a person’s soul.  These words help one another persevere in faithfully living life and serving God.  Encouraging words are “like cold water to a thirsty soul.”

Such words are especially valuable when people are facing new challenges at new stages of life, or in the onset of new faith adventures with God.  We need to keep on refreshing one another with the ministry of encouraging words.

Encouragement Prevents Disasters

We all need encouragement so that we don’t waver and “give way to the wicked.”  This can happen to any of us.  We can begin to waver, that is give in to weariness of the soul, and consider compromising with wicked.  

We might surrender our moral position and make a false peace with the those who do not know God and His ways.  When such disasters happen it is disheartening for all those who rely upon those “righteous ones” to do what is right.  

A concession might be relatively minor, or it might be significant.  It might have only short-term effects, or have implications for a long time.   It doesn’t make much difference because now it is like a fresh spring becoming muddied, or a fountain becoming polluted.  

Such a person used to be a reliable place of refreshment and life, but now this person does not and cannot provide this any longer.  Sadly, Solomon himself would serve as his own example here at the end of his life, if you know the story.

Maybe you yourself have served as the fouled water illustration and you sense your need to return to the Lord and be strong in His truth and righteousness.  Let the mud settle, and find your restoration in the refreshing “cold water” of the Gospel of Jesus Christ.

Surely we all have our own life examples of encouragement and discouragement, even of disillusionment and restoration.  Let us keep ourselves and one another encouraged in the Lord, so we don’t give way before the wicked.  Let us meet one another’s weariness with encouragement, and provide real help for real life.

Hebrews 10:35–36 ESV “Therefore do not throw away your confidence, which has a great reward. For you have need of endurance, so that when you have done the will of God you may receive what is promised.”

What Was So Funny? Human Souls

They started laughing at us before we even got to the most difficult part of the Gospel.  

What triggered it was an explanation of God’s creation, specially how He made human beings in His own image, different from all other living beings.

Made in God’s Image

As we did often in this part of southeast Asia, we entered a village found a group of friendly people, and directed the conversation to spiritual matters.  According to plan, we started with the first verse in the Bible and explained who God is as the Creator.

You know how the story goes, but they didn’t.  There is one all-powerful God who made the heavens and the earth.  He made inanimate things, living beings, but He uniquely made humanity in His own image with a soul and in relationship with Himself.

There were some animals nearby.  So, we used them as a contrasting example.  People have souls that will live eternally.  As soon as we mentioned this, the uproar of laughter began.  I was waiting for the ridicule to come a little later in the conversation, honestly.

They went on and on about how our God, the Creation story and our view of people was ludicrous.  We learned that this village had been strongly influenced by atheism replacing their heritage of animism, and seeing all religious views as nothing more than superstitious.

Obviously to them we all die alike and that was that.  They paused in silence to see what we would say next, staring at each of us on the team, waiting expectantly for more laughable material.

We talked about the advantages we have over cattle and chickens, of course.  We went on to talk about our moral and relational capacities, and especially the matter of our spiritual relationship to God and our responsibilities as stewards of His Creation.

They listened politely, probably surprised that we weren’t shaken by their attempt to humiliate us.  After explaining much more about the character of God and His actions in the world, we landed upon the most important historical matters of the incarnation, life, death, resurrection, reign and return of Jesus Christ.

Yes, we talked about all of that, and with new courage they helped inspire by their opposition.  However, that was the end of the twenty minute exchange with these twenty people.  They took the Gospel materials, even though they were not that interested.  

Kids Swinging from a Tree

We were headed down the street debriefing our experience when we happened upon a large tree with young children swinging from ropes tied to its branches.  We stopped to talk with them, and within minutes many of the children from the previous encounter showed up wanting to know more about God.

We had some video CDs with us that dramatized the Creation and Redemption stories.  So we gave out a few of them to the older children who appeared to be the leaders.  But in front of everyone we made them agree to the condition that they had to show them to all the families of the village.  

They thought about it and talked about it among themselves for a minute and agreed.  Then, immediately one of them led us to a house right away.  Children often make for great evangelists.  We thought we were done in this village, but apparently not yet.  

Once inside and having met everyone we watched one of the videos together.  At least we weren’t laughed at this time.  After the movie, we ended up sharing a small meal together, talking a little about the movie (they weren’t that interested) and simply enjoying one another as people created in God’s image.

My experience in that village that day increased my love for humanity, all people made in God’s image—yet, fallen and in need of healing and redemption in Jesus Christ.  I still find myself praying for those people by face, that the Lord would use those Gospel materials (and maybe other messengers of His) to cause them to see and understand the light of the Gospel of the glory of Christ.