Toxicity In The Church

Imagine if your church got a memo from Jesus saying He was there a week ago, two weeks ago, a month, maybe a year, and He closed with the saying He would be back at another unspecified time what do you think the meat of that memo would say? Would our Lord be met with excitement and reverence, or more panic and excuses than a hooker going to jail? Now that I have your attention, take a listen.

Transcript

SPEAKER_00 0:00

Hey friends, this is Jesse B, and thanks for pulling up Unfiltered. And my apologies fresh out of the starting gate today. Allergies have wreaked havoc on me. They've hit me with a vengeance. So I apologize that you might hear me cough, sneeze, clear my throat, sniffle, all that nasty stuff, and I'm not trying to be nasty. It's just one of those things, and I'll do my best to keep it to a minimum. Um, so just bear with me here. But jumping right in to a subject that I really don't want to talk about, but I feel that it's needed because, as my pastor says, there's souls in the balance, and eternity is reality. So we're going to be talking about toxicity within the body of Christ. Now, early on I did a podcast called To Church or Not to Church, which talked about the decline in church attendance and the reasons that many people feel that regular church attendance just isn't relevant to the Christian life. But there's always other sides to that, and this particular segment will address the reasons that people are leaving the church and they actually want to be there. They feel that church attendance is still important, but they're not leaving out of rebellion or individuality or the idea that you don't have to go to church to be a Christian, which is true, but Christians should want to be around a body of believers. But it's actually due to toxicity within the church, and maybe that's from narcissistic people in leadership roles. Maybe they were appointed to positions that they really had no business or experience or spiritual maturity to be in, but there they are. Then there's also the issue of church bullies who intimidate just about everyone, and either they toughen up and they take it and there's friction for a while, and then they end up being the best of friends, or they end up running people off. And uh, you know, it can go both ways. Or it could be theology and doctrine being preached that doesn't line up with scripture. Uh maybe they're leaving people feeling like they just listened to a motivational speaker instead of a shepherd actually bringing messages that they'll send their flock out into the world armed with biblical truth. Um there's a lot of things that come into play with this kind of situation. Um I have had friends completely blindsided, grotesquely betrayed by supposed spiritually mature leaders that instead of compassion and restoration, and at the very least should have been given their chance to tell their side of the story, but instead they were met with false accusations and lies. I've had friends who have dealt with rejection because concerns weren't taken seriously and questions were actually seen as threats, and they were spoken over, interrupted, and then dismissed. I have even experienced people who attend a church service and or a Bible study, and I wondered if maybe that Bible study or service was for Christians or if it was a how-to class for demons. And I know that sounds extreme, but the more I think about it, the more I'm convinced that that's an accurate description. It's my personal belief that demons will actually enjoy going to church and Bible studies so they know what they're up against, and they gain further ammo to wreak havoc, be it on a believer who's weak in their faith for whatever reason, maybe they're a new Christian, or maybe they're a seasoned Christian that's going through a tough time in their life, or maybe it's a believer who's arrogant enough to think that they know all the tricks, but that's just my opinion. But an undeniable fact is this if you have stuff like that going on and it's gaining ground, either something's wrong with the material, something's wrong with the person presenting the material, or something's wrong with the individual receiving the material. Because after all, we're gonna know them by their f their fruit. And don't forget that. When people are hungry for the gospel and not being discipled, when people are looking for a place of belonging and fellowship with other believers and they don't feel safe to learn and grow in the local church, there's a huge problem. When toxic behaviors are permitted and it leads to years of repeated behaviors and offenses with no change for the better, there's a problem. So my question to everyone, from pastor on down to custodian, if Jesus would have walked into your church last Sunday, and notice I said last Sunday, because it's easy to frame these hypotheticals in a future tense, because that's going to give us plenty of time to prepare and clean up and fix whatever's broken and offer whatever cutesy little answers that we can come up with. But what if Jesus walked right in and sat next to you or walked right up to the pulpit, or sat on the praise and worship team, or walked into your Sunday school class, or better yet, walked into that little click around the coffee pot or donut table when you were badmouthing somebody because you don't know the facts from a hole in the ground? What do you think Jesus would have said? So how about it? What if he was there last Sunday, Sunday before last, last month? What then? Would our Lord and Savior and soon coming king be met with welcome and reverence, or would he be met with fear and panic and more excuses than a criminal going to jail? In Matthew twenty eight, nineteen through twenty, Jesus commanded his followers to go into the all the world and make disciples of all nations, baptizing them and teaching them to obey his commands. His commands, not denominational commands, not congregational commands, not the church board's commands, not the pastors, the worship leaders, Sunday school teachers, youth leaders, the security team, etc. It was Jesus' commands. That's it. But we as ego driven, finite human beings always have to overcomplicate things. The greatest commandment given by Jesus is found in Matthew twenty two, thirty-seven through thirty nine, and it is to love the Lord your God with all your heart and with all your soul and with all your mind. In thirty eight, Jesus said this is the first and greatest commandment. The second is to love your neighbor as yourself. So how are you doing in that category? How do you think your church is doing in that category? Well, what's that have to do with church? Well, the church is made of people, so you tell me. And that brings me to my next point. The church is not a church because of its building. The church is the church because of the people. The epistles unpack Christ's teachings into the practical rules for how the church should function. Love and unity. Believers are to command are commanded to love one another, John thirteen, thirty four, and bear one another's burdens, Galatians six, two, and live in harmony. There is also mutual edification in which members are instructed to teach, admonish, encourage, and forgive one another as shown in Colossians three thirteen. There also needs to be church order and restorative discipline. Again, Jesus modeled a step by step process for resolving conflicts and addressing unrepentant sin within the community of believers, showing reconciliation to be the goal. Matthew eighteen, fifteen through seventeen, there is also servant leadership, which means leaders are instructed to shepherd the flock humbly, serving as examples rather than lording authority over others. And megachurches are notorious for this. But I have also seen it spill into smaller churches too, where the pastor is almost unapproachable. They act like they can't be bothered with the concern of a church member, and unless you're a high ranking staff member or a high tither, then you really don't have a say so in anything, and this should not be. We as believers not only have a responsibility to those outside the church, but to those inside the church. Petty offenses should not get in the way of any believers' growth. Now we often associate stumbling blocks with action, but it can be attitudes and the overall treatment of other believers as well. Now the fleshly response get over it or not my problem or they just need to grow up. But Jesus gave a stark warning, Matthew eighteen six, if anyone causes one of these little ones, those who believe in me to stumble, it would be better for them to have a large millstone hung around their neck and to be drowned in the depth of the sea. So what is the definition of a little one? Well, that could be a child that is looking up to you as an example of how to live a Christian life and they model that on how you also treat other people. It could be a seasoned Christian who may be struggling or trying to grow in areas that you aren't struggling in, and vice versa. The main thing is if we can't get it right within the church with our own brothers and sisters, then we're not going to get it right for those outside the church who are watching, listening, observing, and making decisions that would impact their spiritual lives. As Christians, we need to strive for excellence, not perfection. I wrote a bluesy song, a Christian song, a few months ago, and there is a line in that song talking about the only good I've got to claim is washed in mercy, not my name. Striving for excellence, also known as being blameless, is living by what Jesus instructed and commanded. The only perfection that we will ever know belongs to the Lord. So thanks for listening. I love you guys, and as always, if you enjoy this content, go ahead and please share it. And also don't forget to subscribe, and that way you won't miss any future episodes. That's all I have for today. Love you guys. Good night.