The one who states his case first seems right, until the other comes and examines him. - Proverbs 18: 17 (ESV)
Since the resignation of Mars Hill Church pastor, Mark Driscoll, there has been a firestorm of social media attention about the matter. It seems everyone feels passionately about this subject and two camps have emerged. On one side you have what appear to be Driscoll supporters who apparently feel as though this is another example of Christians burying their wounded. On the other side are people like myself, who simply want the truth to be honored when telling this story. If you merely listen to one side, it all may sound really right. Our key verse points to this truth. He who states his case first may seem right until another comes to examine him. Such can be the case in this story as well.
The other side has presented a case they feel is strong. They feel is Biblical. Are we not called to love each other? Does the Bible teach us not to restore a brother who has fallen? Aren't we not supposed to judge? Let us start with love:
So now I am giving you a new commandment: Love each other. Just as I have loved you, you should love each other. Your love for one another will prove to the world that you are my disciples." - John 13: 34-35 (NLT)
Those on the other side of this debate like using these verses but I think what gets lost is the definition of love. Is it love to allow a brother to continue in sin? Is it love to pretend a brother has repented when he has not? Is it somehow unloving to state the facts of a particular case? Is it unloving to insist that the truth be told? Is that how the world will know us? Because we cover up the truth for each other? How about these verses about the truth, from the same author:
How happy I was to meet some of your children and find them living according to the truth, just as the Father commanded.I am writing to remind you, dear friends, that we should love one another. This is not a new commandment, but one we have had from the beginning. Love means doing what God has commanded us, and he has commanded us to love one another, just as you heard from the beginning. - 2John 1: 4-6 (NLT)
Love means doing as God has commanded us beloved. Even when it hurts. Even when it stings. Even when it may be unpopular. It is the world that loves the way many seem to be advocating in this case. The world covers up sin or turns a blind eye to it. The world loves regardless of the facts or merits involved. That is not how we are supposed to be at all. I have heard it argued that people correctly stating the truth about this story somehow undermines the witness for Christ and that is not only absurd, it is backwards. The world may be lost but carnality is hardly lost on them. They not only understand hypocrisy but it is the number one reason why the unchurched stay away from Christ. If this story was viewed without the Christian lens, everyone sees the truth for what it is. The world can tell when we are engaging in protecting our own and that is what damages the witness for Christ. Love as Christ intends cannot be separated from the truth. Now, aren't we supposed to not judge? Ehh, not so fast beloved:
"Do not judge others, and you will not be judged. For you will be treated as you treat others. The standard you use in judging is the standard by which you will be judged."And why worry about a speck in your friend's eyewhen you have a log in your own? How can you think of saying to your friend, 'Let me help you get rid of that speck in your eye,' when you can't see past the log in your own eye? Hypocrite! First get rid of the log in your own eye; then you will see well enough to deal with the speck in your friend's eye. - Matthew 7: 1-5 (NLT)
If what the Bible actually says matters to us then we have to admit that these verses do not deal with judgment at all. They are dealing with hypocrisy again. What it means is if I struggle with the sin of being domineering and arrogant over my workers, then maybe I am not the best person to be speaking about the Driscoll situation. If I am unrepentant about stealing tithe money or trying to cheat the New York Time best seller list, maybe I should sit this one out. If I struggle with plagiarism, maybe I need to get that log out of my own eye first. Then what? Does Jesus tell us to leave the speck in our brother's eye? Of course not! We are still to help him remove the speck. When it comes to judging sin in the church the Bible cannot be clearer:
It isn't my responsibility to judge outsiders, but it certainly is your responsibility to judge those inside the church who are sinning. God will judge those on the outside; but as the Scriptures say, "You must remove the evil person from among you." - 1Corinthians 5: 12-13 (NLT)
Mind you, not judge in terms of heaven and hell but judge the situation. We are not called to check our common sense at the church door. The modern church prefers to do this backwards. We are quick to judge those who are walking in darkness but when a public Christian leader like Mark Driscoll violates multiple Scriptures and pastoral qualifications, we run to rip any verse out of context to defend him. It should not be. That leaves us with the restoration argument.
Dear brothers and sisters, if another believer is overcome by some sin, you who are godly should gently and humbly help that person back onto the right path. And be careful not to fall into the same temptation yourself. - Galatians 6: 1 (NLT)
This is the hot verse around the defend Driscoll camp. Probably because it was quoted by renowned false teacher Robert Morris the other day when defending Driscoll. Quoting a Scripture however does not mean you understand it and there are two major problems with using this Scripture in the Driscoll situation. First of all, he has not repented. He has yet to even admit that he should not have taken the tithe money and instead has let the board speak for him in saying it was allowable. Once again, we do not check our common sense at the church door. Regardless of whether the board says it was allowable we know better. Especially when we consider that Driscoll initially denied knowledge of what the marketing company was going to do until the contract was publicly released with his signature on it. He also has yet to address the "pile of dead bodies" remark he joked about during a sermon, referring to the sheep he had hurt as their pastor. We cannot help a brother back onto the right path until they recognize and own what they have done. There is no restoration without repentance.
Secondly however, this verse from Galatians is referring to restoring a brother back to their walk with Christ, not restoring a pastor to his ministry. Therein lies the rub. What astounded me today was when I pointed this out the retort was that they never were arguing about restoring Driscoll to his ministry but rather his walk. Now this point has me confused. Are the pro Driscoll folks really arguing just for his personal restoration? I reflexively think not because I do not know one person who has argued the other side of that. Who in their right mind is arguing that Mark Driscoll should not seek personal restoration in his walk with Christ? I think it is too easy to pretend that your position is merely regarding his walk. That is akin to saying, "my position is that I do not think we should kick kittens." Is there really someone on the other side of that argument? Is there someone out there saying, "I'm all for kicking kittens! What's wrong with you?"
No beloved. If this is merely talking about Mark's personal restoration then let us all agree now that he should seek it and we should pray for it collectively as the body of Christ. His appearance the other night at the Gateway Conference however was not about restoring his walk. It was about restoring his ministry image. His decision to quit before he could be disciplined is not a personal walk decision. It was a calculated ministry decision. That is what concerns people. No one is advocating the kicking of kittens. Just the sacred trust of the Gospel to be protected and the cause of Christ to advance.
***Disclaimer - No kittens were hurt in the writing of this devotional"
Rev. Anthony
