What often seems like a problem in the Christian community is an inability to speak wisely. Christians too often fall into the trap of speaking to hear their voice or for the purpose of sounding smart, under the guise of "warning people of eternal destruction." They need to take a moment and think of something logical that says the same thing but without being corrosive. While most churches use their marquise in a way that is certainly appropriate, there are many that are far from effective at drawing people in.
A church in Indiana posted a message outside that read: "LGBTQ is a hate crime against God." Even though Christians may not agree with the lifestyle or agendas of the LGBTQ community, the call from God that all Christ followers share is far from raising civil discord.
The leaders of this church have recently stated that they are in search of a new building due to their eviction from the current premises. While eviction seems a little harsh, it isn't totally unwarranted. As a property owner, I myself would probably attempt to find an out. Christians need to be held accountable for their words and actions; there are a dozen different, less abrasive ways to say what the church leaders had wanted to get across.
Christians need to be wise with what they say and how they say it. When accountability is necessary, other Christians and churches need to be first in line to hold that accountability.
As followers of Christ, we are called to love. We are called to show love in such a way that our lives reflect the life of Christ. Yes, sometimes love can be hurtful, like a splinter perhaps, but never like a 2nd degree burn.
Jesus himself said, "Let him who is without sin among you, be the first to throw a stone at her" (John 8:7). While the context of this scripture is very different, what we must keep in mind is how sinful we remain even after we are saved by grace. If Christians desire to cast their verbal stones, by all means, but let us keep in mind what the Lord said about sinlessness before condemnation.
Grace is something that we as humans aren't able to effectively comprehend or administer. We even have trouble defining the very nature and scope of grace.
In Ephesians 4:32 we are commanded as Christ Followers to, "Be kind to one another, tenderhearted, forgiving one another even as God, in Christ, Forgave you." As followers of Christ we have been saved by God's amazing grace, yet too often we forget where we came from. We came from the depths of despair, the abyss of sin; yet we aren't only forgetful to show grace, but we are unwilling to show grace to those around us.
We must learn to show grace and love to others, but most importantly, we need to be able to speak wisely with grace and love. Speaking wisely and speaking well will help Christians to be more effective ministers to the words and teachings of Jesus.
