Yesterday (Monday the 27th) an article blew up in my newsfeed, entitled "Why I Love Jesus But Don't Attend Church." As a Christian I was naturally intrigued, but was hopeful that this article was traditional clickbait. Much to my dismay, the article effectively outlined the reasons a girl I went to high school with believed that the church should be a "safe place."
Many of the pastors in my life have said something similar to "you should never leave church without feeling convicted." That is to say, that church is a place to grow in Christ. While it should by default be a place to fellowship with other believers (because the word church refers to a group of believers), the activity of going to church is so much more than a social event.
James ends his book with an important statement: "My brothers, if any among you strays from the truth, and someone turns him back, let him know that whoever turns a sinner from the error of his way will save his life from death and cover a multitude of sins." James 5:19-20. While earlier in the book James warns of the dangers of passing judgement upon someone, here he clearly points out that it is the duty of believers to push each other towards biblical truths. I in no way claim to be a perfect Christian (for I am FAR from that), but if one of my friends or students in a small group was straying from the truth, it is clearly my duty to lovingly point it out to them. To quote the author of the article "But the people of the church have no right to take it upon themselves to address the situation, to try and fix the situation, or to publicize it to fellow church-goers." While trying of their own accord to fix the situation or to publicize it may not be the best way to deal with a bad situation, fellow church-goers are in fact COMMANDED to address the situation. In fact, addressing the situation is one of the most loving things a fellow Christ follower can do for their brother or sister! If no one points out a detrimental sin in another's life, then we are simply allowing that believer to continue their sinful lifestyle and grow farther from Christ.
Do some Christians take this verse too far? Certainly. However, my generation pushes the ideas of the world into Christianity, instead of the other way around. We should, as Christians, love every person. But loving someone means being willing to say something that they may not like. If the lifestyle choices of a believer are not in accordance to scripture, other believers should (discretely) point it out in love. One of my friends quoted Matthew 18:15-17 in response to this article: "“If your brother or sister sins, go and point out their fault, just between the two of you. If they listen to you, you have won them over.16 But if they will not listen, take one or two others along, so that ‘every matter may be established by the testimony of two or three witnesses.’ 17 If they still refuse to listen, tell it to the church; and if they refuse to listen even to the church, treat them as you would a pagan or a tax collector."
Hearing rebuke is not easy for me to swallow. I pride myself on being an independent person, and often let my ego get in the way of love. However, it is so important that Christians realize that there is a difference between passing judgement and constructively pointing out a sin. While I have no idea of the specific situations the article's author referred to, I hope that they realize the church was designed to promote growth, and sometimes growth requires constructive criticism. Church is necessary for every believer to learn and to grow.
