You Have to Choose One or the Other

Last week's General Conference of The UMC affirmed and strengthened the language in The Book of Discipline identifying "homosexuality to be incompatible with Biblical teaching." The decision raises the question, in my mind, of the role of the Church.

Is the Church the moral policeman of the world or are we those who bear witness to the good news of God's love?

In my mind, the Church cannot be both.

The role of moral policeman focuses on defining right and wrong, righteousness and sin. It identifies what is acceptable in the eyes of God (or the members of the Church!) and what is unacceptable. In other words, judging is inherent to the role of the moral policeman - a practice Jesus specifically forbid! "Do not judge. ... Why do you see the speck in your neighbor's eye but do not notice the log in your own eye? Or how can you say to your neighbor, 'Let me take the speck out of your eye,' while the log is in your own eye? You hypocrite, first take the log out of your own eye, and then you will see clearly to take the speck out of your neighbor's eye" (Matthew 7:1, 3-5, also Luke 6:37, 41-42).

Historically, religious groups of all strips have fallen into the trap of focusing on behavior. Defining what is acceptable and what is not is one of the primary ways the group defines itself: we are not that! It is also a way the group is able to feel OK about who they are: we are better than that! In other words, playing the moral policeman inevitably produces a sense of superiority, a.k.a., spiritual arrogance.

Jesus went beyond the focus on behavior to address the source of the behavior: the condition of the heart. Mark 7:1-23 draws a clear distinction between the focus on behavior and the heart. The incident ends with Jesus' teaching: "For it is from within, from the human heart, that evil intentions come: fornication, theft, murder, adultery, avarice, wickedness, deceit, licentiousness, envy, slander, pride, folly. All these things come from within" (Mark 7:21-23). Also see Luke 6:45, out of the good/evil treasure of the heart; Luke 16:15, but God knows your hearts; Luke 11:39, you clean the outside of the cup, but inside you are full of greed and wickedness.

Focusing on behavior blinds us to the condition of the heart, the interior realm. It blinds us to our attitudes and spirit that do not reflect the spirit of Jesus. Being "right" in condemning a particular sin blinds us to our judgmental, critical spirit - Jesus' proverbial "log in your own eye." Being right becomes a way of being wrong. (See Luke 7:36-50 and Luke 18:9-14 for examples.)

When our focus shifts from right and wrong behavior to our hearts, we are faced with the sobering reality: we all stand in the need of God's grace and forgiveness. Recognizing what is in our hearts disqualifies us from serving as a moral policeman. But!!! Recognizing what is in our hearts qualifies us to bear witness to the good news of God's love and forgiveness!!

The world does not need any more moral policemen. We humans play that role naturally. It is the way we create our identity: we are not that; we are better than that. Judging others is a part of being human. There is nothing spiritual about it.

What the world does need is people who know, live out of, and joyfully proclaim God's love and forgiveness. The world needs to know a love that has the power to cleanse and transform the heart!

Condemning another's behavior (which is also condemning the person) never brings anyone to God. Condemnation and judgment repel. Love attracts. Love elicits a response of love (see again Luke 7:47).

The Church has to choose one or the other: judging and condemning sin or loving - moral policeman or witness to God's love and forgiveness.

As I read scripture, we who are the followers of Jesus are called to bear witness to God's love and forgiveness.