by Robert Hatfield
In Revelation 2:18-29, after a few words of praise, Jesus
quickly moved into a serious problem that needed to be addressed in that
church:
“Nevertheless I have a few things against you, because you allow
that woman Jezebel, who calls herself a prophetess, to teach and seduce My
servants to commit sexual immorality and eat things sacrificed to idols” (Rev.
2:20).
I see a three-fold problem:
- · Tolerance – He said, “you allow that woman…” They didn’t do anything to stop the terror that she brought to that congregation.
- · Teaching – “… to teach…”
- · Taking – “… and seduce My servants…”
It occurs to me that the issue of
tolerance is one that we’re facing in our culture, too (as is the case with
most, if not all, of the issues that Jesus addressed to the seven churches in
Revelation). I wonder why. What makes tolerance such a temptation for God’s
people that they would struggle with it in the first century as well as in the
twenty-first century?
I think part of the answer has to do
with the definition of tolerance that we’ve been given. The New Oxford
American Dictionary (the dictionary app on my Mac) defines tolerance
as follows:
tolerance
|täl(ə)rəns| noun 1. the ability or willingness to tolerate something, in particular the existence
of opinions or behavior that one does not necessarily agree with: the tolerance
of corruption | an advocate of religious tolerance.
We understand that there are certain
situations in which it is healthy to accept a difference of opinion or
behavior. The truth about religious matters, however, is not one of those
areas. Jesus said that God’s Word is the truth (John 17:17), and that we can
know that truth (John 8:32). It is God-breathed, inspired, and thus intended to
be understood (2 Timothy 3:16-17). I’m not advocating that Christians declare
war on unbelievers. That’s not the peaceful lifestyle that we’re to be living
(Romans 12:18). At the same time, though, I’m not advocating that the
relativism that permeates our culture is ok. It isn’t. God has revealed His
Word and He expects us to study it, to understand it, and to live by it.
I think that most members of the
church sincerely want to do what is right. There must have been a time when
many of these Christians in Thyatira were on fire for the Lord. According to
the commendation section of Jesus’ words to them, they were still involved in
many good works (Rev. 2:19). So, what is the real draw for tolerance?
I submit four reasons why tolerance is so tempting for Christians:
I submit four reasons why tolerance is so tempting for Christians:
1. Tolerance is the path of least
resistance. I do not like conflict, and I do not
enjoy awkward, tense situations, but Jesus said that our way will not be easy.
In fact, He said it will be difficult (Mat. 7:13-14). The tolerance that
Thyatira exhibited, and the tolerance that many people in our culture are going
for simply doesn’t match up with the Scipture’s view of Christianity. We’re not
trying to pick fights with people, but we certainly don’t expect everything to
be easy, do we? Read 2 Timothy 3:12.
2. Tolerance satisfies culture. Paul said this would happen. After charging Timothy to preach
the Word, the inspired apostle warns him that a time will come when
men-pleasers, “having itching ears,” will arise. Peter and John would not
approve (Acts 5:29).
3. Tolerance takes the pressure off
of Christians. The famous passage is still in the
Bible: “judge not, that you be not judged” (Mat. 7:1). Even a candid look at
the verses that follow will show the glaring truth that Jesus was teaching that
day. He describes two men: one with a beam in his eye and one with a speck in
his eye. The beam-eyed guy is trying to remove the speck from his brother’s
eye. Jesus says this isn’t the way to go about teaching people the truth. He
says that one who desires to help another spiritually must first purify his or
her own life through obedience to the Savior. I think the concept Jesus
addresses there explains a lot about why our culture is so infatuated with
tolerance. Christians today know that, when they try to offer the Bible’s
guidance in someone’s life, their own spirituality is going to be scrutinized.
We’re imperfect people. We’re trying our best, but we still come up short (Rom.
6:23). God expects faithfulness, not perfection (cf. Rev. 2:10). I’m afraid
many Christians, instead of seeking to do their very best to be pleasing to
God, simply keep quiet for fear that their faith will be placed under a
microscope.
4. Tolerance eliminates hell. If everyone is accepted and ok, then doesn’t it follow that hell
is not a real place? If so, what is its purpose? Who will go there? Jesus
taught that hell is just as real as heaven is (Mat. 25:46). He said that people
will actually go to hell (Mat. 7:13-14). Christians cannot act as those these
passages do not exist. Hell is real. The prophets talked of false teachers who
went about proclaiming, “Peace! Peace” when there was no peace (Jer. 6:14;
8:11; Ezek. 13:10,16). May we not be among the number who act as though – or
even teach that – everything is ok, when everything isn’t ok.
Finally, I’d like to hasten to add
that God is patient with mankind (1 Tim. 2:3-4; 2 Pet. 3:9). He loves us, and
He wants all of us to be saved. His delay in ending time, however, is not His
tolerance of the evil that is being done here. Instead, it is another
opportunity to obey.
QUESTION:
Why do you think tolerance of sin is such a temptation for Christians?
~Robert
Hatfield
Robert's Bio: Robert Hatfield and his wife, Emily, live in Pulaski, TN, where they have served the Lord with the East Hill church of Christ since 2007. They will soon move to the Charleston, SC area where Robert will preach for the North Charleston church of Christ. Robert and Emily met while they were students at Freed-Hardeman University. They graduated in May 2010. In addition to local preaching, Robert is heavily involved in media work. He is a radio and television broadcaster and a podcaster. He is one of the directors of The Light Network, a network of podcasts that promote the Truth.
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