Protest

“The lady doth protest too much” is a line from the play Hamlet, by William Shakespeare. So what is it doing in a Christian blog?

This phrase is typically quoted to suggest that someone is strongly denying something or hiding the whole truth,or to imply doubt in another person's sincerity. It can become obvious when a Christian deliberately becomes very vocal against something or someone, and you can easily see that there is some insincerity being expressed. A simple example are those adolescent expressions that you really don’t like that girl because she annoys you, when it is evident to all around that you really, really like her a lot! The speaker thinks they are covering their feelings, but no one is convinced.

When we repeatedly go on and on against the same people or things, we risk being seen as insincere. We also come across as shallow, not being able to see that there may be some value to someone, to that “false teacher’s” life and work. We become good at picking out the faults in other people, but not noticing our own, or worse still thinking that our sins are less significant to a Holy God which gives the green light to being ‘the judge of all’. That title is already reserved by God as recorded in Genesis 18:25 where it says: Far be it from you! Will not the Judge of all the earth do right?

Shakespeare highlighted this flawed character trait in his play around 400 years ago, and the issue is as important today. He was showing a very human flaw, but we can see the direct parallel to the life of some very vocal Christians around us. Maybe the solution is to be less outspoken about the faults of others, lest we ourselves are seen as protesting too much. Put simply, Jesus said, “Why do you look at the speck of sawdust in your brother’s eye and pay no attention to the plank in your own eye? How can you say to your brother, Let me take the speck out of your eye, when all the time there is a plank in your own eye? You hypocrite, first take the plank out of your own eye, and then you will see clearly to remove the speck from your brother’s eye.”

It is worth noting the one that Jesus said had the sawdust in his eye, and the one who had the plank. Remember it this way, ‘the Pointing Person has the Plank’. Our Saviour calls it right!

Influence

‘You are the salt of the earth. But if the salt loses its saltiness, how can it be made salty again? It is no longer good for anything, except to be thrown out and trampled underfoot. Matthew 5:13 NIV

The South of Ireland held their referendum on abortion, and in a shock to many on either side of the argument, the swing to allowing abortion in many situations was agreed. The vote was 65:35 in favour of relaxing the current legislation. The real shock was the size of the majority.

Two comments struck me as I watched the aftermath unfold, and both were sadly accurate. One commenter said, “Just because the majority voted for it, doesn’t make it right”. In a democracy that can be shown to be true in many societies. The second opinion was this: “The influence of the church has been largely dismissed as a result of the recent child abuse scandals involving the priests and the associated cover up. How can the ordinary person believe what they say now on anything?”.

The ordinary Christian in the pew has a responsibility to be a witness to the Jesus they profess, but a much greater burden of responsibility lies with the leaders in all and any church of all and any denomination. The thought and fear expressed in the wake of the referendum result is this: Would the outcome have been different if the church had spoken its advice in truth, purity, sincerity and the integrity they always claimed? In this case, the change could have been massive and an opportunity was lost.

To a smaller degree, our church of members and leaders should be aware of the impact on other people’s lives if we are seen as hypocrites, or at best a poor reflection of the Saviour we claim. When we lose our ‘shine’ we automatically lose the witness that should and could attract the unbeliever to become a believer. Perhaps not on a massive scale as shown by the recent Irish referendum, but certainly on that friend or family member you would love to see become a believer, and even more so because your life and lifestyle made the difference. In the words of the old saying, “The kingdom was lost for want of a nail.” Let’s make sure our influence is not dismissed. Think what you like, people do notice.