Dr Paul Allen

The lack of civility in public life these days is regularly commented on. The often vicious rhetoric that opposing sides in current national debates fling at each other ought to be a cause for profound concern. God’s people, finding themselves “in the midst of a crooked and twisted generation,” are meant to “shine as lights in the world, holding fast to the word of life” (Phil. 2:15–16).  However, we are often tempted to justify the kind of toxic engagement that we so deplore in the secular culture. If we in the church want to critique the way that public engagement happens in our national life, we must make sure that as we do so we are living by our own professed biblical standards. One of the key things that we need to consider in this regard is Jesus’ teaching on this subject in Luke 6:28. The Lord said, “Bless those who curse you, pray for those who abuse you.” The Lord Jesus exemplified both zeals for the truth and a deep love for people. Christ is often held up as an example to f

“For you, being so wise, tolerate the foolish gladly. For you tolerate it if anyone enslaves you, anyone devours you, anyone takes advantage of you, anyone exalts himself, anyone hits you in the face.” – 2 Corinthians 11:19–20 – The Corinthians had a tolerance problem. Earlier in the chapter, Paul said something similar. “For if one comes and preaches another Jesus whom we have not preached, or you receive a different spirit which you have not received or a different gospel which you have not accepted, you bear this beautifully.” They bear with false teaching. They tolerate the intolerable. A Redefinition of Tolerance In the last 10 to 15 years, the worldview of postmodernism has come to dominate the collective intellectual consciousness of western society. And perhaps the pinnacle virtue of postmodernism is tolerance. Now, contemporary postmodern tolerance is not what English-speaking peoples have always understood the word tolerance to mean . A person was judged to be tolerant if,

Guilty as charged. Christianity has its fair share of judgmental and intolerant people. I have no interest in covering up the misbehavior of Christians . www.hopecollege.com   But before you are tempted to dismiss the evidence for the Christian faith because of Christian intolerance, keep something in mind: When Christians act in an arrogant, judgmental manner towards others, they are not following Scriptural teachings. Pride is one of the seven deadly sins ( Prov. 6:16, 17), an evil that comes from the heart (Mark 7:21–23). I apologize for judgmental Christians; remember, though, when Christians act “holier than thou,” they act inconsistently with what Christianity itself requires. True Christians aim to be at peace with others (Heb. 12:14), build relationships with people regardless of creed, race, nationality, or sex (John 4:1–42; Luke 9:1 –10), and are called to be humble and gentle (Eph. 4:2). Behavior vs. the Message We must distinguish between Christians’ behav