OF COURSE I SHOULD: If the preacher is God’s messenger, shouldn’t I trust what he says?
- Many presume that they should just trust everything that the preacher says.
- This passage is a reminder to us in a myriad of ways that religious leaders aren’t always on point.
SO MANY MISTAKES IN THIS PASSAGE: There is a great danger with self-confident religious leaders.
- John 7:40-52.
- The core issue here is that the Jewish religious leaders are self-confident. They are sure they’re right and Jesus is wrong. That arrogance opens up a host of problems, which we’ll delve into.
- This passage has issues all over the place. I want to go through the verses and briefly note the numerous problems and then we’ll try to come back to this larger point. I should note as we start on this that some of these points speak directly to the point I’m making and some speak more to the bad environment created by those leaders.
- The issues:
a. The people disagree.
- vv. 40-41, 43.
b. Societal prejudice.
- v. 41b.
- Judeans considered Galilee to be a backwater.
c. Inadequate research.
- v. 42.
- They were actually right on these two points, but had not done research to figure out the facts about Jesus’ life.
d. Impressive speech.
- vv. 45-46.
- Jesus’ speech leaves them awed. That is a good thing. We sometimes see this in a negative way, though, when we have a preacher who is a great speaker but has questionable ethics. But he continues to hold his position because people are swayed by his pretty words.
e. Snide personal insults.
- v. 47.
- They offer no substantive critique, but instead a personal insult.
f. Groupthink.
- v. 48.
- This was, in fact, an overstatement. If nothing else, we know that Nicodemus was having second thoughts. Other passages tell us that some of the religious leaders did believe, but privately because they did not want to lose their position.
- This is typical of groupthink. That’s when people are scared to dissent because everyone else in the group seems to all be in agreement. Questions are withheld and uncertainties are kept private for fear that you’re the only one within the group thinking that way.
- It is admirable that Nicodemus overcomes this and speaks up, but it’s also notable that he’s the only one, which speaks to the power of groupthink.
g. Elite superiority.
- v. 49.
- The common people are just a bunch of ignorant rubes in the eyes of the religious leaders.
h. Evaded questions.
- vv. 50-52a.
- Nicodemus asks a legitimate question and he is summarily dismissed. His question is not answered.
- So often when groupthink is overcome and someone does dare to ask a question, it is not truly and honestly addressed, but instead is mocked as unworthy of a serious response.
i. Biblical ignorance.
- v. 52b.
- The religious leaders claimed to be scholars and yet their statement here about prophets from Galilee is wrong. Jonah was from Galilee (and possibly some others).
- Often, though, your actual knowledge is overshadowed by your confidence.
- As you can see, that’s a long list.
- Now, the core problem here, I believe, is self-confident religious leaders and the dangers they present.
- Sadly, all these years later, the same issues present themselves repeatedly. Why do these problems keep showing up again and again?
- Some reasons:
a. People are reluctant to question the preacher because he is speaking for God, the ultimate unquestionable authority.
b. Many people know so little of the Bible that they defer to the presumed expertise of the preacher.
c. People like to put preachers on a pedestal and preachers like the view from up there.
d. Questioning any expert is difficulty when you don’t feel like you know enough.
e. This profession regularly attracts people who like holding power.
f. Questioning is often discouraged under the guise of “trusting God.”
g. We don’t take the time to research the accuracy of their answers.
h. Few have the personal strength or the personality to continue to talk back when slammed by an authority figure.
i. Religious conventional wisdom, even if accurately conveyed, is sometimes inaccurate.
j. We confuse “strong leader” with “confident leader.”
k. After hanging around a while, we learn what acceptable to dissent about without having the ire of other leaders directed at you.
FIRST STEPS TO AVOID THIS:
1. RELIGIOUS LEADERS SHOULD BE SERVANT LEADERS.
- John 13:12-17.
- So many preachers are full of themselves. There is pride. But Jesus called His pastors to be servant leaders.
- At the Last Supper He told His disciples that they should follow His example of washing feet (John 13:12-17). Don’t be like most leaders, lording it over your followers. Instead, follow Christ’s example.
- All preachers should be servant leaders, no matter how elevated their position is.
2. IT'S OK TO QUESTION THE PREACHER BECAUSE HE ISN'T INERRANT.
- As I noted earlier, we often defer to the preacher’s authority as though he is incapable of being wrong. We should recognize that we are all fallen and therefore will be mistaken from time to time. There should be some humility that comes with that.
- Today, as in the past, there are things that get said and even get “amens” from the congregation that are actually Biblically wrong. Everyone presumes that they’re true because they’ve heard them so frequently.
- Some examples:
a. Christians spend eternity in heaven.
- In fact, the final two chapters of the Bible speak of the New Jerusalem.
b. Being a good person gets you into heaven.
- Salvation comes through God’s grace.
c. Forgive and forget.
- While we are called to forgive, nowhere does the Bible command us to forgive and forget. Why? Because if it’s serious enough that you have to forgive it, you probably won’t be able to forget it.
d. America is a Christian nation.
- Many misappropriate 2 Chronicles 7:14 to make it about America. In fact, the Bible teaches there are only two nations of God: Israel in the Old Testament and the church in the New Testament.
- By all this, I am not saying that people should be disrespectful to preachers. They have a difficult calling. But, knowing their limitations as fallen beings, it is fair to consider whether what they are saying is accurate.
- We might emulate the Bereans, who are praised in the book of Acts for researching the Scripture to see if what they were being taught was actually true.
