By George “Chip” Hammond
Not long ago a friend shared with me that he and some buddies were out in what they thought was a public space, passing out literature and talking to people about Jesus. Someone passing by took exception to this and began shouting at them, “Hail, Satan!” They responded defensively and an altercation broke out that caused enough of a scene that security was called, and they were asked to leave. They protested that they had a “Constitutional right to free speech.” They were told that they were on private property, and after some protest they left but vowed to return.

Their take on the events was that they were being persecuted for the sake of righteousness, but a passage of Scripture more applicable to their situation comes from 1 Peter 2:20-23: “For what credit is it if, when you sin and are beaten for it, you endure? But if when you do good and suffer for it you endure, this is a gracious thing in the sight of God. For to this you have been called because Christ also suffered for you, leaving you an example so that you might follow in his steps. He committed no sin, neither was deceit found in his mouth. When he was reviled, he did not revile in return; when he suffered, he did not threaten, but continued entrusting himself to him who judges justly.”

We live in a world of rancor, hatred, and “cancel.” I wish I could identify this with one part of the political spectrum, or isolate it to the ungodly, but I can’t. In many instances it was people claiming the name of Jesus who initiated things like mocking, protests, and product boycotts. The hens have now come home to roost. The church in the U.S. today seems unable to fight with anything other than the weapons of the world. Most American Christians would be shocked to discover the mindset of the apostles and the way they conducted themselves which was completely incompatible with the methods and mindset of the world.

If one thing is certain today, it’s that the gospel has lost its effect on our culture. This is not due to some weakness in the gospel, nor to living in a particularly sinful time in human history (anyone who thinks that needs to read more history), but rather with the church losing its bearings. It is noble and laudable that these friends were trying to share the gospel, but their way of doing it seemed to be a misguided attempt to try to win them accolades with God rather than really win people to Christ. What can we learn from them, and how can we apply the lessons to our own efforts?

Let me start with the good. It’s commendable that they went out to share Jesus. That took some commitment of time and effort. It’s understandable that they thought they were in a public space, since what they were doing (passing out literature and talking to people) was no different from what they had seen others do there.

Everything was going well until someone started shouting them down. The trouble began when they responded defensively and started arguing with the person as though she were “the enemy.”

There are several things we can learn by reflecting on this. During his earthly ministry when Jesus encountered actual demon possessed people, he took compassion on them and delivered them. He didn’t argue with them or see them as “the enemy.” James tells us that we quarrel and fight when we are afraid that we won’t get what we want (James 4). Jesus always did the will of his Father, and so he was always sure that things would go as his Father determined they would. The only people Jesus ever argued with in the Gospel accounts were religious people using their Bibles.

Through years of ministering in Manhattan, Tim Keller was the butt of animosity, objection, and heckling. He developed an excellent response to this; he would say, “Tell me about this God you don’t believe in. Maybe I don’t believe in him either.”

I have found that the “God” most people object to is a caricature, either from Hollywood and the mocking characterizations of comedians such as Bill Mahr, or bad experiences in legalistic churches which used “God” simply to try to control the lives of others. The point Keller sought to make was that he himself didn’t believe in the cartoon and caricatured “God” they were objecting to.

Now I admit that I have the luxury of unhurried reflection without the stress of someone yelling, “Hail Satan!” in my face, but we should ask what would cause someone to do that? In the days of the apostles, people believed in other gods. Today people don’t believe in any god, so I doubt the heckler was sincerely an evangelist for the Satanic temple if one exists. It was rather just that – heckling – and trying to provoke a negative response, which she was apparently successful in doing.

By engaging her with what Paul calls “the weapons of the world” (or better, “fleshly weapons”) they lost the fight. What could they have done instead? They could have politely smiled at her and ignored her. Her tirade would likely have burned itself out soon enough, and if the evangelists didn’t return insult for insult the sympathies of the crowd would have been with them rather than with her. (Imagine a situation in which Muslims were peaceably and cheerfully passing out literature on Islam and someone was hovering around them yelling “Hail Satan!” Even though as a Christian you disagree with Islam, you would probably feel more sympathy for the Muslims who were quietly taking the haranguing than you would for the heckler.) If my friends had turned the other cheek as Jesus had instructed, an even greater witness would have ensued, if not to the heckler to the people witnessing the whole thing.

Or one of them (hopefully the calmest, least easily provoked of them) could have talked with the woman and asked her Keller’s question, “Can you tell me about this God you don’t believe in? Maybe I don’t believe in him either.” I have found that giving people an honest, respectful hearing often extinguishes the fire of their anger. I’ve found also that most people who object to the gospel don’t understand the gospel, or really understand who God is. They only know a caricature of the gospel and God that they’ve seen displayed both outside and (sadly) inside the church, and that is what they are objecting to. But the way the story was told to me instead of doing anything like this they engaged the fight with the weapons of the world, arguing and returning insult for insult so that a row followed that resulted in security getting involved.

When security came and explained to them that they were on private property and had to leave, instead of doing so they argued with them, naively invoking their “Constitutional rights” (the constitutional “right” to free speech does not mean the right to enter someone else’s house). This, though undoubtedly an honest error, would have been seen as combative by those in authority who knew better. Worse, invoking “Constitutional rights” would have been seen as political. I want to give these brothers the benefit of the doubt, but it is sadly true that much of the American church has used the gospel (or those parts of it that suit them) for political purposes and really have no interest in the Kingdom of God (as seen in their setting aside the parts that don’t suit them).

Their behavior was at odds with the teaching of Scripture that tells us to obey the authorities over us, for they have been established by God (Romans 13, 1 Peter 2), a concept rooted in Jesus’ own submission to earthly authority in the days of his earthly ministry. To be sure, there may be legitimate times for the Christian to appeal to his earthly citizenship. Paul did in Acts 25:10-11, but those events are carefully circumscribed. At other times when Paul simply lost his temper with those in authority (even though he was being treated unjustly), he was compelled to repent and apologize for his attitude and speech against them (Acts 23:1-5).

The last misstep these friends made was their vow to return, even after they had been instructed that what they were doing was illegal. This reflects an anarchist spirit that has infected the church, the spirit that says, “I don’t have to obey anyone but God,” but which far too often means, “I don’t have to obey anyone but myself as long as I pretend to be obeying God.” It is the same spirit that was exhibited by Joseph Smith and Brigham Young, and by David Koresh. It is the spirit of the so-called “Sovereign Citizen” and “Christian Nationalist” movements which brings shame on the gospel. And much as people who behave like this would like to convince themselves and others that they are being “persecuted for righteousness’ sake,” in fact behaving in these ways simply garners them the “beating for doing wrong” that they deserve and is “not commendable before God” (1 Peter 2:20-21). They are using claims of freedom as “a covering for evil” (1 Peter 2:16).

Paul told the church at Corinth, “We put no obstacle in anyone's way, so that no fault may be found with our ministry, but as servants of God we commend ourselves in every way: by great endurance, in afflictions, hardships, calamities, beatings, imprisonments, riots, labors, sleepless nights, hunger; by purity, knowledge, patience, kindness, the Holy Spirit, genuine love; by truthful speech, and the power of God; with the weapons of righteousness for the right hand and for the left” (2 Corinthians 6:4-7).

Could it be said of my dear brothers’ efforts that day that they put “no obstacle in anyone’s way,” and that “no fault could be found with their ministry”? The early church suffered much persecution and opposition, but their message at last won the day because no one could find fault with their respectful and deferent behavior born out of the love they themselves had received from God in Christ. Those who provoked them simply couldn’t get them to do wrong or return evil for evil.

It seems today that the church takes many of its cue from Fox News, and while the message of Fox is different from that of the Young Turks, the method is the same. The method is not new. Paul was familiar with it. But having encountered the risen Christ, Paul rejected it. “For the weapons of our warfare are not of the flesh but have divine power to destroy strongholds” (2 Corinthians 10:4). Fighting with the weapons of the flesh, we will appear at times to win some, and we’ll appear to lose some. But in truth, we’ll lose them all. Fighting with the weapons that Christ gave us, though we may appear to lose them all (like Christ appeared to lose it all), in fact we will win because no earthly force can stand against divine power.

We should endeavor to evangelize and to share the good news of Jesus Christ, and street evangelism is a legitimate means (not the only means) of doing so. But before we engage in any evangelism, we’re wise to check our weapons to make sure we’re using the right ones.