Attacking Christians?

I have received comments for articles on this blog which have violated my comment policy by being nothing more than personal attacks (anonymity allows cowards this privilege).  My wife has gotten comments by apparently the same person, which are again just personal attacks.  This is one of the reasons we began moderating comments, so that filth and personal attacks don’t get publicity.

One of the complaints made was that we are attacking Christians by exposing false teachings.  We are accused of “shooting at the Christians” in our war against false teachings.

Let me be clear - we do not attack people.  We expose false teachings by those who call themselves Christians; teachings which are public and invading the church.  Teachings which lead people astray to apostasy.  

Those people outside the Church, those who do not claim to be Christians, are a minor problem overall because they don’t have the influence over the Church as do those who claim the name of Christ.  Paul said “savage wolves” would come in among the Church (Acts 20:29).

Those who claim the name of Christ and yet continue to propagate false and dangerous teachings, especially after they have been warned that their teachings were false, must be exposed.  Because their teaching is very public, it must be exposed publicly.  Just because a teacher is popular, that doesn’t mean that everything that teacher says is the truth.  

Those who claim I am wrong in my assessments and yet give no proof or example as to why, do neither themselves, nor me, nor anyone else any favors.  If I am in error, show me biblically or by other convincing evidence and I will correct it.  But don’t call me a false teacher because I made an error in someone’s first name (as I was charged with by one of the anonymous people).  After all, we all make minor mistakes of that nature.  I have personally e-mailed fellow bloggers who have made those types of mistakes so they can fix it.  I think that is common courtesy.  But to use that as evidence of poor research, false teaching, etc, is highly unfair and extremely judgmental - especially when the commenter claims I am being judgmental!

Too many Christians think it is unfair to point out another believer’s false teachings.  But if the teaching is so bad that it leads people into the bondage of false beliefs, why should it not be exposed? Can anyone point to me in Scripture where it says we should only expose false teaching if it comes from those outside the Church? That Christians should have carte blanche to teach anything they feel like, no matter how false or apostate or heretical it may be?  What about when Paul said to Timothy, “stay there in Ephesus so that you may command certain men not to teach false doctrines any longer, nor devote themselves to myths and endless genealogies.” (1 Tim 1:3-4)?

Remember, Paul specifically stated, “Even from your own number men will arise and distort the truth in order to draw away disciples after them.” (Acts 20:20).  He did NOT say to just let them teach what they wanted without being confronted, exposed, or rebuked.  He continually warned about the false teachers within the Church, and he wasn’t a bit polite about it! (Rom. 16:17-18; 2 Cor. 11:3-4; Gal. 1:8-9; 2 Thes. 2:9-12; 1 Tim. 4:1-8, 6:3-5; 2 Tim. 4:2-3; 2 Pet. 2:1-3, 3:16; Jude 18-19)

One last item: Anonymous said that apologetics is “a ministry never Biblically identified.”  Well, perhaps Anonymous needs to read his Bible more carefully to see how often it tells us to test what is taught, to avoid false teachers, and to even “make a defense” of our faith (2 Peter 3:15) and defend our faith (Jude 3).  This is apologetics, and is a ministry EVERY Christian should be active in.