Why do some Christians want to Condemn Everything?

[Core90]

First of all, I consider myself a Christian, and please do not take this as my opinion of all Christians.
However, it seems like the majority of the time I receive verbal abuse, I receive it from other Christians. And not so much in my church, but in other let's say 'Christian environments'.

Here's a few examples from my personal experience.

I enjoy rock 'n' roll (secular and Christian) therefore I must be a Satanist.
I enjoy pro wrestling, therefore I must be homosexual.
I'm a gaming nerd and a bit overweight therefore I'll never have a lasting relationship with a women.

Why do some Christians constantly feel the need to make other Christians feel like they are always in the wrong?

 

[Prayer Circle]

Is it a Christian thing, or is it a human thing?

As they say, religion never cured an ass. It simply made them more assured it was an apt profile.

 

[thesunisout]

First of all, I consider myself a Christian, and please do not take this as my opinion of all Christians.
However, it seems like the majority of the time I receive verbal abuse, I receive it from other Christians. And not so much in my church, but in other let's say 'Christian environments'.

Here's a few examples from my personal experience.

I enjoy rock 'n' roll (secular and Christian) therefore I must be a Satanist.
I enjoy pro wrestling, therefore I must be homosexual.
I'm a gaming nerd and a bit overweight therefore I'll never have a lasting relationship with a women.

Why do some Christians constantly feel the need to make other Christians feel like they are always in the wrong?

Well, we're supposed to correct eachother with gentleness and respect. The truth is, we could all use improvement, and all have areas where we need to hear some objective truths about our behavior. Even still, we need to be show eachother love. Some of them might get carried away with legalism. Some might use the word of God as a power trip. There are a lot of marginal Christians out there who are doing Satans work.

As an aside, I would note that secular music is bad for you spiritually. I used to listen to a lot of it, but the Holy Spirit convicted me to stop. When you consider that much of it has anti-christian ideas ingrained, it is really like feeding poison into our spirit. This documentary is really superb:

SATANISM AND MODERN CULTURE 1 of 14 (4 steps shift in moral values, aleister crowley) - YouTube

 

[juvenissun]

First of all, I consider myself a Christian, and please do not take this as my opinion of all Christians.
However, it seems like the majority of the time I receive verbal abuse, I receive it from other Christians. And not so much in my church, but in other let's say 'Christian environments'.

Here's a few examples from my personal experience.

I enjoy rock 'n' roll (secular and Christian) therefore I must be a Satanist.
I enjoy pro wrestling, therefore I must be homosexual.
I'm a gaming nerd and a bit overweight therefore I'll never have a lasting relationship with a women.

Why do some Christians constantly feel the need to make other Christians feel like they are always in the wrong?

If you ask atheists, you would probably find a similar situation. The difference is that Christian criticizes based on the Bible.

So, if you like, you may ask: what is wrong with that? And then DO consider their reasons. For example, to the first one: Does the music say things against God?

 

[dayhiker]

I've said quite a few things to other Christians in my life where I thought I was trying to help them by giving them the Word of God. Most of that the Spirit has said to me wasn't in love and didn't help. Even tho that was my total motivation when I did them.

So I agree with the OP in his observation.

 

[hedrick]

Why do some Christians constantly feel the need to make other Christians feel like they are always in the wrong?

Because they are Pharisees. The Pharisees seem to go back to the Maccabees. They responded to secularism by saying that Jews had to remain isolated from the culture. Purity of life and faith was their priority, purity being defined in terms of rules that maintained separation from "the world."

This sounds plausible until you read the Gospels. Jesus was opposed to this. He hung around with exactly the people that the Pharisees believed you had to stay away from. He rejected the rules that were used to maintain this purity. He rejected purity itself, claiming that only God could be good. Our goal was to be good servants, but we could never hope to get any special status for ourselves. And he was killed for it.

The basic concept of purity is a common one in religions. Indeed Jesus seems to be the main opposition. It quickly invaded early Christianity, and has remained a powerful force to this day, particularly in the area of sexual purity.

Note: I am not saying that anything goes. I am saying that Jesus saw things in terms of obedience, and looking at the consequences of actions for others and our relationship with them. This is not the same thing as having a goal of maintaining our own purity, even if many of the same actions are problems from both perspectives.

Also, Jesus' command to not judge others has largely been interpreted away to the point where there is no act of judgement for which a justification hasn't been developed.

 

[Core90]

I definitly appreciate everyones posts so far. I try not to get addicted to things too much to the point of where if I felt God or a loved one wanted me to give them up I wouldn't. And yes, sometimes I do fail, but everybody does at times.
As far as the music goes for an example, I do try to evaluate whatever music I listen to (the artists, the lyrics, etc) to try to make sure I'm not getting an anti-God, anti-Bible, anti-Christian message. I do agree that alot of bands have turned to Satanism or at least pretend to to sell their product.
I went to a Baptist school, and pretty much tried to blame my problems on other people while I was there, usually. When I graduated, what I can only assume was the Holy Spirit convinced me that, what I was letting what I took in corrupt my character, and though it was not always my fault, I myself added fuel to some the ridicule I received while there. I remembered I pretty much was portraying myself as a metalhead at a school where that kind of thing was pretty frowned upon.
Now, I try to stay away from most of those bands and unfortunatly have had to quit listening to some of what I once considered my favorite bands for that reason. However, I have also had several occasions recently where I discovered good lyrics in a secular song, and discovered that the songwriter/ and/or singer became a Christian, and sometimes went and started a Christian band. Thoses songs I keep around, and have mixed with with Christian Rock, some praise and worship, and other random stuff on my main playlist. I'll share which bands if anyone is interested.

 

[Theofane]

Why do some Christians want to Condemn Everything?

Legalism is a trap, a pitcher-plant, and is very difficult to avoid. If we're not careful, we could all end up picketing military funerals with obscene day-glo signs. Legalism eventually encourages a contempt (blossoming-into-hatred) for your fellow man. And once you are at that stage, you'll be too far gone to realize it. You'll have let your own sin of Pride destroy you.

 

[juvenissun]

I definitly appreciate everyones posts so far. I try not to get addicted to things too much to the point of where if I felt God or a loved one wanted me to give them up I wouldn't. And yes, sometimes I do fail, but everybody does at times.
As far as the music goes for an example, I do try to evaluate whatever music I listen to (the artists, the lyrics, etc) to try to make sure I'm not getting an anti-God, anti-Bible, anti-Christian message. I do agree that alot of bands have turned to Satanism or at least pretend to to sell their product.
I went to a Baptist school, and pretty much tried to blame my problems on other people while I was there, usually. When I graduated, what I can only assume was the Holy Spirit convinced me that, what I was letting what I took in corrupt my character, and though it was not always my fault, I myself added fuel to some the ridicule I received while there. I remembered I pretty much was portraying myself as a metalhead at a school where that kind of thing was pretty frowned upon.
Now, I try to stay away from most of those bands and unfortunatly have had to quit listening to some of what I once considered my favorite bands for that reason. However, I have also had several occasions recently where I discovered good lyrics in a secular song, and discovered that the songwriter/ and/or singer became a Christian, and sometimes went and started a Christian band. Thoses songs I keep around, and have mixed with with Christian Rock, some praise and worship, and other random stuff on my main playlist. I'll share which bands if anyone is interested.

Keep your faith to God. That is the most critical.

Other criticisms? Just "receive it". That would be good enough.

 

[drjean]

I fully understand what the OP is saying.

But we do have to remember that Christians are just humans who have eternal life... they aren't perfect. Some humans do this, put others down, because it automatically raises them above. Some are so insecure that if they can put the attention on another's "fault" then people might not see their own downfalls.

Sigh. Christians need to learn how to give positive regard, just as others have to learn it... unfortunately, many may think all they need is their Bible, and without regard to tact, they forge ahead because they're speaking "truth"... though failing truly to deliver it with love. We're all guilty of that from time to time, but for some it's their modus operandi.

How much better would it be to give out nothing but compliments...look for and find the good, and comment on that? By sheer comparison they would begin to realize what in their lives needed improvement, imo.

Remember the adage, true but sad: The Christian Army is the only army that shoots it's wounded!

 

[artybloke]

Why do some Christians want to Condemn Everything?

'Cause it makes 'em feel powerful.

 

[Humble Pie]

I enjoy rock 'n' roll (secular and Christian) therefore I must be a Satanist.
I enjoy pro wrestling, therefore I must be homosexual.
I'm a gaming nerd and a bit overweight therefore I'll never have a lasting relationship with a women.

Why do some Christians constantly feel the need to make other Christians feel like they are always in the wrong?

It's just their personality.

 

[WannaWitness]

The thing we are looking at here is a matter of someone who might have different convictions than others. But it's not that they have those different convictions; after all, as Christians, we all should have convictions based on how the Lord speaks to each individual. The problem is when someone feels himself/herself to be "holier" than everyone else simply because their conviction is different.

For such people, I recommend Romans 14.

 

[dayhiker]

I really think Rom.14 should be preached a lot more than it is.
Good point, WannaWitness.

 

[WannaWitness]

I really think Rom.14 should be preached a lot more than it is.
Good point, WannaWitness.

Thanks.

 

[thispoorman]

'Cause it makes 'em feel powerful.

Which means, of course, that they fear their weakness. If you manage to stamp out everything in the world you think is tempting - then you yourself will never have to worry about falling.

 

[TheChristianSurvivalGuide]

First of all, I consider myself a Christian, and please do not take this as my opinion of all Christians.
However, it seems like the majority of the time I receive verbal abuse, I receive it from other Christians. And not so much in my church, but in other let's say 'Christian environments'.

Here's a few examples from my personal experience.

I enjoy rock 'n' roll (secular and Christian) therefore I must be a Satanist.
I enjoy pro wrestling, therefore I must be homosexual.
I'm a gaming nerd and a bit overweight therefore I'll never have a lasting relationship with a women.

I like quite a bit of music; rock, country, and otherwise. There's currently a version of "God bless the broken road" sung by the CCM band Selah that is being played on Christian radio stations. Funny enough, the band that originally played this song was called the "Nitty Gritty Dirt Band" and was completely secular.

Pro Wrestling is gay? I mean I'm not a fan and I realize it's entertainment, but what is gay about it? Shirtless dudes with tights on? I am a huge BJJ/MMA fan, the garb is traditionally similar. I don't think many would consider it gay, certainly not if they actually went to a gym and rolled.

My little brother just won his first HS wrestling match by pin all while wearing a skin tight singlet and grabbing another sweaty guy. Would they call my brother gay? Are those same people even man enough to give that a try?

I play MW3 several times a week (prob 3-5hrs total), I hold down a plus 40 hr job, work out quite a bit, train grappling/mma (recreational only) , fish/hunt a lot, have two very well trained dogs, and I've been quite happily married for two years this passed 20th. So I'd say that these people are dead wrong, assuming you are social enough to actually speak to a woman and can properly manage your available time.

Why do some Christians constantly feel the need to make other Christians feel like they are always in the wrong?

Because they have inferiority complexes or guilt about their own sins and are trying to compensate. Rarely does their point have much contextual basis in scripture.

The suggestion about reading Romans 14, and especially 14:14 is a good one.

Conviction is the key here, my friend.

 

[Harry3142]

Core69-

Some people are quick to judge, and even condemn, others. But by doing so, many of those same people violate the code of conduct which we are all to live by:

So I say, live by the Spirit, and you will not gratify the desires of the sinful nature. For the sinful nature desires what is contrary to the Spirit, and the Spirit what is contrary to the sinful nature. They are in conflict with each other, so that you do not do what you want. But if you are led by the Spirit, you are not under law.

The acts of the sinful nature are obvious: sexual immorality, impurity and debauchery; idolatry and witchcraft; hatred, discord, jealousy, fits of rage, selfish ambition, dissensions, factions and envy; drunkenness, orgies, and the like. I warn you, as I did before, that those who live like this will not inherit the kingdom of God.

But the fruit of the Spirit is love, joy, peace, patience, kindness, goodness, faithfulness, gentleness and self-control. Against such things there is no law. Those who belong to christ Jesus have crucified the sinful nature with its passions and desires. Since we live by the Spirit, let us keep in step with the Spirit. Let us not become conceited, provoking and envying each other. (Galatians 5:16-26,NIV)

Under the heading 'acts of the sinful nature' there are 15 different items listed. Some of them are actions, but many of them are the emotions which culminate in the commission of sinful acts. And that is where the judgementalists ensnare themselves. Their motive for passing judgement on others is in many cases not motivated by a desire to enlighten that person so much as it is the desire to make themselves appear to be better than others. And that is selfish ambition. Those who rant about the necessity to hate those who do not follow the dictates of Christianity are also in trouble, because hatred is also an act of the sinful nature.

I've had some try to say that only the first three 'acts' are still to be seen as sinful (sexual immorality, impurity and debauchery), and any tactic used in order to combat those three sinful acts, including using the other acts listed there, is fine with God. But Scripture condemns all 15 of those acts, so those who use some of them, or even attempt to cause others around them to use some of those acts, in order to pass judgement on others are as guilty of sin as those they are attempting to judge, if not more so.

We need to all realize that it is only when our words and actions have the 9 'fruit of the Spirit' as their impetus that those words and actions are truly 'in synch' with what God wants of us. The emotions of love, joy, peace, patience, kindness, goodness, faithfulness, gentleness and self-control must always be recognized as the only origin of our words and actions if those words and actions are to have assurance of being inspired of God. They are the borders within which those words and actions are to remain. They are the parameters beyond which none of our words and actions, irregardless of how pious they seem, truly can be seen as originating with God.

So those who hae been quick to sit in judgement on your actions will in all likelihood face the judgement of One who cannot be flattered and cannot be bribed. Their very attempt to make themselves appear to be elected by God as judge over others will be the cause of their own judgement, and it will not be a pleasant one.

 

[file13]

Why do some Christians constantly feel the need to make other Christians feel like they are always in the wrong?

Because it's easier then looking inward and seeing how much you suck.

 

[thesunisout]

I think there is an inherent falacy in this conversation. According to the OP, the things which other Christians were criticizing him about were somewhat petty. On the the issue of rock and roll, some might actually have a point; secular music typically glorifies rebellion against biblical principles. In any case, this is simply a strawman argument. Just because Christians criticize eachother over petty things doesn't mean that we should never correct eachother. What matters is what scripture says, and correcting one another is very biblical. When Paul saw that Peter was trying to bring the law back into the gospel, Paul publically rebuked him:

Galatians 2:14

When I saw that they were not acting in line with the truth of the gospel, I said to Peter in front of them all, "You are a Jew, yet you live like a Gentile and not like a Jew. How is it, then, that you force Gentiles to follow Jewish customs?

This is reinforced in 1 Timothy 5:20 and other verses

Them that sin rebuke before all, that others also may fear.

2 Timothy 4:2

Preach the Word; be prepared in season and out of season; correct, rebuke and encourage--with great patience and careful instruction.

Ephesians 5:11

Have nothing to do with the fruitless deeds of darkness, but rather expose them.

So, while we should not get into petty disagreements, we should also be on our guard against sin in the body and act accordingly.