But what about...?

Human beings are good at deflection. When something hits too close to home personally or our camp is exposed in an unfavorable light, we are experts at trying to turn attention to someone or something else. As a prime example of this, all you need to do is watch a parent reprimanding one of their children. It's only a matter of seconds before they hear,  "But what about...? He/she started it! He/she did it too!" This is said with a whine the appropriate aggrieved inflection to garner sympathy. However, as any parent will tell you, this does not work.

No one had to teach us how to do this as kids (and adults) because it is as old as the hills or rather as old as the garden post-fall. When God confronts Adam and Eve, they go into deflection mode by trying to minimize their responsibility by shifting the blame to another. "It was the serpent... It was the woman you gave me...."

Thanks to social media, we now have new venues where we can broadcast our defensive whataboutisms for all the world to see. If my position or the position of my tribe is challenged, I can tweet back a 280 character "But what about...." But what's fascinating and rather sad is that these responses are predictable especially if you've been on social media for a while. There are certain online topics where I can almost time how long it will take for the "but what about" to make an appearance. Unfortunately, these debates tend to be less than charitable and sometimes border on incivility. I'm not talking about unbelievers, but the heated discussions of those who profess Christ.

This is why my pastor's sermon from Sunday evening was so timely. Pastor Ryan preached on James 3:13-18. In a nutshell, is our wisdom from below or from above? One crucial test is to ask, what is it wearing? In our defense of the truth, is it clothed with pride? Or is the truth we speak clothed in peace, gentleness, and good fruit?

I can feel the "but what about" vibes resonating in my head at this. "But what about compromise? What about being soft on sin?" But anyone who knows my pastor knows that this is the farthest thing from his mind. And anyone who has heard him preach knows that he is uncompromising on the truth and tender-hearted towards the flock. There would only be a contradiction if we believe that truth and gentleness are mutually exclusive. But is this dichotomy handy because it provides a cover for pride? Is "defending the truth" an excuse for harshness, lack of character, and disdain for the saints? Do our reactions reveal areas where we are resistant to the searchlight of the Word and the conviction of the Holy Spirit?

But as I ask these questions rhetorically, I need to ask them of myself. I'm doing it wrong if I think, "This sermon would be so great for so-and-so to hear." I need to ask, "Lord, is it I?" Who am I to blame-shift, "But he/she started it... He/she did it too!" when I do not know the depths of my own heart? Who am I to tell the Holy Spirit that he should convict someone else when my own conscience is pricking me? Rather may this be my prayer:

Search me, O God, and know my heart;
Try me, and know my anxieties;
And see if there is any wicked way in me,
And lead me in the way everlasting. Psalm 139:23-24

Again I strongly commend Pastor Ryan's sermon and let the Spirit and Word do their work.