Judge: Call a Spade a Spade

In today’s mealy-mouthed “tolerant” culture, stating that someone or some thing is wrong is probably the worst “crime” or “immoral act” that a person can commit. Right on its heels, the second-worst thing you can do in such a milquetoast society is calling something or someone “a name.”

No one loves to whine about “name calling” more than a liberal. Why? Like all evil and evildoers, liberals thrive on darkness. To name something is to shed light on that something.

If you call someone a liar (and back it up with facts), you have shined light on the fact that this person says a lot of things that are not true (or at a minimum has unrepentantly told at least one important thing that is not true).

If you call someone a liberal (regardless of what they claim to be), you have shined light on the fact that this person is one who embraces the corrosive, anti-American, immoral philosophy that is destroying the greatest nation on earth.

If you call someone a RINO, you have shined light on the fact that this person may claim to be a Republican, but promotes policies or a major policy that is in strong contradiction to Republican principles.

If you call a person or act which is contrary to moral principles “evil,” you have shined light on the fact that this person or act is contrary to good behavior.

Evil people would much rather hide in the darkness afforded by “tolerance” and “nonjudgmentalism” and by people who meekly refuse to “call names.”  And that cowardice on the part of people who know better (but don’t say anything) is what allows evil to thrive, to grow, to multiply.

This great video below from Wretched Radio cites several examples where the Apostle Paul (the man who wrote most of the New Testament, and who is perhaps the greatest of the apostles) judged what was wrong and named names. Did Paul judge immoral behavior?  Oh yeah. Did Paul name-call?  Oh yeah.

In the first chapter of Paul’s letter to the Christians in Rome, he clearly and strongly denounced self-idolatry and homosexual behavior. In his first letter to the Christians at Corinth, Paul denounced sexual immorality and counseled Christians not to even associate with people who called themselves Christians yet behaved in this fashion. In the fifteenth chapter of that same letter, Paul denounced foolishness. In Paul’s letter to the Galatians, he tells of how he confronted another apostle who was behaving badly, and in that same letter called people “foolish” who were believing things contrary to the gospel. In Paul’s letter to Timothy, he encouraged Timothy to publicly rebuke people who persisted in wrongdoing. Paul made it clear that Christians are to judge matters (i.e. discern right from wrong).

Paul cuts his own past bad behavior no slack either: “…though formerly I was a blasphemer, persecutor, and insolent opponent.”

A disciple named Apollos was known to speak boldly about the truth, and publicly debate those who promoted wrong teaching.

The apostle James also rebuked foolishness and called it what it is.

The apostle John called on Christians to judge matters and use discernment, to weigh the things that people say and judge their rightness.

Did Jesus name-call? Oh yeah. Read Matthew chapter 23 if you doubt me. Was Jesus wrong for name-calling?

Ironically (and hypocritically), about the only thing liberals are willing to label “wrong” or “evil” is standing for what is right and true. Check out some of the Leftist vilification of Kim Davis for standing for marriage, law and the constitution if you don’t believe me.

Christians must realize that we, too, are fallen and sinful, and are not morally superior.  But at the same time, Christians must recognize that they cannot be the salt and the light they are called to be if they shrink back from calling things what they are. The name-calling doesn’t have to be particularly strong, especially in the beginning and if the wrongdoer will repent, but if the perpetrator is unrepentant or even belligerent, it may be appropriate to denounce more forcefully to ensure bystanders do not mistake a protest for a valid excuse.

Ultimately, if you know the truth but you aren’t judging wrong behavior and naming names, you aren’t doing your job. If good people had been denouncing wrong over the past 50 years or so in America, we wouldn’t have so much of it in our culture today.

Naming Names

Judging Jesus