7 But when he saw many of the Pharisees and Sadducees coming to his baptism, he said to them, “You brood of vipers! Who warned you to flee from the wrath to come?”

Matthew 3:7 (ESV)

During the American civil rights movement, some ministers in the South seemed to regard not offending anyone as their highest goal. Consequently, they refused to speak against racial segregation on the grounds that doing so risked upsetting their friends and neighbors. Such an attitude led the head of one denomination’s publishing house to decline “to take sides one way or another in the current issue.” As he remained silent, he claimed to be fostering “a deep Christian attitude toward all men, and a deep Christian love for all fellow-believers.”1 Similarly, when Baptists complained that one of their seminaries had invited Martin Luther King Jr. to speak on campus in 1961, the school’s trustee chairman expressed “regret for any offence” and cast doubt on the wisdom of inviting controversial figures to address students.2 Pleasing God meant not rocking the boat—or so they thought.

Such ministers may have been surprised had they witnessed the preaching of John the Baptist. For in the Judean wilderness, he issued a public, and decisively offensive, rebuke to a group of religious leaders. Calling them a “brood of vipers” (3:7), he highlighted their subtle maneuvering around God’s law and lethal strikes against His people. Though some would have regarded John as uncivil for his words, Jesus Himself regarded him as a faithful preacher (11:9-11).

Similar “incivility” in the face of sin can be found among God’s servants throughout Scripture. For example, Elijah mocked the prophets of Baal with cutting sarcasm on Mt. Carmel (1 Kings 18:27). David harshly rebuked his own wife when she chided him for the passion of his worship (2 Sam. 6:21-22). Jesus violently drove money-changers from the Temple with a whip (John 2:15). Peter pronounced a divinely sanctioned death sentence against Ananias and Sapphira (Acts 5:1-11). And Paul scolded Peter in front of a crowd when the latter refused to eat with Gentiles (Gal. 2:11-14). Elsewhere, Paul charged Timothy to use the Scripture as a tool for “reproof” and “correction” (2 Tim. 3:16).

Of course, the Bible commends winsome character whenever it is possible. But it also recognizes that at times, righteousness and passivity are mutually exclusive for the believer (Rom. 12:18). Indeed, some pastors emphasize their “servant role” as a reason to over-accommodate the preferences of their hearers.

While a peaceful and quiet life should be the Christian’s goal (1 Tim. 2:2), sometimes expressions of righteous anger and frustration are appropriate means to achieve that goal. Perhaps that is why many a church has been spurred to health by a pastor who stepped up and took charge at a crucial moment. For the Lord calls the shepherd to lead with controlled strength, never acting boorishly but also not cowering before the sheep with the excuse that civility requires constant compliance.
Footnotes:
1

James Sullivan to Jack Trammell, 20 December 1957, Box 3, “Complaints-Segregation” Folder, Records of the Executive Office of the Sunday School Board, Southern Baptist Historical Library and Archives, Nashville, Tennessee.
2

“Copy (Letter to be sent to all persons who have written the Seminary protesting visit of Martin Luther King),” 27 July 1961, Folder 14-4-K1, Duke McCall Papers, Archives, The Southern Baptist Theological Seminary, Louisville, Kentucky; “Executive Committee Minutes,” 27 July 1961, p. 8, Folder 14-4-K1, Duke McCall Papers, Archives, The Southern Baptist Theological Seminary, Louisville, Kentucky.

article adopted from Kairos Journal

First Baptist Church of Perryville is located at 4800 W. Pulaski Hwy., Perryville, MD