Responding to Comments on "A Couple Thoughts" Part 3

So I sat down to edit the video that you're about to watch and I was just struck by something

And I didn't I did notice it in the response video that I did I did sort of a live response to some comments about a podcast appearance

I did and I was I did notice it then but I just wasn't really struck as much as I was when

I went back and re -listened This woman's comments are so interesting She just repeats this drumbeat of you what you need to do is listen.

You need to listen. You're not listening You don't want to listen, you know this and that and it's just so it struck me so much

This is this woman's entire thought process in this issue has been so Affected and controlled by cultural

Marxism by critical theory and she may not even know it She may not have even read any books on critical theory or anything like that But she's completely adopted the perspective if you don't agree with her

She just assumes what you just haven't listened and you're against listening and you're saying we shouldn't listen You know and I was just struck by how often she said these things and I never said any such thing

In fact in the podcast, I said you should listen But what she means is that if you listen and you don't agree well then you should listen more and if you still don't agree then you should listen more and listen and listen and listen and listen until You agree and the answer to that is no, you know what

I mean? I'm not just gonna listen and and agree with you I'm not gonna listen and just accept what you say. I am gonna listen and and listen with a discerning heart listen with Rational, you know apply logic to it and and if it comports with reality and if it's true and if there's evidence for it

Yeah, I'll I'll agree with you and I'll be a warrior with you and I'll I'd be glad to be on your side but if you're just telling me to listen and shut my brain off and listen and just follow my heart and and and and You know side with people that say that they're they're hurting and things like that Well, I will do that But I'm not going to affirm them if it's not true if somebody's

Hurting because they think cops are out there beating Hispanics like like hotcakes and I know that they're not

I'm gonna listen to them I'm gonna try to help them, but I'm not gonna believe them and start berating cops Just not gonna do it because that's not what

God would say have me do God wants you to love of course the downtrodden of course the people that are sad the people that are hurting

But he also wants you to love your cop neighbors You know what? I mean? That would be unloving to do for your cop neighbors.

And so you want me to listen? No How do you like that? No, I'll listen the way

I listen the way that God says you should listen with a discerning heart listen with with compassion

Yes But also with your wits about you and your rationality and you make sure that things are true you examine them you you check you check

Them out things like that before you go and start, you know, you know doing things to make restitution

That's how I'm gonna listen according to the scriptures I'm not gonna listen just sort of you know shutting my brain off and just you know, believing everything

I hear That's just not what I'm gonna do. Anyway, hope this is helpful. Enjoy the video One final batch of comments about my appearance on a couple thoughts podcast and these are shorter

And so I'll just jump right into them This person starts it says I think my main concerns in this particular conversation is the starting point

We shouldn't or wouldn't want to be too gracious Extend too much consideration become too apologetic is the furthest extension of this logic helping people

We don't feel deserve it. Where does the gospel ever sound like that? I disagree with a suggestion that listening to too many people is likely to cause us to miss the real problems on the contrary

I'd suggest the better we get at listening the less likely we are to miss the real problems in real time Care is not a depletable resource, especially not when fueled by the

Holy Spirit What color is the sky in your world To be frankly,

I have no idea what you're talking about. I Just don't I I don't think I ever said that you shouldn't listen.

In fact, I think I said the exact opposite I actually agree with them like you should listen and you should take people seriously.

So You know if somebody tells you that they experienced racism And you're a white person.

I don't think there's anything wrong with believing them I you know, like yeah, I don't I don't assume everyone that says something to me is lying

In fact, I assume at least I try to assume that they're telling the truth. Exactly. So so yeah, there's everything good about that and I want to acknowledge that because I Don't think there's that many people out there that just completely disregard black people and they say there's racism out there

But maybe there might be some so if there are some listening don't do that, you know Yeah, yeah, but and I never said that you could run out of grace or anything like that In fact,

I believe the exact opposite and I didn't say that you should stop listening at some point that there's a point where you don't listen to your brothers and sisters in Christ, in fact,

I said the exact opposite So, I'm not really sure where this is coming from this is a

Fundamental misunderstanding of what I'm saying. What I am saying is you listen, but you verify you don't just listen and believe

That's a horrible way to decide what is true You listen to your black and brown brothers and sisters in Christ you listen to people that are hurting you do that All that listening is all good.

It's all good. But then you don't just say okay I'm gonna take what you say and now act on action on it based on what you say alone

No, you have to verify that this is biblical You need two or more witnesses the Bible says everyone sounds right until someone comes and examines him

This is these are biblical standards of evidence. And so While I do listen to people and I will continue to do so You know, it doesn't necessarily mean that you action off everything that somebody says it just doesn't anyway

She continues. I think to accuse people of being divisive for sharing experiences that have caused them pain and hardship opposes freedom

I think there's room for all the real all the real up in the house of the Lord all the real up I'm not sure what that means any anyone hurt caused to stumble even by blind spots or sin unintended bring it to the table

Let's hash it out. Let's do it better. His grace is enough Believers are called to sacrifice their own comfort and preference out of love for one another for the sake of unity not to impose

That on others. What do we lose by listening with humility so that we might actually hear and see something new again

I have no idea what this person is talking about I Have never said that people were divisive for sharing their experiences

What I did say was that people are divisive by acting divisively So in other words when

Jamar Tisby said I was scared to go to worship with my white and brown White brothers and sisters in Christ after Trump's election.

He might have felt that but that is a divisive comment It just it's a prejudice comment.

It's a racist comment is what it is And so if he wanted to share his experiences where he's like look guys,

I just don't understand how you all voted for Trump Please help me understand that that wouldn't be divisive

It wouldn't that that's that's that's a good comment. That's a conversation. We can have that's being very gracious That's that's that's that would be

Jamar setting aside his own comfort for the sake of unity Have a conversation and and the white brothers and sisters in Christ, you know hopefully would have that conversation with him and that would be them setting aside their comfort for for for a good conversation for unity in Christ, but that's very different than saying

I'm scared to worship with you. I Don't feel safe. It's not a safe space anymore because you voted for Donald Trump That's divisive also the same thing with like Lecrae where he says

I'm divorcing white evangelicalism. That's divisive It's not about the experience. It's not about sharing.

It's not about talking. It's because it's divisive It's just that simple. And so sharing experiences isn't divisive inherently

No, I say all I'm all for that I'm all for honest conversation, but it has to be a two -way street and it has to be something that that we're all willing to Do I mean it's just that simple.

You can't be divisive and then say well, why aren't you, you know going along with it? I'm not gonna go along with that.

Anyway We continue I I also dislike the suggestion that an entire people group is perpetuating a not real problem as I've begun to listen

I have found quite the opposite to be true if listening or acknowledging trials or even an apology for circumstances

I didn't dream up or intend but they are there. I would make one more person able to worship God more freely I think it would be worth it

Okay. Well, we just disagree on that I don't I don't think that it makes people more free to worship God to apologize for things.

You didn't do Okay Now if you're saying you did do them if you did something racially discriminatory and you didn't know it and then you come to find

Out that it actually happened. Yeah, you should apologize for that Absolutely, but apologizing for things you didn't do that doesn't help anybody

In fact that just that that's dishonest and it lies to people and actually causes people to stumble is what it does

But anyway, I'm not I'm not saying that people are perpetual are perpetuating not real problem What I am saying is that they're misunderstanding.

They're misinterpreting so in other words if if I were to walk down the street and get beat up by a cop right and it was unjust and so I'm a

Hispanic guy and I got beat up by a cop and it wasn't right and So that was that what that would be my experience, right?

So for me to then go and say in America, we have a problem with Hispanics getting beat up for no reason

This is a rampant problem and everyone's got to deal with it. Well That's not necessarily true just because I experienced something that that was a real problem my personal experience

It doesn't mean that America has a real problem. Okay, that's what the disconnect is So I'm not saying that these people are lying about their lived experiences

Some of them are and we can demonstrate that but I'm not saying that most people are especially in the house of God I'm not gonna accuse people in the church of lying without knowing that they are

So it's a real problem for them, but it doesn't necessarily mean it's a real problem for everybody else. It's just that simple She continues in this broader discussion

I've been most moved by brothers and sisters who have weathered a lifetime of inequalities in Opportunity comfort and even injustice but are still here in the body of Christ loving and serving walking in grace and truth

I'm concerned by the defensive tone I find at the other end of the spectrum as I alluded earlier It seems to me that engaging this area within the church seems far less harmful than opposing the conversation in the name of unity

I agree We shouldn't oppose the conversation But the defensive tone that you you're hearing is probably because people are being put on the defensive what?

Bro, what are you talking about man? churches that are not racist are being accused of being racist churches that are

That are solid churches that have never practiced partiality are being accused apart Practicing partiality.

That's probably where the defensive tone is coming from. I'm not defensive. I'm not white I'm not being accused of anything

So I'm not defensive But I can understand why people do seem defensive because they're constantly being called racist

Constantly being called to task for things that they didn't do to be asked to be repent People are asking white people to repent of sins.

They did not commit Yeah, I'd be defensive too. I get it And So, you know those comments were okay because I don't really disagree with any of them

But I just don't see how they apply to our conversation seems to me that there's a lot of assumptions being made You're not listening.

I actually agree with them like you should listen Yeah, you should take people seriously

So isn't that a common a common thing that we're hearing every time every single piece of feedback so far has been you're just not

Listening, how do you know? Well, they know because you don't agree and their mind if you listened enough you would agree and basically you should just listen until you

Agree, this is critical theory. This is the influence of critical theory. There's nothing biblical about that Anyway, I hope this was helpful.