Friendly Fire

In this time of turmoil in the Lord’s church, it may be that Christians are wounded or spiritually killed by the words and actions of other Christians, rather than from the blows of the enemy. Few things are more discouraging than the injury suffered at the hands of those who are supposed to be on our side.

This really is a time when there is a lot of discord and turmoil in the church. It is important that those who are supposed to be on the Lord’s side not fight among themselves. Now, some people feel that such discord is so dangerous and upsetting that any kind of compromise should be made so that there be no such disagreement. In other words, it is more important that we are on the same side than it is to be on the right side. Others just decide that we can agree to disagree. You go to heaven by one way and I will go by another.

Before we go any further, we must point out that there are some things concerning God, the Bible, salvation and related subjects upon which we simply must agree. If, for example, you do not believe that Jesus is the Son of God, Who died to give you hope of eternal life, you are not a candidate for salvation. And no matter how much I like you or think of you, I cannot agree with you and be pleasing to God, nor can I agree to disagree with you and treat you as though your beliefs on the subject of Jesus Christ are acceptable to God or of any value to you in terms of your eternal destiny. Let me also add that disagreeing with someone on this subject does not equal “Friendly Fire.”

What we mean by “Friendly Fire” is the harming of brethren. Whether a Christian is defending the truth, or is defending a false doctrine he has come to believe, when he or she defends that position with an attitude that hurts and damages other Christians, he is guilty of Friendly Fire; guilty of doing harm to one who is supposed to be an ally. Some may be puzzled that we included those who are defending the truth in this scenario. It is true that even those who speak the truth can do so without love and hurt rather than heal. The sword of the Spirit (the word of God, Ephesians 6:17) is very sharp (Hebrews 4:12). That means those who handle it (see 2 Timothy 2:15) should be very careful that they do not mishandle it and do damage. James writes: Do not speak against one another, brethren. He who speaks against a brother, or judges his brother, speaks against the law, and judges the law; but if you judge the law, you are not a doer of the law, but a judge of it (James 4:11). We must be very careful not to speak evil of or against our brethren.

How, then, do we reprove and rebuke our brethren, as we are so clearly commanded to do (Titus 1:13; 2 Timothy 4:2)? Well, we have to do it with patience and humility (Galatians 6:1; 1 Peter 3:15). We cannot be afraid to wield the sword of the Spirit just because we are afraid we will cut someone. We have to learn to wield it without cutting unnecessarily. Sometimes that is not very easy, but war is never supposed to be easy. And we are at war. Let us remember that our brethren, even brethren with whom we disagree strongly, are not the enemy.

Friendly Fire is a danger anytime there is conflict. That is not said as an excuse, but as a warning. It is a danger we must try very hard to avoid. God loves each one of you and if you have suffered at the hands of your brethren, He knows your pain. And if you have inflicted any such pain, He knows that, too. Peter writes that we are to love the brotherhood (1 Peter 2:17). Earlier he had said: Since you have in obedience to the truth purified your souls for a sincere love of the brethren, fervently love one another from the heart… (1 Peter 1:22). Friends, let us be very careful not to hurt and injure with our words, but speak words of encouragement according to the need of the moment (Ephesians 4:29). God loves you and so do I.