March 10, 202

     I remember one day as a kid, my friends and I were watching WWF wrestling and decided to make a dummy that we could fight. We got some old cloths and rope and some hay from the field behind my friend Jeremy’s house. 

     Once we had our dummy put together we set up a make shift ring and began practicing our moves. Apparently, our work was too good because a neighbour looking out their car window slammed on the breaks and ran out yelling for us to “stop hurting that kid.” We had to explain that it was just a dummy not a real person. 

     We have been watching a discussion on the necessity of baptism during our Wednesday evening bible study. One of the things that we have seen in the discussion is one side mischaracterize the other in order to criticize their position. 

     We might offer a couple of examples: one common objection to Calvinism is that “Calvinists believe infants are going to hell.” This seems like the implication of inherited sin as taught by Calvin however, he didn’t actually teach this and I have not come across any Calvinist who believed or taught it either. Just like the dummy I made with my friends, it’s easier to beat up on a fake person you made up than to fight a real person. So, when we make up a position that an opponent doesn’t actually hold then attack that made up position we are not engaging in fair honest debate. This debate tactic is called making a “straw man.” (I should point out that this particular example didn’t come up in the discussion we are watching but it is a common talking point raised in objection to Calvinist teaching.)

     Another example of this which did come up in the debate is the common claim that Churches of Christ teach that you must merit salvation. That is you must do something to make it so that God owes you, such that he must save you, because you deserve it. This is a mischaracterization similar to the one made above about Calvinists. 

     This is not the only time that we see this kind of thinking. Often various political positions are treated similarly: Liberals beliefs, Conservatives beliefs, Socialists beliefs are all often followed up with an overly simplistic description which is then attacked and dismissed.

     Biblical truth can also be treated this way. Sometimes when we are faced with a difficult teaching of scripture we are tempted to oversimplify it so that we can dismiss it. 

     It’s important that we recognize this tactic when others do it especially those we agree with and point it out so that if a teaching is wrong, it can be accurately described and then exposed as error. We also need to be aware of when someone else is doing this to us and point out that they are not accurately describing what we believe or what the Bible teaches. This can allow us to do a better job sharing the truth in love. It’s always better to do this by asking questions and seeking clarification than by making accusations. 

     While it’s often emotionally satisfying to get a zinger on some position political or scriptural that we disagree with it is usually not helpful in reaching people with the truth of salvation. Lets make sure we are fighting the good fight no making straw men for our own satisfaction.

~ Kevin Cleary