This is a how-to guide on how to avoid those awful feelings of conviction that sometimes nag us on our Christian walk. I hope you find it helpful in relieving those annoying feelings of guilt and painful realizations that you may need to change.
There are certain situations that lead one to feel convicted. Each situation requires a different strategy in avoiding said conviction.
One of the most common situations you will run into as a Christian is hearing teaching that convicts you. Either some preacher is spouting off at a pulpit or your crazy radical Christian uncle won’t shut-up about Jesus, why did we invite him to Thanksgiving anyway? or maybe some radio preacher or some guy on the sidewalk or maybe a well-meaning friend … the list goes on and on. Whatever it may be, if you can hear then you will most likely face a situation where someone’s teaching gets you feeling those yucky feelings that tell you to change your ways. While this is the most common situation the good news is that it is the easiest to get past. Here are some pointers:
- You’ve got to prove the person wrong. This is the best bet. If you know some theology or anything about Bible interpretation it shouldn’t be too hard. There are lots of ways of interpreting the Bible and lots of different theological views. Align yourself with the one that says the person speaking is wrong.
- If you can’t prove them wrong you’ve got to discredit them. The first way to do this is to call their theological and teaching credentials into question. Do they have a degree in theology? Have they studied the languages of the Bible? Do they even use a a good translation (one that suits your purposes)? Well, if not then what makes their opinion worth hearing? Nothin.
- The second way to discredit them is to question their morality or consistency with what they teach. If you don’t know the person it’s easy. You have no idea if they live this stuff out so why should you believe them? If you do know them you may need to find some dirt.
- If nothing else works avoid these people. You may have to go to church to keep up appearances. Try to use the bathroom during a sermon, or bring tiny headphones, or sleep, do whatever you need to avoid hearing them. If you can’t hear the message you can’t be convicted.
Tune in tomorrow for the next installment where we will learn to overcome conviction by example!
January 24th, 2011 at 11:00 am
5. Chalk it up to “just being human” without repenting or seeking change. I mean, everybody does it, right? And God is going to love me anyway… so why should I care about a little sin like that?
-Alan
January 24th, 2011 at 11:02 am
That’s a good one Alan, but I would suggest saving that as a last ditch effort, since it assumes that you are wrong; it’s easier to assume you are right!
January 27th, 2011 at 3:02 pm
[...] has written a blog series on how to avoid conviction. He writes about avoiding conviction caused by teaching, the examples of others, reading Scripture, and the Holy [...]