Andy Got Heckled

Church Culture 1 Minute

I read a story on ChurchLeaders.com this morning that, sadly, didn’t surprise me.

It actually surprises me that it doesn’t happen more often.

Andy Stanley, pastor of North Point Ministries in the Atlanta area, was heckled by a congregant as he was trying to wrap up his message this past Sunday.

Apparently, the man was yelling theological critiques at the top of his lungs. According to accounts, Andy handled the situation with grace, and security acted quickly.

A couple of thoughts…

  1. The man obviously thought Andy was wrong about SOMETHING. But he handled it wrong. I’ve often said that volume doesn’t add credibility to an argument. Access to Andy and his time and calendar might be guarded by his staff (as they should be), but theological concerns could be raised to said staff, which, if valid, would be brought to his attention.
  2. There have been too many violent acts committed in churches for this to be considered a wise course of action. American churches didn’t used to need security details.
  3. Honor for the man of God is vanishing. It’s just the state of the world. God calls a man to ministry shepherding a church, yet members of said church feel at liberty to spit venom whenever they choose. It’s a symptom of the decline of the church – not Christianity… the church – and the standards that used to be commonplace.

 

 

Agree? Disagree? Thoughts?

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4 thoughts on “Andy Got Heckled”

  1. This happened in a large SS class when I was attending CRBC in the DC area; it was an odd and unnerving experience. The guy, who had never attended before that day, was pretty convinced that we were really really wrong–but I couldn’t quite follow his logic. That said, afterward I wondered if some of the OT prophets were seen in kind of that same light in their day.
    Agree that, in our area, since the FBC-Maryville shooting it isn’t a good idea to behave this way–it will probably be followed by receiving the full nelson of Christian fellowship from the folks around you.

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