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Bob Russell is senior minister at Southeast Christian Church in Louisville, Ky.

A Christian businessman who resigned his position to lead a parachurch organization was surprised at the harsh criticism he frequently received. He later stated, "I was in the business world for fifteen years and served in the upper echelons of state politics for four years. But I was disappointed that the most vicious letters and phone calls I ever received came from Christian people while I was doing full-time church work."

Sadly, his experience isn't all that unusual.

I have received some of the most mean-spirited letters from people who close with the words "In Christ." For example, after September 11, our elders decided to suspend short-term mission trips for three months rather than send inexperienced travelers into harm's way. That was a difficult decision that required much thought, discussion, and prayer.

When this decision was written about in our church newspaper, a believer from another congregation wrote, "I'm appalled that you would knuckle under so easily to Satan's attempt to block the spread of the gospel. In case you haven't cracked your Bible in a while, your devotion to God is supposed to take precedent over everything else. What could you possibly be afraid of? Getting to heaven too soon?

"Would the bad press generated by losing a few missionaries thwart your goal of growing to an even more gargantuan size?" he continued. "The appropriate response of a pastor in this case would be to urge his flock not to fear martyrdom instead of the feel-good, what can God do for me gospel that has been so conducive to your own growth. It's incomprehensible that God could have led you down such a cowardly path, so I must assume that you did not consult him at all in this decision."

It's OK to Disagree

I took it from his letter that he didn't agree with our decision! But the attitude of the writer was so far from the Spirit of Christ that it was difficult to be objective in evaluating his criticism or to respond without being angry and hateful in return. What gets into Christian people?

Anyone who has ever been in a church fight knows what it is to be the brunt of comments

I have received some of the most mean-spirited letters from people who close with the words 'In Christ.' -- Bob Russell, Southeast Christian Church

that are cruel and deliberately hurtful. Why is that? Why can't Christian people disagree without being so spiteful? Maybe it's because we're not accustomed to expressing disagreements. We think we're always supposed to be nice and, when we disagree, we're very uncomfortable. Maybe it's because we're so deeply committed to our beliefs that we get overly defensive of positions that are so precious to us. Maybe it's because we've never caught on that being a Christian should transform not just our beliefs but also our attitude. Maybe, just maybe, some who claim to be Christian have never truly been converted.

But, regardless of the reason, this should not be! The Apostle Paul warned,

"The entire law is summed up in a single command: ‘Love your neighbor as yourself.' If you keep on biting and devouring each other, watch out or you will be destroyed by each other…" (Galatians 5:14-15). Our harsh spirit not only destroys the spirit within the church but it destroys our witness to the outside world. We all could relate stories of people, especially young people, who turned their backs on Christ because they were appalled at the way church people attacked one another.

Do it in Love

Christians ought to be capable of disagreeing in love. The Apostle Paul also reminds us, "The fruit of the Spirit is love, joy, peace, patience, kindness, goodness, faithfulness, gentleness and self-control…Those who belong to Christ Jesus have crucified the sinful nature with its passions and desires. Since we live by the Spirit, let us keep in step with the Spirit. Let us not become conceited, provoking and envying each other" (Galatians 5:22-26).

Leonardo da Vinci once said, "He who truly knows has no occasion to shout." An even wiser man wrote, "A gentle answer turns away wrath, but a harsh word stirs up anger" (Proverbs 15:1). The Apostle Paul added, "The only thing that counts is faith expressing itself through love" (Galatians 5:6b).

*This article first appeared in The Lookout.

Bob Russell is an accomplished preacher at Southeast Christian Church in Louisville, Ky., and author of 13 books. His latest, released in June 2002, is titled "Jesus Lord of Your Personality." His sermons are heard several times weekly on "The Living Word " a nationally syndicated radio program. He also writes a weekly column in The Lookout, a magazine printed by Standard Publishing.