Rev. David Holwick ZI
First Baptist Church
Ledgewood, New Jersey
October 16, 2016
Matthew 5:22
STICKS AND STONES
I. What an election year!
A. Masters of the art.
Many consider this election to be one of the worst in history.
A key element has been all the name-calling.
Hillary Clinton expressed regret for saying "half" of Donald
Trump's supporters are "deplorables."
That was her not-so-nice way of saying they are racist, sexist,
homophobic and xenophobic (fear of foreigners).
Hillary is actually a pretty weak name-caller.
Donald Trump is the master.
He coined "Crazy Bernie," "Lyin' Ted," "Low-Energy Jeb" and
"Crooked Hillary."
These are not one-off insults but his regular names for them.
His running mate, Mike Pence, criticized President Obama for
suggesting that Trump is a demagogue.
Pence said that name-calling has no place in public life in
America.
He may have been saying it ironically, but Pence did make a vow
years ago that he would not fuel his campaigns by making
personal attacks on his opponents.
Pence backed off a little when he was confronted with Trump's
harsh names for opponents.
Pence said, "You know, in NASCAR, they saying rubbing is racing.
In a competitive primary, things can get a little tough
sometimes."
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B. American campaigns have always been tough.
1) Donald and Hillary did not invent name-calling.
a) They have not even been the worst at it.
2) America has a rich tradition of mud-slinging.
The campaign of 1800 was the first competitive race for
President.
The earlier elections had chosen George Washington
unanimously.
Political parties had not been organized so everyone
ran as individuals.
Interestingly, the winner became president and the second
place person became vice president.
Can you imagine President Hillary Clinton and Vice President
Trump? Or President Trump and Vice President Clinton?
Let the fireworks begin!
In 1800, John Adams ran against Thomas Jefferson.
The former President was running against his VP.
They didn't actively campaign back then because it was
too unseemly.
They stayed home and hired hatchet men to do the dirty work.
Adam's men called Jefferson "a mean-spirited, low-lived
fellow, the son of a half-breed Indian squaw, sired by
a Virginia mulatto father."
Jefferson's men called Adams a "hideous hermaphroditical
character, which has neither the force and firmness of
a man, nor the gentleness and sensibility of a woman."
To really get at someone, just call them "hermaphroditical."
Even Martha Washington called Jefferson "one of the most
detestable of mankind."
That is pretty close to "deplorables."
In the 1828 race, John Quincy Adams was called a pimp,
and Andrew Jackson's wife was called a slut.
Abraham Lincoln was called "Ignoramus Abe," a buffoon,
and a rail-splitter (an insult back then).
Teddy Roosevelt came up with the terms "muckrakers" and
"lunatic fringe."
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C. How should a Christian respond?
1) Don Jacke, our organist, asked me to preach on this.
a) He feels that Jesus wants us to do things differently.
b) Is he correct?
2) Should we reject name-calling, as Evangelical Christian
Mike Pence suggests, or should we embrace it?
II. Naming has power.
A. There is an early episode in the Bible most people overlook.
1) Adam has been created and placed in the Garden of Eden.
a) God gives him a mission.
2) Genesis 2:19-20 says:
"Now the LORD God had formed out of the ground all the
beasts of the field and all the birds of the air.
He brought them to the man to see what he would name them;
and whatever the man called each living creature,
that was its name.
So the man gave names to all the livestock, the birds of
the air and all the beasts of the field."
The most important name he gave was to his own wife: Eve.
B. Giving a name to something suggests ownership.
1) The one with power gives the name.
a) We understand the power of labels over people's
lives, the devastation of being called stupid or
ugly or weak.
1> Or a name that begins with "N" or "F" or a host of
other cruel terms.
b) Names give us life and take it away.
2) Giving a false name can backfire.
a) Jefferson's hatchet man felt slighted by him.
1> In revenge, he charged Jefferson had gotten one of
his slaves pregnant with multiple children.
2> Historians rejected this as mean-spirited gossip
- until DNA testing confirmed it in 1998.
b) If you are tempted to name-call, are you prepared to
get it dished back?
III. Jesus condemned name-calling.
A. In Matthew 5:22, Jesus says you shouldn't call people "raca".
1) It is an Aramaic word, the language Jesus himself spoke.
a) "Raca" means empty-headed or stupid.
2) Apparently you could get sued for calling someone this.
a) "Sanhedrin" could be Israel's supreme court, or
just a local court.
b) Raca is a mild term, not much different than fool.
B. But Jesus says it is much worse than just a bad word.
1) The Ten Commandments condemns murder.
2) Jesus says calling someone a name in anger can get you
thrown into hell.
3) Do you want to go to hell?
IV. The other side of name-calling.
A. Jesus did what he tells us not to do.
1) Matthew 7 may condemn it, but Matthew 23 is filled with it.
a) Jesus calls his opponents names 16 times.
b) The names are:
1> Hypocrites (7 times)
2> Son of Hell (1 time)
3> Blind guides (2 times)
4> Fools and blind (3 times)
5> White-washed tombs (1 time)
6> Snakes (1 time)
7> Offspring of snakes (1 time) #65334 [4]
2) Since Jesus was perfect and without sin, name-calling is
not automatically a sin.
a) The Apostle Paul, the inspired writer, also called
people names such as "fool" and "liar."
b) In church history, John Calvin and Martin Luther
were masters at name-calling.
1> Luther could even admit he got out-of-hand at it.
c) Apparently how, and why, you call people names matters.
B. Accurate name-calling can be a virtue.
1) A scholar named Graham came up with a chart named the
Hierarchy of Disagreement.
a) Calling someone a name is at the very bottom.
1> It is the least effective way to disagree. [1]
b) At the top - refuting the argument they are making.
2) Jesus and Paul do not just call people names, they give
the reason for it.
a) Pharisees are hypocrites, because they follow the
precise requirements of tithing, but then throw
widows out on the street.
b) Jesus has no problem with their tithing, but says
compassion is just as important.
c) If you say you are righteous and yet show no compassion,
you really are a hypocrite.
3) Therefore name-calling can be justified, sometimes.
a) Do they really deserve that name?
b) Christian writer John Robbins says name-calling is
considered bad manners, but good etiquette must yield
to the primacy of truth.
1> False teachers must be identified in the strongest
terms.
2> Otherwise their heresy will grow.
c) But if you oppose someone, don't rely on cheap shots.
1> Both presidential candidates have called the other
a "liar."
A> Prove they said the false thing.
B> Prove they knew it was false when they said it.
C> Otherwise, don't call them a liar.
V. Name-calling can be very powerful.
A. It works.
1) If it "sticks" our opponents can be ruined.
a) Being labeled "Lying Ted" ruined Cruz's run for the
presidency.
2) That is why politicians use it so much and have for so long.
B. It may be effective, but is it right?
1) Since we are fallible humans, we should be careful.
a) We are not Jesus or Paul.
b) When we call names, it is usually out of anger,
not reasoning.
2) Don't blindly attack others, but calmly state your case.
a) 1 Peter 3:15 says we should give a reason for what we
believe:
"But in your hearts set apart Christ as Lord.
Always be prepared to give an answer to everyone who asks
you to give the reason for the hope that you have.
But do this with gentleness and respect..."
b) We could use a lot more gentleness and respect these
days...
3) It is better to use your words to build up rather than tear
down.
C. Some names are worth being called.
1) Years after their bitter election fight, Adams and Jefferson
were able to reconcile.
a) They began a correspondence in letters and patched
up their relationship.
b) Their new name for each other was "friend."
2) With Jesus, we can gain a new name.
In India, the Untouchable caste, now called Dalits,
were required by Hindu law to be given one name,
and it had to be derogatory: Ugly, Stupid, Poop.
Christian missionaries told them that in Jesus, God
himself became a Dalit, and he has the power to
rename them: Chosen, Holy, Beloved.
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What name has God given you?
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SOURCES FOR ILLUSTRATIONS USED IN THIS SERMON:
1. Wikipedia: "Name Calling," <https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Name_calling>.
#65334 “Presidential Name-Calling,” Rev. David Holwick, 10 October 2016,
adapted from these articles:
1. "Mike Pence: Politics is No Place for ‘Name Calling’," by
Vaughn Hillyard, NBC News, 29 July 2016; <link>.
2. "Founding Fathers' dirty campaign," by Kerwin Swint,
Mental Floss, CNN.com, 22 August 2008; <link>.
3. "12 Classic Political Insults," by Rose Marie Ostler,
The Blog, 3 September 2011, updated 3 November 2011; <link>.
4. "The Virtue of Name-Calling," by John W. Robbins,
October 1979; <link>.
#65337 “Our New Name in Jesus,” Rev. Mark Labberton, pastor of First
Presbyterian Church, Berkeley, California, April 2007; <link>.
These and 35,000 others are part of the Kerux database that can be
downloaded, absolutely free, at http://www.holwick.com/database.html
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