red flag, green flag
I once heard a sermon where the pastor (who was agriculturally savvy) put a photo of an enormous, stunning tree on the screen behind him. He told us the name, gave us specific details about its environment, and described the root structure. And at the end of his sermon, he revealed that he had been lying to us for the entire half-hour. {insert appropriate gasp here} Everything he had taught us about the tree was completely false.
I remember being shocked. He had totally hooked me and I had believed him without question. His point was that we should do a little fact-checking every now and then, even from people we trusted.
This puts us in a spot, though, doesn’t it? In a hyper-connected world where you can turn on a podcast, read a blog, watch YouTube from ANYONE, how can we decide who to trust? Especially about the Bible?
As I’ve thought about this issue, here’s the best way I know to determine who is trustworthy and who is not:
Red Flag Warning
1. Pride
Pride is an indicator that a preacher/teacher is taking themselves more seriously than they are taking God. If you get a whiff of pride, run. For reals on this - RUN.
2. Pressure
Pressure and fear tactics are cheap and manipulative. God doesn’t use them, neither should people who represent Him. Keep scrolling and press mute on these goobers.
Green Flag
1. Teachable
Good teachers and preachers are always learning, and when they make a mistake they will own it and apologize.
They also have a good teacher. Even Paul talked about his teacher. Listen for who your favorite podcaster references, or your favorite pastor quotes. If they never say anyone, that’s a bad sign.
2. Teaches Scripture
An informed lesson comes from scripture. Scripture should not merely provide support for a pastors’ hot take. The order of operations for this one is critical.
Look for people who have all the green flags and none of the red ones. This isn’t a game of mix and match, gang. It’s an all-or-nothing deal.
To get you started, I started a list of great, theologically sound teachers you can start learning from. Check it out here! And let me know who I’ve missed - I LOVE to learn.
