Judging Celebrities

Justin Timberlake

Yesterday I was standing in a checkout line at Walmart as I perused the covers of those celebrity magazines. Some are nothing but glamour and glitz with all of the info the fans want to know about their favorite star. Others are full of gossip and slander. The ones that have a "Justin Bieber is Having My Alien Baby" or "Miley Cyrus Gained 150 Pounds" type of headline.

I guess it is always open season for invading and publicizing the life of a celebrity, whether it be an actor, musician, athlete, or politician. Most people believe that these individuals gave up their freedom to privacy when they chose to accept large amounts of money to become famous. These celebrities are hounding by the media and paparazzi all because their fans hunger and thirst for the latest gossip and news about them.

This in turn started me thinking about how Christians relate to the various celebrities. Does the Christian community take part in the immortalization or demonization of celebrities? A quick scroll through Facebook or Twitter would produce a resounding "Yes" to that question. Christians spend almost as much time discussing celebrities as they do the weather or the food they are eating. With social media, you not longer need a publication to spread the glitz and glamour or the gossip and slander.

I am not trying to say that discussing your favorite quarterback or singer or actor is a sin. It is possible to talk about and even support people without putting them ahead of what matters most. What concerns me is the way that Christians often turn against any celebrity that slips or falls in their daily public appearance. Sometimes we can be very unforgiving when we of all people should be the most forgiving, for we have been forgiven of crimes that required the death penalty.

Daniel Radcliffe

I am not suggesting that we all jump on the "no one is perfect" or "everybody messes up" bandwagon as they are just phrases to excuse immoral behavior of our favorite sins or sinners. As Christians, we are always to strive to become more like Christ and should not allow our own actions to rest on the lackadaisical platitudes of a fallen society. How then should we handle the failures of others?

I would suggest that our first action should be to pray for those who are in the public limelight. As a minister I know that living in a glass house is extremely stressful. I probably will never see my photo and name plastered all over the magazine and news stands, but I know that people in my church and community talk about me and my family. Gossip typically spreads fast and far, and often gets around to those involved in the gossip. Usually the more negative the gossip the faster I hear about it.

The next thing is to hold your tongue, whether verbally or in writing. As Christians in America, we need to understand the balance between Freedom of Speech and speech that is acceptable to God. Social media is not an excuse for posting your thought bubbles for the world to see. I have been guilty of posting negative things about my least favorite politicians. God is not pleased when we tear somebody down, even if we are diametrically opposed to everything for which they stand.

I would also recommend that you avoid the fake spiritualistic chatter. Christians have a way of sharing "prayer requests" that are in truth gossip. I am sure that you have heard or seen something like this: "Please pray for [insert celebrity name here] because she is so messed up". Don't get sucked into those discussions, especially online. Christians should not participate in spreading gossip even veiled as prayers. Do not make comments about such things in public forums. If you have a prayer group that is serious about praying for celebrities, avoid the details.

Tim Tebow

The final point I would like to make is that Christians need to stop focusing on the faults of the nonbelievers. Our goal is to become more christlike, and Jesus made it clear that even He does not judge a nonbeliever.

"If anyone hears my words and does not keep them, I do not judge him; for I did not come to judge the world but to save the world." John 12:47 (ESV)

Christians need to stay focused on the primary goal of sharing about the Savior and stop focusing on judging unbelievers for their actions. Throwing a critical or negative religious attitude in the face of an unbeliever is not likely to convince them of their need for God.

This does not mean that the unbeliever gets a pass.

“Whoever believes in him is not condemned, but whoever does not believe is condemned already, because he has not believed in the name of the only Son of God." (John 3:18)

The mere fact of unbelief brings a final judgement of eternal separation from God, not because Jesus condemns them (see John 3:17), but because they have condemned themselves. God is the final judge of the world and He has given us His expectation: perfection. Only through our belief in Jesus will we ever have the hope of standing before God perfected by the blood of Christ who died in our place.

Joe Jonas

Some might argue that it is acceptable to judge a Christian celebrity by their fruits or lack thereof. It is true that as Christians we are commanded to hold other Christians accountable, but we are not to do that in a public forum as that would damage the church. Christ loves the church. It is His bride and He is never happy when we do anything to bring shame to His bride. Matthew 18:15-17 explains how Christians are to handle actions of accountability. The final action is a public forum that includes sharing the sin with the entire church body, but not with others outside of the church. If a celebrity claims to be a Christian, it is up to their local body of believers to hold them accountable. We should not use social media to chastise a Christian celebrity.

The issue is really simple:

• We should not judge unbelievers (including celebrities) because Christ did not judge unbelievers;
• We should forgive the faults or failures of others because we have been forgiven of our faults and failures (Matthew 18:21-35);
• We should point toward the Savior rather than pointing toward the lost world; and
• We should hold other believers accountable in a loving manner that serves to build up the church rather than tear it down.