Confronting Believers and Leaders

I recently witnessed a discussion where a question arose: is it ever appropriate for a lay-person to confront a leader about a problem in their teaching? This is an attempt to address that question by surveying confrontation in Scripture.

This doesn't address the question from other perspectives that would be helpful—Christian spirituality more broadly, systematic theology, psychology and sociology would all add valuable insights. This is just intended as a baseline.

Religious leaders can confront those under their authority.

In Scripture, there are examples of religious leaders confronting people who are under their authority about problems in their beliefs or practices. 

For example, Paul confronts the Corinthians believers about a number of problems, and he explicitly says he has a right to their respect (1 Cor. 9:1-12). He cites his apostleship, the fact that he has personally seen Jesus and the fact that he founded the church in Corinth (1 Cor. 9:1). 

But Paul denies that he’s using those rights to force the Corinthians to repent (1 Cor. 9:15). 

Instead, he points them toward submission to Jesus Himself, using his own life as an example (1 Cor. 9:19-23). He tries to persuade them that it will actually be worth it for them to repent and submit to Christ’s lordship (1 Cor. 9:23-11:1)—instead of using his rights to bend their will, he points to the benefits. 

It’s almost like Paul treats the Corinthian believers as if they share in the priesthood of all believers—as if they should be subject to him, but even if they aren’t, they must be subject to Christ.

Religious leaders can confront those not under their authority.

There are also examples of religious leaders confronting their peers about problems.

In Gal. 2, Paul tells the story of the time he had to stand up to Peter for the sake of the Gospel. He does this, not because he has authority over Peter, but because of their common allegiance to the gospel (Gal. 2:14-16).

Sidebar: Notice that Paul is telling this story after the event occurred. Under the inspiration of the Holy Spirit, Paul tells a story about a fellow leader that shows Peter in a bad light. This is after the situation has already been resolved. 

This demonstrates that there may be cases where it’s appropriate to bring up someone’s past failures for the purpose of educating others. In this case, Paul didn’t even feel that it was necessary to make clear that Peter got straightened out in the end—he stops the story with Peter’s hypocrite-mask still slipping off his face.

Cool, so it’s appropriate for religious leaders to confront people over whom they have authority and to confront their peers. 

But do we have evidence in Scripture that it’s ever appropriate for a lay-person to confront a religious leader? I think so. 

Laymen can confront those in authority over them.

Amos (the minor prophet) was a shepherd (Amos 1:1). There’s no indication in his prophecy that he had a position of authority, neither political nor in the religious systems of Israel or Judah.

Under inspiration, though, he called out the sins of Judah and Israel (Amos 3:1-2). He prophesies against the wealthy, including those who have political authority over him (Amos 5:11-13). He prophesies against the religious offerings and festivals of Israel (Amos 5:21-24), implicating the religious leaders who facilitate those sham-observances in the presence of open societal sin.

And it’s not just male laymen who may confront those in authority over them. 

When the high priest found a book of the law (probably Deuteronomy) in the temple during Josiah’s reforms, Josiah sent the book to Huldah the prophetess to have its authenticity verified (2 Kings 22:8-16). She wasn’t a political or formal religious leader, but God authorized her to confront the high priest (!) and the king (!) with His message of judgment against Judah.

Why confront?

There’s a common thread through these examples. In each case, the person who confronts others does it based on what God has revealed through His Word—the Scriptures and the Christ. 

The authority a believer needs for confrontation is faithfulness to God’s Word.

Of course, if a believer has formal authority, there’s added responsibility for them to confront others when needed (see 2 Tim. 2:24-26). But that responsibility also falls on everyone who lives by the Spirit (Gal. 6:1-2)—that includes every believer (Rom. 8:14-17).