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When Edgy Becomes Offensive
I have rarely shied away from being edgy.
- “Get their attention!”
- “Prove that you’re a real person!”
- “Give them something to talk about!”
- “Connect with those who aren’t churched!”
These sayings were the unspoken mantra for many pastors in my generation. While there is nothing inherently wrong with any of these statements, without wisdom and prayerful attention, a pastor can easily cross the line from edgy to offensive.
(I have unquestionably done this many times—especially in the past. In recent years, I’ve been convicted that I was being a bad example.)
The message of Christ and the cross is offensive. But our language and attitude doesn’t have to be.
Without drifting into legalistic rules, here are a few suggestions:
- When you are promoting something, don’t make your printed materials and billboards something you wouldn’t want your 9-year-old son or daughter to see.
- Don’t use language you wouldn’t want to hear your children say.
- Keep your humor appropriate. A cheap laugh isn’t worth setting a bad example.
Our message will always be offensive to someone. Let’s make sure were are offensive for the right reasons and not the wrong.
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“The message of Christ and the cross is offensive. But our language and attitude doesn’t have to be.” Isn’t that the whole truth, and nothing but the truth! As an atheist, I was one who made friends through taking cheap shots at others in jest, while being able to receive them and laugh. As a pastor, one of the things I struggle with a lot is how to use humor without sarcasm. Sarcasm is just as bad as offensive language and it has taken a calling from God to put that into perspective for me. Thanks for the reminder Pastor Craig!
PS. So excited for One Prayer again this year!
Communication can be tricky. The main problem with words is “tone”. For instance, you can say the word, “WHAT” 100 different ways and each different inflection has a unique meaning (which is subjective). Also, every 100 times you say or write “what”…each person is going to “HEAR” the tone the way they want to receive it. What a RACKET!
My take on it is to get real with God and what he is saying PERSONALLY to me. If I am convicted to change the “meaning” behind WHAT I am saying or my heart attitude because it is wrong…I change. I never want to be offensive on purpose!
Craig,
It’s great to have someone with your reputation in the creative church circles speak to something that has so many church leaders troubled. When you see the secular institutions like schools kicking churches out, not for religious reasons but for profanity reasons, you know we have a problem.
Thanks for the leadership.
Thank you, I intend to pass this on to our ministers of the word.
You raise a valid and “hairy” issue Craig. I think the previous three (at this writing) have covered some of the sticking points we face as pastors/speakers. I have sat in the audience and been embarrassed for the listeners (myself included) who are listening to a pastor/speaker go “off color” in his illustration. I have been embarrassed for the teen whose public-speaking parent is using them as an illustration. And lest I be misunderstood as taking potshots, I cringe when I hear profanity from the pulpit, whether it is to gain attention or that speaker is “just being me.” Do I need to walk, talk, spit, chew, smoke and drink like everyone else to get an audience? If so, maybe I need to go back to the Spirit’s drawing board??? Does not purity “require” example? Just thinking out loud…
Thank you Craig for this post. I find the cussing pastor to be offensive. I don’t think it is wise for a person in a church leadership position to use profanity.
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Through this blog series, the verse that keeps coming to mind is Romans 12:2. By being “edgy”, are we conforming? Or are we transforming the minds of those we are trying to reach? I think it boils down to intent. I think Jenn hit the nail on the head. Sometimes you just need to “tell it like it is” and sometimes saying things a certain way is the best way to convey a point. Being a recovering alcoholic, I often tell my story. I try not to spend to much time on what it was like, but rather focus on the solution. However, to drive the point home, I need to describe the desperation I felt. There’s a purpose behind it. It’s about intent.
What is interesting to me is how it seems to be okay to use substitute cuss words. How many times have I heard or personally used, crap, shoot, freak’in, bull stuff, what the heck, it happens? This morning I fall more on the side of these things don’t really offend me. I don’t intentionally work in bad words when I teach. It seems normal nowadays that eventually a speaker will come to a moment, intentional or just in the moment, and everyone in audience knows the person wanted to say a cuss word. I don’t have any brilliantly crafted conclusions to make right now. As I sit in my office this morning I find this very interesting to think about. I am especially thinking about my 12 and 9 year old kids and what do I want them to hear or not hear?
Awesome Craig. I totally agree. Lately, I have read and heard what i like to call, “shock preaching”. I remember when Howard stern became popular with Shock radio. Saying and doing thing on the radio just for the shock factor. doing something for the shock factor is not Christ like. our language and actions in the pulpit should begin and end with one thing….Jesus! The only thing shocking should be that people don’t respond.
I grew up as a PK in a holiness denomination. Not only was swearing not a part of our vocabulary, substitute swear words were equally unacceptable. I never heard my father use inappropriate language in or out of the pulpit. I was taught that swearing was the supreme effort of a weak mind attempting to express itself forcefully. You can imagine my surprise when I heard Tony Campolo swear in a message for shock value of it. It shocked alright, I can remember it as if it were yesterday and it was nearly 30 years ago. Sadly, It also seemed to grant permission for other young pastors on the cutting edge to take these same liberties. “If Tony can do it, so can I.” So many have followed in his path that it’s no longer shocking to hear a pastor swear in or out of the pulpit. Whatever happen to the apostle Paul’s admonition “…Do not let any unwholesome talk come out of your mouth” or “but set an example for the believers in speech…”?
Pastor Craig,
You are probably one of the only pastors that other pastors will hear and respect what has been presented. Thanks for saying what needs to be said. You have spoken the truth in love.
[...] Craig Groeschel - “When Edgy Becomes Offensive” [...]
Thanks so much Craig. I really appreciate where you’ve been going lately. As I have been struggling through leveraging pop culture and bringing the Gospel to those who need it, your wisdom has been a steady guide.
Thanks!
If Jesus, the Bible, the Cross offend people then I can’t do a thing about that.
If I unnecessarily offend others by what I do (becoming the latest shock jock) or even what I neglect to do (by separating myself from the community). Then I can do something about this. Figuring out the balance is the hard part for me.
Language is determined by the culture. Off-color language and humor from leaders in our culture still elicits a shock response. Therefore I choose not to participate because I don’t want to be a hindrance to God when he is using me as His instrument of salvation.
“I was taught that swearing was the supreme effort of a weak mind attempting to express itself forcefully.”
Thanks Steve, I really like what you have to say.
Pointing out swearing as the only taboo will take us down the road of legalism. Let’s look at the bigger picture. There’s a lot that we can say, not say, do or not do that that can come across offensive.
My mom used to always say that using offensive language simply shows one’s ignorance because they can’t think of any other way to express themselves. I always remembered that in life and in my communication as a pastor/teacher. Thanks for the good word Craig. Glad to hear someone with your credibility speaking up about this. My mom would be proud!
I remember the first time I heard a preacher cuss in the pulpit. I was amused by his bluntness (I laughed loud and long) but I was also offended by the license it would give. Trying to be the Howard Stern of preaching ahs led many people in a dangerous direction.
As I’ve read this series all week, I continue to ask a few questions: “What ever happened to holy? When did it become a bad word? What happened to seeking first the kingdom?”
The question I’ve had to ask myself recently was “Do I spend more time in prayer or preparation?”
I’m glad you are posting this series because being one of the main archetypes for the “relevant” church, your thoughts on this will bring the people back to some sort of sense of balance…if was ever really there.
My goal for our church is not to be edgy but Holy Spirit driven. Since we have limited resources every time we have to use those resources they have to be in line with what God is called us to do. The world is full of edgy or relevant messages. By having our focus on being edgy many times we will be lost in the crowd, but God’s truth always stands out.
Yes, yes, yes! Thank you for sharing this. The message of the cross is edgy enough without us having to embellish it. I think it is important that we ask ourselves whether we are drawing people to God or to techniques and tactics that we think we have to use to get people to see God. One can get in the way of the other and I would rather God get in the way of edgy for edginess sake.
EDGY OR OFFENSIVE CLOTHING IN PULPIT
i grew up in seeing pastors in a tie and cuffs closed… today, we’ve dressed down a bit… edgy… some people are still adjusting to that here in the Philippines… one time i got a comment for preaching without socks on!!! hahah!!! (among many other things)… that my shirts were a bit too slim… even when i had a tie on!!!
Honestly, it just cracks me up thinking about all these things… but i’ve learnt to adjust to make sure that i’m not offensive with my clothing…
Pastor Craig, i’ve noticed you’ve regularly worn a jacket and less of your short sleeved shirts… was wondering… was anyone offended with with the gun shows? (LOL)
Sometimes “purpose” and “edginess” get flipped around. We should begin with the question, “What purpose am I trying to accomplish with this message?” rather than “How can I make this message edgy?” (Message can refer to communication, a marketing piece, etc.) When we begin with edginess we tend to hunt for shock value, which might actually detract from the purpose. But when we begin with purpose, we adopt the best communication approach that will support the intended purpose. Sometimes that approach will be more edgy than others, but should always be appropriate for the target audience. Your statement that “The message of Christ and the cross is offensive. But our language and attitude doesn’t have to be” provides great wisdom. Good post!
Nice point on the “Without drifting to legalist rules” glad to know you got the point.
Another note is keeping things clean. We can talk about life but we don’t have include blood, guts and gore to get our point across. Of course the Blood Of Jesus is always and will always be the exception but as for my previous sins those reside in the sea of forgetfulness!
Certainly there are some pastors going too far to be edgy, but on the flip side, you have a whole lot of Christians and pastors confusing moralism for holiness and purity.
Every Christian radio station promotes itself as “safe, positive, and encouraging,” but huge chunks of scripture are far from any of those terms. Paul even states in 2 Timothy 3:12 “In fact, everyone who wants to live a godly life in Christ Jesus will be persecuted.” I wouldn’t call that positive, encouraging, or family-friendly, and it certainly isn’t safe.
It seems like we’re more ok with people erring on the side of moralism and safe-Christianity than we are with people going too far to communicate the gospel. We’re more ok with a Christianity which polishes things up to the point it contradicts Paul’s take on Christianity than we are with a pastor who goes too far calling people to repentance.
Craig, and others who have commented.
In 32 years of “Christianity” there has been waves of fades. In our quest to help others do battle with sin, we could tend to neglect our own. Our choices are derived from experience, and the bigger question will this bring me pain or love. You spoke at Catalyst about you becoming healed of your “addiction” of caring what people think about how you preach, I thought wow finally a real person doing God’s work who is willing to expose some areas of his life. On the other hand that may have offended somebody there as well who denially struggles with the same issue.
I for one wrestle with my own sin, should I speak of it in the church it may offend somebody.
The following scripture establishes the issues we face within the walls of the “Christian Church.”
Matthew 11:18-19 18For John came neither eating nor drinking, and they say, ‘He has a demon.’ 19The Son of Man came eating and drinking, and they say, ‘Here is a glutton and a drunkard, a friend of tax collectors and “sinners.” ‘ But wisdom is proved right by her actions.”
I struggle with the entire government of the Church because we could tend to fight the good fight more within the body. I mean church leadership tends to be the worse of Christians, we have motives that please our selves, we use up peoples talents rather then pay them, we fire personnel for lack of perfection in life & work, what about speaking behind one of the members. So Christians could control what they but what controlling what they do and how they do it.
just my thoughts.
Thanks,
Thank for the recent posts. Very simple but yet, encouraging and convicting.
Craig…
Thanks for the messages this week… if you haven’t already, you really should start a sermon series at your church about this…
I know the goal isn’t about #’s, but the reaction from this series on your blog shows this is not only relevant, but interesting… and IMHO what people are crying out for deep, and inwardly…
This message is so needed, because Church culture in America has changed so much and is ready for a “swerve” in the right direction…upwards…
Thanks for preaching Christ, and teaching others not to forget to preach Christ also… because in the end it is all that matters…
Many of the critical reactions seemed to be pointing to reaching people at their “needs”… and meeting them “where they are”…
What has been lost in translation seems to be the reality of eternity in some cases…
The truth is that “where people are” who don’t know Christ , is on the pathway to hell, and “what they need” most is the message of the cross, and the salvation found in Christ…
There will always be hungry, hurt, wounded, and broken people, as well as full, happy, and successful people… but all are headed to eternal destruction without Christ, and the salvation found in Him…
It is the difference between a band-aid on a papercut, and a sliced jugular…and I think we forget that sometimes….
Thanks for bringing an eternal perspective back to church culture in America… hope that God uses this to continue to lead… as He has in the past with you and LifeChurch.tv to impact churches globally… and eternally…
Hit the nail on the head. I think a good example of bad choices in this area is the promotion in sex series across the nation. Some pastors have gone too far.
Its ironic about the language use also.
John Piper had Mark Driscoll speak at the Desiring God conference on pastor language use and we know Mark is “grungy”<——-Thats his own word.
Avery said - “The truth is that “where people are” who don’t know Christ , is on the pathway to hell, and “what they need” most is the message of the cross, and the salvation found in Christ…”
This is so true. Lets get an evangelism team going and get people to evangelize.
Come onguys, Craig used Ray Comforts test, why wont you train members to evangelize!
Look oh look at all the people, cant you see them drowning!
No More Marketing Jesus.
Its Gospel Time!
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Lots of good comments, but I’m still crackin’up at #23 Manu Reyes’ gun show comment. That’s good clean fun for ya right there.
For me in children’s ministry, the question is less about edgy or shocking and more about how many bodily noise jokes can I use to keep kids engaged without compromising the kids’ ability to learn a personal application of God’s Word. Although I’ve certainly ruffled some adult feathers (and will this weekend probably), I don’t think I’ve ever offended a kid’s sensibilities. I’m trying to apply all of the wisdom in these comments to discern how this can apply for me.
I think that Romans 14:13-23 addresses this pretty well, surely? The passage offers ‘balance’ for want of a better word on the matter of offence, and the caution we need to show for our brothers and sisters without becoming legalistic. Sure, it talks about food. but the principle is valid for every occasion for offence.
In churches, we will get people who are looking for a reason to be offended, for sure, but we need to move from a position of love for the body of Christ, rather than being hip and edgy for the ske of it. I don’t doubt that people need to be challenged to live for Christ, but surely it’s He who will draw the crowd if we raise Him up.
Unless, of course, you consider ‘white-washed tombs’ to be an offensive profanity.:-)
Craig, let me just say I appreciate the progress you’ve made in this area since 2001. Some did take offense back then, especially in certain circles.
Craig, atta isch!
So proud of you for addressing this issue….I have been around a long time and love, love all the new tech ways of reaching people and understand the getting away from religious talk but I have really been hoping for the swing back to respecting the “pulpit” so to speak…some of the language is just silly and not effective at all…YEA CRAIG!!
Kendra- I’m with you friend. I’ve been reading all these comments and have been applying them to our ministry. Very good thoughts written here
[...] great post from Craig titled “When Edgy Becomes Offensive” hit me hard the other day and, quite honestly, was perfectly timed since I had just gotten [...]
I am soooooooo glad to see you post this! This has long been a conviction of my heart! And those who know Southbrook Church — know that we have tried a lot of edgy stuff in the 9 years of our existence but the recent trend of even sinning to get the attention or shock value we think is necessary is surely displeasing to the Lord–and incredibly cheesy to an onlooking world who just wonders why you don’t come right out and ’say it’ instead of cussing in Christianeze. Or should I say “Freakin Christianeze!” Sorry, couldn’t resist.
Anyway, I felt so strongly about it that I made it my “One Prayer Video Message” even though I knew it would get passed over by some for this very reason.
Honestly, I was a whole lot less offended by the early messages of Mark Drisscol letting one fly every now and then because the dude was so fresh off the streets then I am of pastors trying to look relevant and cool by working 5th grade humor into their messages just to win the high-school vote.
CRINGE
This post was refreshing to read.
Edgy…YES
Irreverent…NO
Innovative…YES
Dorky…NO
Thanks for the challenge!
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