Malicious Gossip in the Church

Many churches “turn a blind eye” to the sin of malicious gossip, slander, false accusation and general unwarranted rebellion against church leadership. The victims are pastors, program directors and virtually anyone else occupying a position of leadership.  The perpetrators view themselves as among the Godliest people associated with the church.  They see themselves as empowered by the Holy Spirit, blessed with many spiritual gifts and serving as Christian role models for others.  The perpetrators are not the only ones responsible for the ensuing damage; others, well aware of what is taking place, remain silent.  They share in the guilt.  The church is never quite the same after one of these incidents.  It begins with a few individuals objecting to a proposed change in some activity of great importance to them.  It could be a proposed change in format to the Sunday School program or even the temporary cancellation of a para-church meeting.  The gossip mongers and false accusers discuss the situation among themselves and then launch a ninja-like attack.  They accuse the leader of everything from trying to destroy the church to having an affair with the secretary.  Nothing is off limits. They almost never discuss the issue with the leader involved.  When the pastor resigns or the leader departs, the perpetrators believe their efforts have been vindicated by God.  Scripture is clear on this type of sin (Lev 19:16; Prov 10:18; 1 Cor 5:11, 6:10; 2 Cor 12:20; Titus 3:2) and sin always has consequences even for great servants of God (i.e. Noah, Abraham, Sarah, Isaac, Jacob, Moses, Aaron, Joshua, Gideon, Samson, David, Solomon, Elijah and Peter).