Anonymous asked: Hiya, Matt:] I was wonderin’, what’s your opinion on Nate Pfeil’s popular YouTube video “The Fire”? Some people think it’s like, all judgmental and stuff; and other people are saying it is convicting. Whaddya you think? c:

I said: Well I’m going to be honest, I didn’t make it all the way through the video. Regardless of content, I am staunchly morally opposed to 12 minute YouTube videos. 

Best I could make out, here was the dude’s point: “Christians shouldn’t sin because sinning is bad, and if other people sin you should be sure to let them know that they are bad”. Now, not taking your sinful nature seriously would certainly lead to an inability to understand the gospel. I just don’t think that happens all that much. People may deny their Sin, or try to ignore it, and in those cases, yelling at them about it will accomplish nothing. 

I made it to the point where the guy in the video was talking about the place in the Gospels where Jesus says that many will say to him “Lord, Lord” and he will say “Away from me, I never knew you”. However, Jesus doesn’t say He will say “away from me, you never felt guilty enough about your sin or angry enough about other people’s sin”. In fact, in the beginning of that chapter (Matthew 7) Jesus says point blank “don’t judge others”. 

My final analysis of this kind of hell fire and brimstone stuff is that it is basically sound and fury signifying nothing (that’s pretty good, remind me to TM that). It feels awesomely holy to yell about wickedness and whatnot, but it rarely saves anyone or moves anyone forward in their walk. Jesus boils it down to love your neighbor as yourself, and Corinthians says love is patient and kind. So I think we should stick to that.