True communication is the sacred art of building bridges to share truth and understanding. It resembles a fellowship journeying out, gathering insights, and returning to weave those discoveries into shared wisdom. At its best, it allows us to plan, coordinate, and create together. Yet this requires a foundation of transparent clarity and a purpose greater than oneself.
At the heart of widespread communication failure lies a singular, pervasive obstacle: self-centredness. This means putting personal interests ahead of the greater good for humanity. This preoccupation with the self corrupts dialogue, fosters division, and stands in direct opposition to the model given to us by Christ.
The Mask of Hypocrisy
In an age where superficial agreement is commonplace, genuine connection suffers. We often witness—or partake in—the act of saying aligned words while harboring misaligned hearts. Jesus identified this sharply as hypocrisy, condemning it as a primary enemy of truth. Hypocrisy is the performance of shared values with a hidden motive for personal gain. Its source is not a God-centered mind, which seeks the collective good, but a self-interested one, which exploits situations for private benefit.
The Hierarchical Hindrance
This self-interest frequently institutionalizes itself through unnecessary human hierarchies within God’s family. It forgets that Christianity recognizes only one ultimate authority: Jesus Christ. When structures elevate some voices above others based on title or tradition, they create an artificial obstacle to the humble, peer-to-peer dialogue that the Spirit fosters.
Jesus was unequivocal: “But you are not to be called ‘Rabbi,’ for you have one Teacher, and you are all brothers… The greatest among you shall be your servant” (Matthew 23:8, 11). The early church’s shift toward hierarchical governance, as seen in some epistles, especially by Paul, often reflected worldly organizational logic more than Christ’s revolutionary kingdom ethic.
The Biblical Blueprint: From Joseph to Jesus
Scripture provides stark lessons. Joseph’s brothers failed to listen because they viewed him through a lens of seniority and self-interest, seeing a younger sibling to dominate rather than a brother to understand (Genesis 37). Their poor communication—rooted in pride—led to betrayal. They thought that getting rid of their brother would grant them happiness.
In contrast, Jesus, the perfect communicator, the Word made flesh (John 1:14), operated from a foundation of divine selflessness. He listened to the Father perfectly to speak to us perfectly. He modelled that effective communication begins not by insisting on being heard, but by submitting to hear Him first. We are branches meant to draw life and direction from the Vine (John 15:5). When we listen to each other, that dialogue must be filtered through and aligned with His truth.
A Personal Reflection and a Universal Warning
The drift of certain movements, like the Worldwide Church of God under Herbert W. Armstrong, illustrates a twofold error common to many denominations: (1) a focus that shifted from glorifying God to elevating a human leader, and (2) the imposition of rigid, authoritarian hierarchies. Such setups often stifle the Spirit’s freedom and give certain voices more weight than others, leading to poor communication that stifles God’s communication.
Even with good intentions, attempts to “organize” can overshadow the reality that Christ alone is the head of His body, working through every member. Therefore, every member of the Church is where God knows they should be, not where people who claim to act as Christ’s representatives decide to place them. The Church of God isn’t about chasing complete comfort, but about putting God’s will ahead of our own, even if it means stepping out of our comfort zones.
The Path to Restoration
Therefore, healing our communication requires a profound shift in focus:
- From Self to Source: We must actively crucify the desire to use dialogue for personal status or victory. Our goal is to glorify God, not ourselves. Submitting to the source means embracing every teaching that prioritizes God’s will above all else. It also involves taking responsibility when something clearly strays from that path. We shouldn’t assume someone else will fix what we see needs correcting, but we also shouldn’t seek credit—acting instead as instruments through which Christ works. The only reason someone recognizes something as wrong is that God is showing it to them.
- From Hierarchy to Humility: We must shed the worldly lens of rank and see one another as equal branches on the same Vine, each indispensable and heard. Humility means setting aside one’s own ego to let Christ shine more within. But that doesn’t mean avoiding the responsibility to stand up for the truth. Cowardice has nothing to do with it, as Paul demonstrates clearly, “I have been crucified with Christ, and I no longer live, but Christ lives in me. The life I now live in the body, I live by faith in the Son of God, who loved me and gave himself for me” (Galatians 2:20)
- From Performance to Participation: We must replace hypocritical performance with vulnerable participation, washing one another’s feet in conversation (John 13:14). When we talk with fellow Christians, the aim isn’t to prove ourselves right, but to point toward Christ’s truth. We listen first, and then respond to clear up any misunderstandings about His word. All is done with love, never for our own glory.
As Christ’s ambassadors, we aim to reflect Him in how we respond to and interact with everyone we have the chance to connect with, aware of Paul’s advice: “Let God be true, and every human being a liar” (Romans 3:4)
This is not a call to chaotic speech, but to disciplined, loving, Christ-centered dialogue. It is the practical outworking of being keepers of one another, as “members of one body” (Ephesians 4:25). When self-interest is subdued, and Christ is placed at the center, communication stops being a battlefield and becomes a communion—exposing hidden things, resolving conflicts, and building up the body in love. For in God’s Kingdom, there is no division, and poor communication, born of self, is healed by the Spirit of selfless love. This does not mean there would always be peace in practicing Christianity.
If that’s the case, then Christ and the early apostles wouldn’t have met their deaths at the hands of those who opposed them. A fitting reminder is that Christians are like sheep among wolves, called to be “as shrewd as snakes and as harmless as doves” (Matthew 10:16). In Christianity, the key thing to remember is that no one seeks personal credit, but instead humbly submits to the chief Shepherd who gave His life on the cross for all humanity.
Andrew Masuku is the author of Dimensions of a New Civilisation, laying down standards for uplifting Zimbabwe from the current state of economic depression into a model for other nations worldwide. A decaying tree provides an opportunity for a blossoming sprout. Written from a Christian perspective, the book is a product of inspiration, relieving those who have witnessed the strings of unworkable solutions, leading to the current economic and social decay. Most Zimbabweans should find the book to be a long-awaited providential oasis of hope, in a simple conversational tone.
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