Church Snakes

I know that some of you are thinking this post will be about those sects of Protestantism that believe in actually handling live snakes.  But, you'd be mistaken.  This post is about snakes much more spiritually deadly.

At the end of Romans, his letter to a healthy church, Paul gives one last warning.

You know how it is in real life.  As you are leaving, you reiterate the most important points:
"Make sure you turn off the iron!"  (I never iron, but I did come home from class last night to find I had left the oven burner on, smh...)
"Get your chores done!"
"Be safe!"
"I love you!"

So, what does Paul say in his last words to the Roman church?
He tells them to watch out for the church snakes.

17 I appeal to you, brothers, to watch out for those who cause divisions and create obstacles contrary to the doctrine that you have been taught;avoid them. 18 For such persons do not serve our Lord Christ, but their own appetites,[f] and by smooth talk and flattery they deceive the hearts of the naive. 19 For your obedience is known to all, so that I rejoice over you, but I want you to be wise as to what is good and innocent as to what is evil.

Romans 16:17-19

This is how snakes behave.  They see you, and immediately come up to you, extend a hand (as if they had hands!), and say, "Good to meet ya, Bro!"  HAHA, NO!  Snakes don't behave this way.  In fact, if you aren't watchful, you are upon one before you even know it, and it has bitten you on the leg.  They lie in wait, and if they perceive you to be a threat, they strike out.

The unbelieving world has this expectation (it fits their favorite narrative) that all people who go to a God-fearing, Bible-preaching church (or any other "Christian" church, for that matter) are actually Christians!  Not so.  Going to church does not make you a Christian any more than going to Burger King makes you a Whopper (paraphrased from Keith Green, among others). In most every church body, you have numerous true Christians - - the believe it and live like it.  There are also many CINOs in most every church (Christians in Name Only).  In addition, there is a "whole 'nuther" group of actual Christians, who are living in carnality, living according to the flesh, allowing themselves to be used by the Devil to carry out snake-ish maneuvers.

Here is a list of such slithery, wily ways.
They/They are:

• cause divisions (include gossipers, tale-bearers, and rumor-mongers here)
• create obstacles (thwarting the church's mission/programs, etc.)
• teach/promote false doctrine
• smooth, persuasive talkers 
• flatterers
• deceivers
• prey upon the "baby Christians" (the naive)
• evil

Keep in mind - - - Paul is not describing "the unchurched" or "the unbelieving world" or "the scoffers" here!  Frightening, isn't it?  It is to me.  Unfortunately, some of Satan's most potent tools are people who wear the garb of a Christian, then act anything but.  It's all part of the warfare, Y'all.

What should be our response to these folks in our midst?
First, as Paul admonishes us here, we should be watchful and wise in our assessment of others in the church.
So far, so good.  We can usually get this far.  After that, it breaks down.
Every situation is different, requiring discernment and a tailored approach.  But generally we really do a very poor job of getting to the root of the problem and getting it fixed.  Because of this, we see these results:

• church splits
• pastors being "run off"
• members leave ("the church dance" - - pirouetting from one church to another) 
• etc.

Ugly, Ugggggllleeee!  And, what does "the world" think then?  They think that our gospel is a bunch of hooey; that's what!

I tell you truly....if the Church would earnestly practice these next 3 verses, the world would be transformed.

31Let all bitterness and wrath and anger and clamor and slander be put away from you, along with all malice. 32Be kind to one another, tenderhearted, forgiving one another, as God in Christ forgave you.

Ephesians 4:31-32

23So if you are offering your gift at the altar and there remember that your brother has something against you, 24leave your gift there before the altar and go. First be reconciled to your brother, and then come and offer your gift.

Matthew 5:23-24

15 “If your brother sins against you, go and tell him his fault, between you and him alone. If he listens to you, you have gained your brother.16 But if he does not listen, take one or two others along with you, that every charge may be established by the evidence of two or three witnesses. 17 If he refuses to listen to them, tell it to the church. And if he refuses to listen even to the church, let him be to you as a Gentile and a tax collector.  

Matthew 18:15-17

Ok, so, that last one is a harsh remedy; but truly, it rarely ever gets to that last point, if we shed our pride and commit to doing the processes that come before it!

See, the obstacle to reconciliation and peace in the church is pride.  The "snakes" slither around and do what they do because they are puffed up with pride, and the faithful fail to address situations correctly, because even they are afflicted with it too.  Pride makes us "stuff things down" until an explosion is imminent.  And, when that explosion occurs, there are almost always unintended consequences.  Detritus and muck fly all over, soiling the guilty as well as the innocent..

Nobody ever said this life of walking by faith, practicing love, imitating Jesus Christ would be easy. Instead, we were promised that the very nature of the gospel would be divisive - - - to divide the believing from the unbelieving, not to divide the faithful from each other. (Matt. 10:35-38)
We serve a God of peace, not a god of discord.  This is why in Romans 16:20 Paul reminds them that the peace of God is the antidote to sinful pride and that His supernatural peace will crush Satan every single time we put it on as an offensive weapon. (Ephesians 6:15)

Lord God, I pray that Your people will march onward, pursing peace in their local church families, being ever watchful for divisions and prideful eruptions, so as to slay them with the love of Christ. Teach us how to practice forgiveness, reconciliation and restoration, Lord, in order to show the world what Your life-changing gospel can do!  In Jesus' name, amen.

Forgiveness

Good morning,

I was listening via the morning news to a replay clip of Jimmy Fallon's conversation with The Donald last night on The Tonight Show.  Jimmy asked Mr. Trump if he had ever apologized....ever?  Mr. Trump replied that if he ever does anything wrong, he will apologize for it.      <crickets...>

Anyone who has lived long enough has been badly hurt by someone.  That is just a fact of life.  And, if you are not in the former category, you may be in the category of being the "hurter".  Most likely, most of us have been both, at one time or another.

In Matthew 6:12, Jesus prays something astounding.  In the Greek, it is written like this:

"And forgive us the debts of us as also we forgive the debtors of us."

The Greek word for "debts" is ὀφειλήματα, "opheilemata" , which is not found anywhere else in the New Testament, as far as I can determine.

Jesus could have merely prayed, "Father, forgive us."  But, no, He tied our forgiveness to the same manner in which we forgive those who do wrong to us.  In other words, if we refuse to forgive others, forgiveness will be withheld from us.

This statement must have rocked the listeners back on their heels because, after Jesus finishes His model prayer, in verse 13, He goes back to this forgiveness point, to re-emphasize and clarify it, just so there is no misunderstanding.

14For if ye forgive men their trespasses, your heavenly Father will also forgive you: 15But if ye forgive not men their trespasses, neither will your Father forgive your trespasses.

Jesus reiterates this message in Mark 11:19-26, as He is teaching His disciples.  In Matthew 18:21-35, Jesus tells the story of the unmerciful servant, as illustration of this truth.  Elsewhere in Scripture, we have learned that, as Christians, we are to model Jesus Christ in all aspects of our lives.  Our salvation is assured, because we have accepted Jesus as Savior.  These verses do not contradict those truths.  Our salvation is not conditional on our own works or good deeds.  If it were, the grace of God would be null and void.

However, when we harbor hate and bitterness in our hearts, we fracture our relationship with Father. When we do this, we are acting in diametric opposition to the life of Jesus Christ, which was characterized by forgiveness, even as He was dying on the cross.  We may not be called to die for our belief in Christ Jesus; but, if we are, we will be expected to forgive our murderers with our dying breath.  This is the standard of holiness that our Lord has set before us.

Unreasonable?  Not if you consider the forgiveness of God, which was extended even to the dying thief who was crucified next to Jesus, and whose only redeeming "work" was to cast himself on the mercy of the One, True God, being crucified beside him.  Once we have a clear picture of what we have been forgiven for, we are much more likely to forgive others.  If we have truly experienced God's forgiveness, we will be much more ready to forgive our fellow man.  

12Therefore, as the elect of God, holy and dearly loved, clothe yourselves with a heart of mercy, kindness, humility, gentleness, and patience, 13bearing with one another and forgiving one another, if someone happens to have a complaint against anyone else. Just as the Lord has forgiven you, so you also forgive others.

Colossians 3:12-13

Unforgiveness is not a healthy state of being.  It leads to anger, bitterness, depression - - - all of which will eat at one's soul, like an acid.  

Crucial Point:
If we have wronged another person, and this comes to our attention either through the testimony of someone else or through the urging of the Holy Spirit, we are to go and make things right with the person we've wronged before we ask God for His forgiveness.  
Psalm 66:18 - - - If I had harbored sin in my heart, the Lord would not have listened.
Matthew 5:23-24 - - - “Therefore if you are presenting your offering at the altar, and there remember that your brother has something against you,  leave your offering there before the altar and go; first be reconciled to your brother, and then come and present your offering.

Sometimes, the person we've wronged is unavailable; perhaps they are dead.  Still, do your best to make things right with those you can.  The Spirit will lead you in this.  Follow His direction.

Listen!  This command includes the failure to forgive yourself.  There are some of us dearly beloved brothers and sisters who are quick to forgive others, but cannot forgive ourselves.  When we attempt to do so, the Enemy, Satan, continues to bring up the past - - horrible mistakes and sins, in an effort to derail the work of God in and through each of His children. Satan is a master of deception and accusation. He will lie to you by claiming that God has not forgiven you and that you should not forgive yourself.

But, here is the truth of God:

When we confess our sins, He is faithful and just to forgive us our sins and to cleanse us from all unrighteousness.  1 John 1:9

God will not despise or reject a broken, repentant, contrite heart.  Psalm 51:17

He has removed our sins from Himself, as far as the east is from the west.  Psalm 103:12

He has cast our sins down into the depths of the deepest sea.  Micah 7:19

He remembers our sins against us no more.  Hebrews 8:12 

These words are our aggressive weapon to use when Satan attacks.  The sword of the Spirit is the Word of God (Ephesians 6:17)

  

In his book, I Should Forgive, but..., Dr. Chuck Lynch said this:

"I wish I had a dollar for every time I heard a counselee say, 'Oh, I confessed that sin a year ago - - - a thousand times.'  First, that is 999 times too many.  Second, each subsequent time that sin is confessed, rather than the confession bringing relief, it only reinforces the false belief that it has not been forgiven.  Double, or re-confession, only deepens the false belief that we have not been forgiven."

So, what should we then do when attacked by Satan in this manner?  We should thank God for His forgiveness by praying His Word out loud, and then move on.  Here are some Scriptures to help with that.  Study them on your own and accept their truth.

2 Kings 22:19

Psalm 40:2-4, 11-12

Psalm 32:5

Psalm 51:1-2, 10, 17

Isaiah 55:7

2 Corinthians 7:9-10 

Romans 8:1-3 (precious promise!)

Romans 4:7-8

2 Timothy 1:12

Sobering, isn't it?  Are you getting the idea that God is serious about our forgiving others and ourselves?

Father, I don't want any sin to stand between You and me.  So, I confess my waywardness and deliberate disobedience to You this morning.  If I have wronged another person, Lord, please make me aware of that so that I can make it right.  Thank you for forgiving me so completely and for setting the example that I am commanded to follow in my daily living.  In Jesus' name, amen.

Sources:

Moore, Beth. Praying God's Word. Nashville: Broadman & Holman, 2009. Print.
Lynch, Chuck. I Should Forgive, But--: Finding Release from Anger and Bitterness. Nashville: Word Pub., 1998. Print.