March 20, 2007
Judging Repentance
Sometime back I scheduled Bob (name changed) to teach a Sunday school class. A week before the class an elder phoned to say that Bob would not be allowed to teach. According to the caller, Bob had to address a situation in his past and properly repent before he could teach in the church. I phoned Bob for verification and clarification. Without sharing specific details Bob said the situation had been dealt with - albeit not entirely to the satisfaction of the member of leadership who called. I find this a fascinating dilemma. It seems to me that judging another’s repentance might well fall in the same category as judging someone else’s salvation. Without malice Bob, a past elder himself, submitted to the restrictions placed on him as a teacher. We should all be so mature and forgiving…
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Gail;
-----I know the situation that you wrote about. It can only be said that what was done to Bob was done from selfish ambition. You and I have both witnessed the level of arrogance that exists among those leaders. These are not the behaviors that the Word of God requests from the leaders in His church. Yet these are the behaviors that have been in many of the leaders of His church for two thousand years. And we all can read the letter to the Laodiceans in Revelation and know what the final phase of Christ’s church will be.
-----One of the simplest statements made rings so true that everyone knows it, most everyone quotes it, and hardly no one follows it. “The only thing necessary for evil to prevail is for good men to do nothing.” You and I both know that there are good men among the leaders of that church. It would not have been improper for them to request the removal of that elder He has exhibited enough indiscretions to demonstrate the lack of Biblical qualifications to be an elder. But if I recall, the situation was diplomatically smoothed over by the board of elders and cut loose to drift down the moony river of history. But that is where the children of non-addressed evil deeds are bred and mature - in the dark, forgotten muds of that river.
-----Of course, good men are good because they do things with as much propriety as they are able. Almost everyone is afraid of church brouhaha, except the oblivious fool. So necessary confrontation usually seems to be averted, and bad situations continue into the future. But the wisdom and diplomacy of a good man should not be dismissed over the fear of confrontation. And the perseverance of a good man should not be surrendered to the persistence of evil. Nor should good men be sent alone to the front line and praised from the rear lines.
-----Somehow we have extracted the idea of Casper Milktoast from Jesus Christ. We need to remember the crack of His whip heard in the temple, the overturned tables, and the ring of filthy money scattering across the floor. We need to remember the chin-in, wide-eyed, shut mouthed Pharisees as “…white washed tombs…” “…brood of vipers…” and “…twice the sons of hell as you are…” rang through their heads from Jesus’ mouth. We need to remember Paul, “Watch out for those dogs…” John, “The man who says, ’I know Him,’ but does not do what He commands is a liar…” Peter, “Bold and arrogant, these men are not afraid to slander….” Jude, “They are godless men…” James, “Anyone, then, who knows the good he ought to do and doesn't do it, sins.” It is certainly good to address in the church what the Word of God plainly describes as sin. It does not mean we must enter the church with a sickle to cut down all the tares - we have been warned against that action. But the simple, open, repeated exposure of those sins the Scripture clearly and definitely describes, in the gentle but sure manner the Bible directs, would at least help.
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