June 08, 2015
Hidden in Darkness
In tabloid mode, the media is
in a frenzy over recently revealed molestation charges against 27 year-old Josh
Duggar, concerning events which took place in 2002-2003. The Duggar family, who
are Christian and star in a conservative TV reality show, are now feeling the
fallout from Josh’s actions as a teenager. When analyzing what is transpiring many
believers will look for Satan’s fingerprints on the exposure and think this is
an attack on Christianity. The reality is that God often exposes past sins in
order to bring us to repentance; case in point David and Bathsheba. I suspect there
will be a rippling effect associated with the Duggar situation. Others, who’ve also
had teenage indiscretions in their past, can’t be too confident or comfortable that
their actions will remain concealed. “Therefore judge nothing before the
appointed time; wait till the Lord comes. He will bring to light what is hidden
in darkness and will expose the motives of men’s hearts. At that time each will
receive his praise from God” (1 Cor 4:5 NIV).
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1 comment:
Gail;
-----I take it then that the whole world is to stand silent before one another, nobody speaking up for what is right, nobody advocating for good, nobody spreading the good news because everyone has had an act of indiscretion as a teen. In fact, everyone has had atrocious habits before they were ten. And I would bet the farm’s fattest hog Josh’s accusers did triple his bad by then. “They have all gone astray, they are all alike corrupt; there is none that does good, no, not one.” (Ps 14:3)
-----The most deadly, erroneous perception we can have is to think our being made righteous by His blood means we no longer sin, that we are no longer evil. “If we say we have no sin, we deceive ourselves, and the truth is not in us.” (I John 1:8) If we have come to be actually righteousness now, in this mortal flesh, then I don‘t want righteousness, if this is all it is. I’ve seen too many evils of righteous people. Josh’s actions as a teenager are no more meaningful to His service in the Lord than are any of the rest of ours to our services. It is his desire to be righteous which fills his call on the Lord for gracious mercy, as do our desires fill our calls for mercy. And by those desires our hearts and minds are stitched into ever more godly behavior as we grow in the Lord. We are not brought into the Lord all morphed into perfection because we never sinned as a teenager. We are brought into the Lord and grow towards perfection because we desire righteousness in spite of what we did as teenagers.
-----Josh’s problem is that he calls on a faithful Lord while living in a sea of faithless wretches. The Lord relates to his desire for righteousness and grows in him peace and joy and godliness through his acting upon and practicing what he desires. The Lord makes the past meaningless by his repentance in the present. It is part of his faithfulness towards His children. But the faithless wretches seize the past to ruin whomever desires righteousness. They are consumed by their wanton lust for evil. They hate joy. Peace bores them. To them, godliness is a straightjacket. Their mouths are full of lies, craving and promoting to their neighbors and teaching to their children the exact same perversions which they condemn anyone desiring righteousness for having ever stumbled into. Josh’s accusers are the same wretches who promoted the same lasciviousness at his school that they now condemn him for having done at home. So, they are in fact complicit in his misbehavior.
-----Every last one of us can condemn anyone else for things done in their pasts. Everyone else can condemn any one of us for things we’ve done in our pasts. Like God’s Word correctly proclaims: we are all guilty; we’ve all fallen short of God’s glory. Worse yet, none of us are restored to perfect behavior within our mortal lives. Therefore, to condemn one another is not our responsibility. To be forgiving and forbearing with one another is.
-----I believe it is far more advantageous to live with our iniquities on our shirtsleeves right there where we wear our righteousness. I think it is a bad idea to scrub up all soapy-faced and perfumed like we have not an error in our ways, then parade our goodness up and down the street as if we are something to be especially attended. I understand the necessity to portray the holy life in the Lord. But portraying it as holier than thy self is attracts famished wolves. It’s best to just be real with folks, letting your failures show as much need for humility and repentance as your godliness shows the granting of God’s mercy and acceptance.
Love you all,
Steve Corey
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