NO TO CHURCH BULLIES! Church bullies are people who think of themselves as more holy, righteous and godly than you. Sometimes they have high sounding church titles; often they dont but they behave as church police and/or judges. They think their ways, language, dressing and lifestyle are the standards of righteousness. They are modern-day pharisees. Luke 18:11 (CEV) 11 The Pharisee stood over by himself and prayed, “God, I thank you that I am not greedy, dishonest, and unfaithful in marriage like other people. And I am really glad that I am not like that tax collector over there. Therefore, they bully others whom they consider to be sinful, less holy than they and thus inferior to them. They bully others by intimidating them with their dagger looks and stares; confronting them about their dressing, accessorizing and other personal ways; gossiping about them; policing and spying on their past, present activities, life and lifestyle; subjectingthem to public exposure and humiliation called Confession, and imposing on them disciplinary action (DA) that infringe on their personal liberties and wound their psyche forever. Their bullying is mostly based on a horrible misreading, misinterpretation and misapplication/misuse/abuse of biblical verses like Open rebuke is better than secret love. and Tell it to the church. OPEN REBUKE Proverbs 27 New Revised Standard Version (NRSV) 5 Better is open rebuke than hidden love. 6 Well meant are the wounds a friend inflicts, but profuse are the kisses of an enemy. Open rebuke does not mean public, noisy, insensitive, rude, unkind, and cruel confrontation. Open rebuke only means - not a false approval - not a fake agreement - that it is a clear disapproval/disagreement which could / should be communicated privately, quietly, discreetly, respectfully and lovingly Open here refers to the content of the rebuke, not to the manner of its delivery. Open rebuke means truthful but friendly, not hostile, correction. TELL IT TO THE CHURCH Church then meant a small, intimate fellowship of believers usually composed of extended family members and close friends. For example: Romans 16:5 New Revised Standard Version (NRSV) Greet also the church in their house. So, telling a persons errors to the church meant telling it to a very small, closely-knit group who wont gossip about nor demolish the dignity of the sinner because they are family. Instead, they would really help restore the offender. Meanwhile, church now could mean a group composed of hundreds, even thousands, of attendees who are not closely related and therefore could gossip about the offender and destroy his/her reputation. In fact, church now could also mean syndicate of modern-day pharisees. Word meanings change with time. Contextualization must be done. You cannot just apply today verses that were crafted thousands of years ago in a very different context for very different reasons. That could be cruel. Meanwhile, Jesus teaches that caring should be gentle and light. Matthew 11:28-30 (CEV) Jesus: 28If you are tired from carrying heavy burdens, come to me and I will give you rest. 29Take the yoke I give you. Put it on your shoulders and learn from me. I am gentle and humble, and you will find rest. 30This yoke is easy to bear, and this burden is light. Elsewehere in Scripture, believers are instructed to be gentle with one another. Galatians 6:1 CEV My friends, you are spiritual. So if someone is trapped in sin, you should gently lead that person back to the right path... STOP CHURCH BULLYING. Matthew 7:1-5 CEV 1Don’t condemn others, and God won’t condemn you. 2God will be as hard on you as you are on others! He will treat you exactly as you treat them. 3You can see the speck in your friend’s eye, but you don’t notice the log in your own eye. 4How can you say, “My friend, log in your own eye? 5You’re nothing but show-offs! First, take the log out of your own eye. Then you can see how to take the speck out of your friend’s eye. 2 Corinthians 5:10 CEV After all, Christ (not people) will judge each of us for the good or the bad that we do while living in these bodies. REFUSE CHURCH BULLYING. Galatians 5:1 CEV Christ has set us free! This means we are really free. Now hold on to your freedom and don’t ever become slaves of the Law again. Do not be a slave of fellow believers. Do not accept church bullying. Paul rejected bullying from other believers: 2 Corinthians 11:20-22 CEV PAUL: 20 In fact, you let people make slaves of you and cheat you and steal from you. Why, you even let them strut around and slap you in the face. 21 I am ashamed to say that we are too weak to behave in such a way. ...22 Are they Hebrews? So am I. Are they Jews? So am I. Are they from the family of Abraham? Well, so am I. Christian ba sila? Ikaw din! NOSI BA LASI? Do not allow anyone in church to bully you, no matter what religious titles they carry.
Posted on: Mon, 21 Oct 2013 14:54:33 +0000
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