Month: April 2013

Suicidal Gossip

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    by Sean Perron

  • I love him very much. I really respect him. But I’m very concerned about one of our pastors… He was seen at the church with a woman. I heard they were alone after hours for “counseling.”

  • I am really frustrated… I was not invited. They never invite me to anything anymore. I think it is because she was going too far with her boyfriend and didn’t like it when I called her out on it.

Gossip.

Perhaps you have heard conversations like these before, or perhaps you have been a part of them. Forbes magazine said the number one way to destroy a company was to let gossip run rampant. Gossip can divide families, cripple friendships, and split a church overnight. A reputation can be ruined in less than one minute. It only takes one domino to start a series of catastrophic conversations. It is a kudzu that spreads and covers it’s victims until it suffocates them. Gossip is like a cut left unattended which can slowly bleed the life out of someone.

Proverbs 18:7-8 says,

A fool’s mouth is his ruin, and his lips are a snare to his soul.The words of a whisperer are like delicious morsels; they go down into the inner parts of the body.

What is gossip?

Gossip is talking about a person to someone who is not a part of the problem nor a part of the solution.

This is not a watertight definition, but I do believe it is helpful.

The Bible gives credence for confronting someone spreading gossip. This would be an example of talking to someone who is a part of the problem. But what do I mean by talking to someone who is a part of the solution? It can be helpful in some circumstances to seek outside help on an issue for the purpose of bringing peace. Matthew 18:15-20 would be a good example of two going to talk with someone who is in sin. I also see the Biblical possibility about seeking wisdom from a more mature Christian to give insight in a scenario (Matthew 18:21-22). This would be talking to someone who is a part of the solution and can be done in a way that maintains the honor of the person being discussed.

But my purpose here is not to define gossip and all its gritty facets. Instead, I want to quickly point out an effect of gossip that is often overlooked.

We all know that slander can destroy our neighbors, but we do not realize it destroys us.  Gossip ruins the gossiper.

Proverbs 18:7-8 says,

“A fool’s mouth is his ruin,

and his lips are a snare to his soul.”

A fool’s mouth is his ruin. It does not just say, “destroys his neighbor”. Rather, the Proverbs make it clear that gossip destroys the gossiper. Gossip does not merely scorch someone else, it burns us as well. The gossiper is like the arsonist who intentionally sets the forest on fire, but accidently sets ablaze every exit of the forest and finds himself trapped.

Gossip not only ruins the reputation of others, it ruins the reputation of the gossiper. The slanderer is someone working with a terrorist organization who does not know the slander has signed him up to be a suicide bomber. The gossiper is unaware that when he is detonating a bomb to destroy the reputation of others, that bomb is actually strapped to his back.

How can this be?  The moment we gossip, we destroy our reputation.  The moment we gossip is the moment we lose all credibility. The gossiper automatically deems himself untrustworthy.

Proverbs 25:9-10 says,

Argue your case with your neighbor himself,

  and do not reveal another’s secret,

lest he who hears you bring shame upon you,

  and your ill repute have no end.

The New Living translation says “you will never regain your reputation.”

Think about it. You cannot trust someone who shares the secrets of others. The way they talk about others is the way they will talk about you. The moment you share someone else’s secret with someone, that person can no longer trust you with their secrets.

Rest assured, the fool who gossips and slanders, brings ruin upon himself. We have all done this. We have all hurt others with our words and wounded ourselves in the process. We need a Savior who can forgive us of sin and save us from its devastating effects.

This is adapted from the sermon “Gossip and the Gospel”

Thou Shall Not

HPIM1841
by Spencer Harmon

Christians are gloriously and delightfully free.  The law can’t condemn us, Satan can’t accuse us, sin can’t enslave us, and death can’t defeat us.  New desires, new hearts, clean consciences, transformed minds.  This is who we are.  These are the incredible, unchanging realities for every person who has rested on the unchanging grace of God and put all their confidence in Jesus’ life, death, and resurrection.  The message of the gospel is a message of amazing freedom.

Yet, oftentimes, we use this freedom to go back to the sins that we have left.  We pick up the chains that were broken from our bruised wrists; we sit in the jail cell with the door wide open.

One of the great lies that Satan uses to keep Christians in the cell is legalism.  You’re sitting in the movie theater with your Christian friends, and all of a sudden the film takes a horrific turn hellward.  You should leave.  But then it starts, “I don’t want to be a legalist”  You don’t want to be that person that makes the whole group uncomfortable and feel like bad Christians at the movie theater, do you?

The problem with this thinking is that Bible never presents a deep desire for holiness as legalism.  It presents it as the normal life of a Christian. Daniel prayed three times a day (Daniel 6:10); Paul beat his body (1 Corinthians 9:27); Jesus prayed all night (Luke 6:12).  None of these men were legalists, and all of these exerted significant restraint in their daily lives, saying “no” to a hundred sinful things in order to have the One Great Thing.

“But I don’t want to be a Pharisee!”  But what was Jesus’ problem with the Pharisee’s?  “Now you Pharisees cleanse the outside of the cup and of the dish, but inside you are full of greed and wickedness” (Luke 11:39).  The Pharisee’s kept the rules because they thought it made them right with God; Christians keep the rules because they have been made right with God and they want to please their Father.  Pharisee’s walk out of movie theaters because they think it will force God to be on their team; Christians walk out of movies because because they’re already on God’s team, and they want to honor the coach.

“For you were called to freedom, brothers.  Only do not use your freedom as an opportunity for the flesh, but through love serve one another” (Galatians 5:13).  The freedom the Christians have in Jesus is not a horse to ride into the saloon of satan, but is rather a basin where you wash the feet of others.  Do you feel bad when you have to correct a conversation?  Do you feel like a legalist when you change the channel during a sexually charged commercial?  The glorious reality is that you are free not to feel that way.  “No” isn’t a cuss word; fleeing sin isn’t legalism.  It is when saying “no” becomes your basis for a right standing before God that you become a legalist.  It is when you’re identity is found in the movies you don’t watch and the music you don’t listen to instead of Christ when you become a Pharisee.

So, next time you want to walk out of a movie, turn the channel, look the other way when everyone else gawks, don’t feel foolish – feel free.  Your identity is not wrapped up in the fact that you are running away, your identity is wrapped up in the one to whom you are running.  Let your vision of Him be clear, and let your desire for Him dictate your life. Come out from the dark and into the light; rise from the dead and into life; the chains are broken, the cellar door has swung open, and your once shackled legs are now empowered to walk in the smile of God the Father.  “For this is the love of God, that we keep his commandments.  And his commandments are not burdensome.  For everyone who has been born of God overcomes the world.  And this is the victory that has overcome the world – our faith” (1 John 5:3-4)

What Is Love?

by Sean Perron
by Sean Perron

Love is in the air – or is it?

There has been a lot of talk recently about what love is and who has been hindering it. Politicians are coming out about it and the courts are getting ready to come down on it. A recent tweet from the President reads, “Every American should be able to marry the person they love. #LoveIsLove”

This sounds like a good hashtag. It seems legitimate on one level. Who would dare hinder true love from being complete? Why would anyone stand in opposition to love? Wouldn’t it be hatred to oppose love?

The problem is that love is not up for a vote. Love is not play-doh to be smushed into any shape we want. Love cannot be determined by popular consensus, humanity, or any political party.

The problem with the “Love is love” motto is that it actually distorts love.

The good news is that we can define love. We can answer the question. There is hope in the world because love actually exists and is not up for debate. “Anyone who does not love does not know God, because God is love.” (1 John 4:8)

God is love and he is the one who defines the term. We should also note that it is of paramount importance that we get love right. The one who does not love does not know God.

If God calls something evil, then it is unloving to support it. If God calls something good, then it is hatred to oppose it.

“Woe to those who call evil good and good evil, who put darkness for light and light for darkness, who put bitter for sweet and sweet for bitter!” (Isaiah 5:20)

God has called homosexuality a sin and his definition is not outdated. It is not the unpardonable sin, but it is nonetheless a sin. (Rom 1:24-27; 1 Tim 1:10) God has called marriage good and requires the marriage bed to remain undefiled. (Heb 13:4)  To place sin into the marriage bed is opposing the very author and definer of love Himself – God.

The stunning reality of this whole ordeal is that Love took on human flesh and died a brutal death for sinners. Jesus is the embodiment of love and he bore the wrath of God for anyone who would turn from their sin and believe in His name. Jesus is not afraid of any sin – including homosexuality. He took the terrible wrath of God full on when he died upon the tree. He rose victoriously from the grave to offer forgiveness to anyone who would turn from their sin and believe.

“Or do you not know that the unrighteous will not inherit the kingdom of God? Do not be deceived:neither the sexually immoral, nor idolaters, nor adulterers, nor men who practice homosexuality, nor thieves, nor the greedy, nor drunkards, nor revilers, nor swindlers will inherit the kingdom of God. And such were some of you. But you were washed,you were sanctified,you were justified in the name of the Lord Jesus Christ and by the Spirit of our God.” (1 Corinthians 6:9-11)

What is love? It is God extending mercy to anyone who will call upon his name. It is telling others about what God has done and what he says about the world. It is upholding truth, mercy, and justice in accordance with God’s Word.

What is hatred? It is distorting love and defining it however we feel. It is opposing truth, beauty, goodness, and God’s created order. It is rejecting the good news of Jesus for sinners.

If we become the arbiters of marital love, then we can make it into whatever we desire. We can “love” a man, woman, child, cat, or all of the above. The possibilities are only bound by our options.

But there is more at risk than crumbling our society. If we appoint ourselves as the captain of our own love boat, we will either shipwreck or remain drifting at sea. In the effort to obtain “love”, we will actually miss it. We will seek our own desires but never be satisfied.

The call of the hour is to lay down every sinful desire and run to the loving arms of God.

Happy Intercession Day

by Sean Perron
by Sean Perron

It is important to note that the story does not end with Jesus rising from the dead. Christians may understand Christ’s resurrection, but the emphasis of Christ’s exaltation could be neglected. Jesus ascends into heaven and sits down at the right hand of God the Father. God placed Jesus on display for all to see, enjoy, and obey.

I was recently jarred by this idea when reading New Testament Theology: Magnifying God in Christ by Dr. Tom Schreiner. He argues that it is the exaltation of Christ through the resurrection that crowns Jesus as king. All of the prophecies in the Old Testament about the Messiah are fulfilled and proven true in this event. In Psalm 110:1, God tells God to sit at His right hand. God the Father asks God the Son to join him on his ruling throne. In Acts 2:36, the Apostle Peter realizes this and says, “Let all the house of Israel therefore know for certain that God has made him both Lord and Christ, this Jesus who you crucified.”

This means that Jesus was in some sense not ruling as king until this event.

“We know from the Gospel of Luke that Jesus was the Christ during his earthly ministry, and therefore this verse does not teach that Jesus “became” Lord and Christ only when raised from the dead. The point of the verse is that Jesus became the exalted Lord and Christ only at his exaltation. He did not reign as Lord and Christ until he was raised from the dead and exalted to God’s right hand.” (292-293)

It is a very stunning statement to say that Jesus did not reign as Lord and Christ until he was raised from the dead. Nevertheless, this appears to make the most sense of Acts 2:36. Jesus is crowned king of Israel and assumes his royal place of honor. Thousands of generations had been waiting for this moment and the resurrection of Christ enable it to happen.

In Luke 4:8, Jesus himself recognized and preached that the Holy Spirit had anointed him according to the fulfillment of Old Testament prophecy. Jesus has always been divine and was the Messiah upon entering the world. Even though he was already the Messiah, he was not yet reigning at the right hand of God. Schreiner points this out commenting on Philippians 2:9-11. “Jesus is exalted as Lord because of his humiliation. The Son of God, of course, reigned with the Father eternally. But Jesus of Nazareth, the God-man, was exalted as Lord only at the resurrection.” (326.) Jesus was called to suffer on the cross in obedience to the Father before he would be exalted on high. The exaltation of Christ through resurrection is the appointment of his reign as the victorious messianic king.

Without the resurrection of Jesus, believers would not have a living mediator between them and God the Father. By rising from the dead, Jesus proves that he truly was the Christ who suffered for the sins of the world. The believer can be assured of a future hope because of the exaltation of Christ through the resurrection. Christ is currently praying to God on behalf of us. Hebrews 7:25 testifies to this reality when it says, “Consequently, he is able to save to the uttermost those who draw near to God through him, since he always lives to make intercession for them.” Celebrate Easter and have a Happy Intercession Day!