People Judge, God Loves

 
Recently I read some online conversations about people who were on the verge of being 'done' with the church. Some of the items leading to church people's frustrations were: leaders with a strict vision that people needed to fall in line with, limited serving options, limited styles of worship and services, narrowly defined limits of obedience. So a lot of it had to do with high power leaders wanting people to submit, be quiet and serve as told by them. Maybe these leaders believe they alone can hear from God. I am convinced a lot of this has to do with confusion over serving versus leading rather than the business corporation CEO mentality disguised with the 'servant leadership' euphemism. Some of this will be addressed in a future blog related to the founding of the USA and its conflicting values of freedom of religion and the rebellious attitude of many who wound up conquering the land and casting out the natives.

Here I want to discuss a specific problem in the church: stern church discipline and leadership which has wounded many people causing a large exodus from the modern USA church. I know of many wounded Christians who have abandoned the church. Another bizarre part of this is that many of these people are former pastors and elders like me.

Here is a teaser into what I think people in the church are doing wrong: "Jesus called Peter a 'rock' long before Peter was stable and mature. God leads us by calling out what He sees not calling out all our failures." (IHOP FB post 12/2/14)

A problem we have as humans is that people see only your past and judge your present based off their experiences with you. They don't usually see your future being any different. Perception is often a person's subjective reality. Perceptions are often inaccurate, false or even clouded by our own rebellion.

Unlike people, God sees your past through the cross while offering you reconciliation so that you can become the future He holds for you through the empty tomb. Transformation and reconciliation are available to any who turn to Him. This love by God for you can change your life path and cause you to repent from all your struggles and unrighteousness. It can do much more to change your soul and outlook on life than the pressure from high power human leaders demanding your moral behavior modification and acquiescence to prove your worthiness to serve under their divine authority.

So, what is the problem?

There is an unseen enemy that most people ignore and only think of as a frightening movie character. Satan will speak to you in thoughts, friends, acquaintances; even, lovers, spouses, just to remind you of your past, flaws and failures. Satan wants you to know how bad you are because of your past. He tells you that you are stuck in your past; that you can't and won't change. He is a liar. All he does is lie.

He is wrong about you and everyone else on earth. He accuses and condemns.

Many in USA churches have been spoken to in the same way Satan does by their church leaders who thought they had good intentions which they often falsely say are done in love. They may even say they are doing this with their enlightened vision from God for the discipleship of Christians and necessary church discipline. Anyone listing your wrongs and sins to remind or convict you of them is doing the work of the accuser in order to condemn you into submission. Very seldom is there a time where we are to confront someone of their sin. Very seldom! Most people are well aware of their flaws and failures while already feeling condemned. They need someone to love them out of the mess.

Because we do so well at remembering the past and other people's sins, we are not very good at restoring people and reconciling them with those they have wounded. Like the criminal justice system we lack trust for the truly repentant instead preferring to hold the cloud of their felony over them as long as they live. "Yeah, you seem OK now, but remember what you did back then? You have lost the right to serve that way. You are disqualified. B-Bye."

Leaders like this have forgotten Moses, Jacob, David, Paul and themselves and miss the power of redeeming grace which is ongoing in a believer's life. What if you are truly changed and have repented: turned away from the nasty sin that led to a struggle or downfall? What if you still stumble once in a while? Does that mean you are to be tossed out because your actions are not perfect?

If you have been wounded by church people like this who don't truly understand the immense grace and love of God; I am sorry. I apologize for them as a former one of them. I remember when my great intellect, exegetical skill and brilliant theology confirmed that I should treat people like that: one strike and you are out.

If you are a transformed follower of Jesus yet feel as if the USA church has cast you out because of your colorful past or a stumble along the way, then I declare that God has cast you into the Kingdom; His Kingdom, which includes everyone of His churches; even if, they are wrong about church discipline and still wounding the truly repentant.

People often judge our present based on our past. They may be blind to our life transformation due to only being able to judge us in comparison to our old ways. They are stuck seeing our poor broken old souls which did not know yet the fruit of true repentance based on God's transforming love. When oppressed by the weight of this human judgement and condemnation, we were held captive to the past and chained into not being able to change. It is like God is pouring a stream of pure, clean, living water into us as a lake receiving His love and power, but spiritual leaders damn up the pouring out of this pure life-giving water into others so that we become damned up, stagnant, dying ponds; which then this moldy mess becomes our fault due to our lack of holy performance based on their performance based perspective.

Until we 'earned' the right to serve in new ways based on external good behaviors, we were stuck. Our behavior modification had to be visible and excellent enough in the eyes of 'spiritual leaders' to prove we were worthy of serving The King according to their plan and vision.

Or, maybe you have been told that more was expected of you because of who you are, your spiritual knowledge or relationship with some leaders. Maybe you were told it was tough love. Maybe you were told by a leader that they were tougher on you because they have known you and expected more from you. This type of performance driven expectation leads to the same angst that keeps many pastor's kids from God. It becomes rules rather than relationship, again. Instead of tough love we should be the most loving, gracious, patient and gentle with those we love the most. The world will take care of being tough and causing pain to them.

People see only the past and the present because we cannot see the future. But God sees us from the future and calls us into a great something that we have no idea about yet. By the cross and resurrection, God is not stuck looking at us in the past as people are. If we can hear His voice over the other voices of accusation and condemnation, we will learn about our glorious future. God is calling us forward out of and away from our past and; even, our present. God declares how He sees us and tells us what we will grow into as we follow Him. He destroys and unleashes the chains of the past and negative behavior and thinking. He shines His light of love on our new, redeemed person. He does not work on, repair or fix the old man. He killed that messed up creature at the cross. God is not into behavior modification. Now, He is training us in Spiritual fruit through the Holy Spirit. We LIVE on this side of the empty tomb. We come alive in resurrection power.

That is how we need to treat each other. We need churches and leaders who understand that and honor us with growth opportunities not squelching us with the past but calling us into the future. God of All is shining His light into the darkness. He is turning His children into people of the light. He desires His church to be the light in a dark world stained and damaged by sin. He is loving His children into transformed lives that run from the stench of darkness, judgment and condemnation. He is loving His people into a grace-filled, holy future as children of a loving Father. He rules through love and relationship, not through rules and forced behavioral modification obedience. Then, He sends us back into the dark world to reconcile others into the light through His love and kindness.

God reigns in love. He loves you. He is a Savior. He sent His Son to save, not condemn the world. He offers reconciliation. We should do likewise.