Proverbs 24:16, “For a just man falleth seven times, and riseth up again: but the wicked shall fall into mischief.” 1st Timothy 5:24, “Some men's sins are open beforehand, going before to judgment; and some men they follow after.” Ecclesiastes 7:20, “For there is not a just man upon earth, that doeth good, and sinneth not.” Revelation 12:10, “And I heard a loud voice saying in heaven, Now is come salvation, and strength, and the kingdom of our God, and the power of his Christ: for the accuser of our brethren is cast down, which accused them before our God day and night.”
When I hear one of my favorite professional musicians make a mistake in performance, I feel good knowing that even the best musical artists make mistakes, like me. Likewise, when I hear about a preacher who messes up, even though my heart breaks that the Lord's name has been tarnished, a part of me feels good in knowing that I am not the only imperfect person. I think any honest Christian feels a bit of relief in hearing about somebody else who sinned, knowing that we are not alone. I wish sin didn't exist, and that no one ever sinned, and that no one would ever be hurt or suffer again because of sin. One of the most wonderful things about our new resurrected bodies as saints, will be that we will be incapable of sinning. To be honest, I cannot even grasp such a great truth.
King Solomon said, “For there is not a just man upon earth, that doeth good, and sinneth not.” No one is any less a sinner than anybody else in God's eyes, as far as your need for redemption is concerned. That is why we read in James 2:10, “For whosoever shall keep the whole law, and yet offend in one point, he is guilty of all.” All it takes is one sin to keep you out of Heaven. God is absolutely holy, and His holiness demands justice. Sin cannot be pardoned or overlooked, it must be paid for. God loves humanity and sent His only begotten Son, Jesus, to die on the cross to pay for our sins with His precious blood. God has made a way of escape for all sinners from damnation in Hell. This escape is through Jesus' blood. Romans 5:9, “Much more then, being now justified by his blood, we shall be saved from wrath through him.”
I read a sign today that said: Be kind to everyone, because everyone is fighting some sort of battle. I like that way of thinking. Everybody is always having a tough time, so we ought to be considerate, kind and patient toward others. The Bible says that some men' sins are know beforehand. We read about the sins of others in the news. Hundreds of Baptist churches (from both fundamental and neo-evangelical camps) have been in the news lately over accusations of sexual abuse. Many of the allegations go back 50 years. I can fully understand why a victim would still want justice, regardless of the amount of time that has passed. 1st Timothy 5:24, “Some men's sins are open beforehand, going before to judgment; and some men they follow after.” In his series on “JUSTICE,” Pastor Jack Hyles (1926-2001) rightly say: “Everyone deserves justice, whether they be three years old or ninety!” Amen and amen!
Contrariwise, the Bible says, “Some men they follow after.” That means everyone has a skeleton closet. No one is above sinning. Even the most admirable man with the most impeccable character and public record is still a hell-deserving, guilty, dirty sinner. It is human nature to condemn others who have sinned, while one's own sins have been carefully concealed. Never judge others because they sin differently than you do! There are many self-righteous people in churches today, who look down their long Pharisaical noses at others who have horribly sinned, and their sins are known.
One day all of your sins and mine will be made open for all to see in eternity. Mark 4:22, “For there is nothing hid, which shall not be manifested; neither was any thing kept secret, but that it should come abroad.” Luke 8:17, “For nothing is secret, that shall not be made manifest; neither any thing hid, that shall not be known and come abroad.” Ecclesiastes 12:14, “For God shall bring every work into judgment, with every secret thing, whether it be good, or whether it be evil.” I don't know about you friend, but that compels me to live right, and try to keep my heart right with God at all times. I have enough to answer for when I stand before God, and I don't want to add to it.
The truth that the Apostle Paul is teaching is that all men are sinners! Matthew 7:1-3, “Judge not, that ye be not judged. For with what judgment ye judge, ye shall be judged: and with what measure ye mete, it shall be measured to you again. And why beholdest thou the mote that is in thy brother's eye, but considerest not the beam that is in thine own eye?” Never condemn anyone for their past sins, mistakes and failures, who have done their best to make reconciliation, restitution and restoration with others. And for those people who have hurt you, but have never tried to reconcile with you, FORGIVE THEM anyway! Forgiveness does not mean the offender does not answer for their crimes. Forgiveness is letting go of the bitterness and resentment and letting God deal with it all (Romans 12:19). God loves you. He will heal your broken heart and give you the strength to endure through this time (2nd Corinthians 12:9).
I love Pastor Jack Hyles. He wasn't a perfect man, and neither is your pastor, nor are you, nor is your mayor, nor are your parents, nor are your children, nor is any human being on this planet. Dr. Jack Hyles faithfully pastored for 55 years, helping millions of people in countless ways. Every successful man has critics. No doubt, some of the criticisms against Brother Hyles were true, and most of them false. The same is true of our dear Savior. His enemies spake all manner of evil against Him. Kindly said, we all have sin failures in life! Even the great Apostle Paul struggled with his sinful flesh (Romans 7:14-25).
One of my favorite sermons by Pastor Hyles is called: “If Thou Should Mark Iniquity, Who Could Stand?” If the truth be known, we would all blush if our thoughts and secret sins were all made public. Even the sweetest elderly lady who sings in the church choir, who seems so innocent and harmless, has a desperately wicked heart. So says the inspired Word of God! Jeremiah 17:9, “The heart is deceitful above all things, and desperately wicked: who can know it?” Even a sweet elderly lady who sings in a church choir still struggles with pride, envy, indifference, hatred, anger, bitterness, jealousy and gossip.
The Bible calls Satan “the accuser of the brethren” (Revelation 12:10b). The wicked unsaved world, and shameful backslidden Christians, behave as the Devil when they relish in accusing others! I absolutely hate the Fighting Fundamentalist Forum online. I very rarely go there, except when searching engine or I click on a link that takes me there. It is nothing but a cesspool of iniquity, condemning and berating others who have sinned, and tearing men of God down. It is nothing but a forum for self-righteous hypocrites, disgruntled former Bible college students, ungodly pastors, and hateful people to kill, steal and destroy (John 10:10). Shame on the Fighting Fundamentalist Forum owner and the carnal pastors who reside there! James 4:12, “There is one lawgiver, who is able to save and to destroy: who art thou that judgest another?”
Please understand that I am not condoning covering up anyone's crimes. There is a problem with sex crimes crimes being covered-up in our churches today, but it is not just the churches. There are cover-ups in police departments across America. There are cover-ups in professional sports, state universities, Bible colleges, the military, government, Hollywood and in every profession known to mankind. The problem is not that only pastors are covering-up for criminals, but that the human race is utterly depraved. We have a depravity problem! Even so, come, Lord Jesus!
The “Blessed Hope” Is Jesus' Soon Return
Titus 2:13-14, “Looking for that blessed hope, and the glorious appearing of the great God and our Saviour Jesus Christ; Who gave himself for us, that he might redeem us from all iniquity, and purify unto himself a peculiar people, zealous of good works.”
No comments:
Post a Comment