People will dig in to defend their faves, that's for sure.
1corinthians 3:4 - For while one saith, I am of Paul; and another, I am of Apollos; are ye not carnal?
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Are you saying that consequences of sin are exacted by God on His repentant children?
The consequence of 'losing our witness' as you call it is man passing judgment on another and is not GOD's way or leading.
The loss of TRUST by brethren is not the same as passing judgment. For those who are Spirit led, restoration of trust comes as we trust and follow the Holy Spirit.
The world is just as sickened by our proclamations of forgiveness and love that we don't demonstrate as they are with our fallen states.
You come across as a typical example of an older person who really doesn't understand the younger generation(s). I'm sure you understand your own generation far better than most who are even slightly younger than yourself though. So this probably goes both ways.
I've interacted with a lot of younger people on their own terms and level, especially in relation to sports at an elite level (no, nothing to do with lifting weights) and I know how hard it can be to relate well. To the degree that one is actually able to, one finds that things are both better and worse when one gains a better understanding. The problem is that the older generations miss so much of the "better" part and find it too easy to judge.
We don't "relate" to the lost. that is just another version of "seeker sensitive".
We preach Christ and Him crucified, God brings the increase.
And you know what? I completely agree. For that couple to ask for a blessing when they are in the midst of their sin is more than ridiculous and stupid. They need to break up, repent and each go back and work on their own marriage, if at all possible.
My husband and I have been married for 39 years. 30 of those we have been serving the Lord. We will freely tell anyone who asks, and sometimes if they don't ask, that marriage is HARD WORK. You don't stay in love all the time. It's something you CHOOSE to do. Love is a decision.
All the babble about marriages falling apart... they fall apart if you don't work at the repairs.
1 Cor 9:19 Though I am free and belong to no one, I have made myself a slave to everyone, to win as many as possible. 20 To the Jews I became like a Jew, to win the Jews. To those under the law I became like one under the law (though I myself am not under the law), so as to win those under the law. 21 To those not having the law I became like one not having the law (though I am not free from God’s law but am under Christ’s law), so as to win those not having the law. 22 To the weak I became weak, to win the weak. I have become all things to all people so that by all possible means I might save some
Some people are better at being Jews to Jews etc etc etc, regardless of each one's general ability to preach Christ to the lost. The body of Christ is made up by many different parts and they all have different functions.
True dat. I know an adulterer, so for some reason he decides to open up one day and tell me how he struggles with adultery. So I asked him about his current affair and how that got started, he told me some details, yakety yack and I told him that he is not struggling at all. A struggle indicates some type of fight.
Thing is with folks who are into adultery, that's just one manifestation of a seriously messed up life. The adultery is just a part of it.
lying
betraying
lusting
stealing
truce breaking
No one ever just woke up in bed one morning with a strange woman, it doesn't work that way.
There are far less clear cut cases than my example. People will of course cry "you're judging our hearts" when they figure out that they are commanded to repent while some other couple who are in the same situation in the strictly formal sense aren't. God is the one who judges the hearts and confirms his message. Like I mentioned, it is difficult to penalize people based on sheer discernment but it should be easier to withhold benefits that people feel entitled to, like continuing in ministry just because they are remarried even though the Spirit speaks to their specific case that they have merely formalized their adultery and their true wife that they haven't dealt with in a proper manner, is found elsewhere.