I am writing about this subject a day or two after I heard read the news and all the scrutiny about Josh Duggar's secret sin. You can find out what I'm talking about here if you don't already know.
I don't normally talk about these types of things on this blog. However, this situation has affected me so much; much more than I ever imagined and in a surprising way.
I am not eloquent at all. I struggle to verbalize my thoughts, but I would like to attempt to articulate what God's Holy Spirit has shown me.
The minute I see the confession Josh Duggar made on the Duggar Family Blog, my heart breaks shatters and I start to search the internet to find out what happened, how this came to be, etc.... I cannot tell you what pain invaded my heart and soul. More over the fact that the enemy has attacked another marriage in an attempt to shred it to pieces than of the betrayal of it all. My grief went further than the physical layer.
Then I started to get angry. I was becoming angry at the fact that this supposedly Bible-believing guy had the nerve to proclaim God's truths about family, marriage and so on, yet he was denying Christ by his life-style.
ARG!
Yes, I was becoming quite angry.
Then I was immediately convicted by the Holy Spirit. Not for becoming angry, but for sitting here growing angry at someone else's sin when I have sin of my own.
I must stop for a second and say that I am in no way shape or form minimizing the pain, hurt and agony this family is now facing. I am not for one second condoning this vile act of immorality and deception. Don't get me wrong on those points.
But I couldn't help but to stop looking at Josh's secret sin to look toward myself and take some spiritual inventory. God's Spirit asked me, "Is your talk louder than your walk?"
My heart lamented even more. How can I neglect time, service and love for the Almighty Living God of the universe? How can I lack zeal and passion for Jesus the Christ and His gospel? How can I dare to set things of this world, and even myself, above the One True God?
We tend to look at the outward and physical side of situations, yet we fail tremendously to see the underlying (and much more important) spiritual side. Josh did commit physical adultery, but ultimately he committed spiritual adultery against God Almighty. And so do the rest of us.
Spiritual adultery involves or includes any kind of idolatry. We often think of idolatry as worshipping or bowing down to man-made idols, or statues. As defined by Eternal Perspective Ministries, "an idol is any God-substitute, anything we make bigger than Him. If we take some element of popular culture - whether it's our leisure, pastime, hobby, or special interest in sports or arts or music - and make that an idol instead of serving the Lord, it becomes our god. We are set in orbit around it, and God becomes secondary. Idolatry is when God is removed from the throne and something else is put in His place."
In our depravity, we are prone to push God out and put other things or people in His place. What are we reading? What are we watching? What are we listening to? What activities take up so much of our time?
So many times, this has been true in my life. I have made my husband, my children, music, Facebook, sleeping and so on more important than God. Anything I love with all my heart above God is an idol. These idols have a way of just sort of slipping onto that throne which belongs to the Lord Almighty, sometimes unaware to us. That happens too many times.
Yes. I am guilty of spiritual adultery. Time and time again I have been unfaithful to the Lord. Time and time again He is faithful to forgive and restore me.
Let us examine ourselves and humbly ask the Lord to forgive us of our adultery against Him.
"How quickly we are to break the vows we made
As our unbelief leads our hearts astray
How long before He turns His face away?
We belong to the Jealous One
We belong to the Jealous One
Whose blood bought us back, whose victory won
Our worship and praise to Him belong
"Do not love the world nor the things in the world. If anyone loves the world, the love of the Father is not in him. For all that is in the world, the lust of the flesh and the lust of the eyes and the boastful pride of life, is not from the Father, but is from the world. The world is passing away, and also its lusts; but the one who does the will of God lives forever." ~1 John 2:15-17
Very good. God is Great and Greatly to be Praised!
ReplyDeletePastor Mark
Yes! This struck a chord with me . . . How often do we/I become angry at someone else's sin while I look lightly upon my own? It is definitely important to address sin, but in doing so I must address my own sin first, humbling myself before God, realizing my utter dependence upon Him. Only then will I be able to pray for/address someone else's sin in humility and the fear of God, realizing that I am capable of the same sin.
ReplyDeleteI really appreciated your perspective on this, Cynthia.