Category: Opinion

Three Root Causes of Bitter Roots-

Lisa M. PriceLeave a comment

Do not grieve the Holy Spirit of God, by whom you were sealed for the day of redemption. All bitterness, wrath, anger, clamor, and slander must be removed from you, along with all malice. Be kind to one another, compassionate, forgiving each other, just as God in Christ also has forgiven you- Ephesians 4:30-32 NASB

Hebrews chapters twelve and thirteen are home to some of the most practical bits of wisdom in all the Bible. The writer encourages all sorts of smart behaviors including living at peace with others, practicing hospitality, cooperation with church leaders, sexual purity and obedience to God (Hebrews 12:14, Hebrews 12:16, Hebrews 13:1-2, Hebrews 12:25). The writer also cautions against foolishness like getting caught up in weird doctrine, greed and sinful living (Hebrews 12:5, Hebrews 13:9, Hebrews 13:17). 

All good stuff. 

The writer also warns readers against allowing a “bitter root” (Hebrews 12:15) to develop in their lives. Some consequences of a “bitter root” include missing the grace of God (yikes) and responsibility for the “defilement” of others (double yikes). 

Anyone who has lived long enough to acquire a little wisdom understands exactly what the writer is saying when they warn against bitterness. If a Christian (or a heathen) chooses to make their home in the bitter barn, they cannot help but become spiteful, judgmental, negative, hard-hearted and a challenge to get along with. Bitter roots also cause us to become deeply disappointed with God (Ephesians 4:31). These are all simply the natural consequences of choosing bitterness (Acts 8:23, Job 10:1). 

If bitterness is not dealt with these mindsets become a permanent part of the bitter person’s heart. This creates hurt, pain and confusion in those in closest proximity to the bitter person. Family almost always gets the worst of it. Most what we think of as generational curses are caused by a bitter root that never got dealt with. It is critical we understand the roots of a bitter root so we can be healed emotionally and spiritually. Healing allows us to live in freedom and pass on a legacy of spiritual and emotional health to the next generation. Following are three roots of a root of bitterness: 

Unmet expectations-

Everyone has expectations. Most folks do not know enough about themselves to know what their expectations are. Knowing what we expect out of life is critical. When we know what we expect from God, our spouse, our adult kids, friends and church family we can easily figure out if expectations are reasonable and fair. Oftentimes we (subconsciously) expect God to bless us with wealth and comfort. We want our friends and spouses to be perfectly tuned in to our needs. We expect our adult children to express gratitude for all our effort and churches to understand and meet all our spiritual and relational needs. These expectations are wildly unrealistic in a fallen world. Other times our expectations are more realistic. We anticipate that our spouse and friends will be loyal, our adult kids will be kind, and our church leaders will behave in a way that is respectable. Although, these expectations are reasonable they are not always met in a fallen world (Romans 3:23). Whether our expectations are reasonable or crazy town, it is critical we learn to recognize when they are not being met so that we can guard against the bitterness that naturally occurs with unmet expectations. 

Trauma-

Trauma is the biggest and most understandable cause of a bitter root. That said, just because something makes sense doesn’t mean we should allow it to become a permanent part of our personality. God cautions against bitterness partly because it steals the joy of living. The last thing a hurting person needs is to have their ability to enjoy life stolen after they endured a trauma.  Traumatic events would include (but are not limited to) rape, sexual abuse, sex trafficking, physical abuse, being denied basic needs (food, water, shelter) and severe mental abuse. It is typically necessary for trauma victims to get help from a professional to move past the very real effects of trauma. Unfortunately, many in our generation have dumbed down the definition of trauma to include events that are disappointing and difficult but not truly traumatic. These events include (but are not limited to) being left out, feeling unheard and not having our expectations (reasonable or unreasonable) met. Those who have experienced disappointment or hurt made need help as well moving past their pain as well. All counseling should have the end-goal in mind of bringing the person to a place of inner peace and forgiveness (more on this later).  

Betrayal- 

Anytime we experience betrayal there is an opportunity for bitterness to take root. This is doubly true if the betrayal was at the hands of someone who should have cared about us, like a parent, spouse, child or close friend. Betrayal needs to be worked through with a wise friend, pastor or Christan counselor to prevent bitterness from becoming permanent.

Bitterness doesn’t happen in a vacuum. 

Bitterness is enticing precisely because there is oftentimes a real reason to be bitter. Only a few insanely sensitive people become bitter without cause. This reality makes it even more critical we fight to be free of bitterness.  

Ultimately, bitter roots are a result of unforgiveness and a lack of spiritual healing (Jeremiah 17:14, Colossians 3:13, Luke 6:37, Psalm 30:2). In order to forgive and get free of bitterness we must receive the truth that God is not the author of evil or sin (Matthew 18:6, Luke 17:1-2). God weeps with those who weep. He was not asleep at the wheel when that person hurt us. Additionally, God will not allow an unrepentant evil person to go unpunished (Isaiah 13:11, Psalm 81:15, Jeremiah 2:18, Luke 20:47, 2nd Thessalonians 1:8-10). When we understand deep in our hearts that God is not the author of our pain it becomes easier to trust Him and let Him exact punishment on those who have caused us pain.   

The Real Reasons Christians Don’t Grow-

Lisa M. Price1 Comment

Truly I tell you, unless you change and become like little children, you will never enter the kingdom of heaven- Matthew 18:3 NASB

Transformation and growth are non-negotiables of the Christian life. Christians are saved by faith for the sole purpose of being transformed into the image of Jesus (Romans 3:20, Ephesians 2:8-9). Passages like Romans 12:1-2, 2nd Peter 1:3-11, 2nd Corinthians 3:18, 2nd Corinthians 5:17 and Colossians 3:5 all drive home the notion that Christians are to relentlessly seek Christlikeness in their daily lives. 

Here’s the thing though:

According to Pew Research, sixty-three percent of self-identified Christians only attend Church once or twice a month. Only a third routinely read Scripture. More than half strongly support same-sex marriage. Nearly half (47%) believe there are no clear standards of right and wrong and over half (53%) believe abortion should be legal all or most of the time.  I do not believe Christians get the Christian life figured out and become perfectly obedient to Jesus instantaneously. I suspect many of the people interviewed by Pew are on a trajectory of growth that will eventually lead to greater obedience.  Nonetheless, the above statistics strongly suggest a large number of Christians do not grow or transform post salvation. 

The consequences of refusing to transform or neglecting to grow are spiritually catastrophic. Those who don’t grow are frequently led astray by false teachers and bad doctrine (1st Timothy 4:1). Declining to grow and change leaves believers with a feeble faith that is unlikely to go the distance or be passed on to others (Matthew 13:20-21, Hebrews 5:12, 1st Peter 3:15). Without intentional growth no one will ever reach a level of maturity that allows them to minister to others effectively because you can’t lead where you don’t go (Matthew 5:16). Perhaps the most alarming consequence of a lack of transformation is the reality that maturity and obedience in this life impacts what a person does or does not do in heaven (Matthew 25:14-30, Romans 8:17). The bottom line is without growth and transformation, Christians miss out on all the blessings we were redeemed for. 

Yikes. 

All the above realities are tragic. They are also one-hundred-percent preventable. However, in order to avoid those realities, it’s critical we un understand why Christians don’t grow and transform.  Once we understand the reasons, it’s easy to make changes that move us closer to God and fast-track our growth and transformation. 

The top four reasons we don’t grow are as follows: 

We don’t want to- 

Spiritual growth is tough. If we want to grow, we must submit every part of our life to the will of God. Unfortunately for us, God’s will always involves leaving behind our sin and selfishness (Genesis 4:7, Matthew 5:29-30, John 8:11, Acts 3:19). Sometimes people who claim to love Jesus also love their sin. A lot. If a Christian loves their sin more than they love Jesus, transformation becomes super problematic. Thankfully, the Holy Spirit was given to enable believers to overcome sin and fulfill their calling as Jesus followers (John 14:26, Acts 2:38). Growth begins with a gut level desire to please God. If that is lacking remember that praying fervently for a desire to please God is a prayer God is REALLY inclined to answer. 

We never get at the root or reason for our behavior- 

People rarely do what they do without a reason, this is especially true when it comes to sin. When an individual lies it’s not usually because they enjoy deceiving people. There’s almost always a deeper reason. Maybe, they don’t understand their value in Christ, and they feel bad about themselves. So, they present themselves as more significant or accomplished than they are. Or perhaps, they are caught up in another sin that demands they lie in order to keep the sin under the radar. The fact that there may be a deeper reason for sin doesn’t make the sin acceptable. Sin is sin. That said, understanding what’s going on inside us can help us to change our behavior. Knowledge really is power when it is coupled with a desire to transform. 

We only deal with the surface issue-

Sin is always a problem. However, the biggest problem with sin isn’t the sin it’s the heart that produces the sin (Matthew 12:34, Matthew 15:18-20, Acts 8:20-22). Outward behavior (sin) is just the expression of an inward (heart) problem. People don’t commit adultery because there are too many scantily clad people in the world. They commit adultery because they have never dealt with their lust issue or their need for attention from the opposite sex issue.  Adultery is a sin but it’s also a symptom of bigger issues. Unless the heart problem is dealt with the sin will continue to creep up anytime, we feel weak, stressed or threatened. The solution to the heart problem is taking every sinful feeling and desire we have to God in prayer (2nd Corinthians 10:5) then refusing to feed any and all sinful desires we have (1st Corinthians 9:7). In order to change our hearts deepest desires, we must examine ourselves often, feed ourselves biblical truth, surround ourselves with godly people and avoid godless entertainment that normalizes wrong behavior (Proverbs 1:5, Proverbs 13:20, Proverbs 19:20, 1st Corinthians 15:33, 1st Timothy 4:11-16). 

And finally:

We give up before we get to the good part- 

Becoming fully obedient to God is a life-long process. Sanctification (becoming obedient to God) can be challenging, especially in the beginning of our faith journey. That being said, choosing growth and transformation brings a level of joy, peace and personal happiness that is almost indescribable. We just have to let the process play out to get to the good part. 

Making Spiritual Sense of Those who Once Professed Christ but no Longer Live for Him-

Lisa M. Price1 Comment

The one sown with seed on the rocky places, this is the one who hears the word and immediately receives it with joy; yet he has no firm root in himself, but is only temporary, and when affliction or persecution occurs because of the [word, immediately he falls away- Matthew 13:20-21 NASB

From time-to-time, I have a conversation with the Lord that goes something like this:

Me: Good morning God!  What do you want me to write about this week?

God: I want you to write about ____________________.

Me: Uh… I’m sorry God, I hate to tell you this but no one wants to read that. It will make people mad. 

God: I know. Write it anyway. 

Me: Sigh. Okay. 

Such was the case this last week. I asked God for a topic. He gave me one. I argued with Him. He won. It’s His thing. 

So.

I work in an arena of ministry with many people who have relatives (usually adult kids, but not always) who are walking a very sinful path. Sometimes these adult kids are so steeped in sin they are walking several different sinful paths all at the same time (trust me it can be done). All these adult children know their behavior is wrong because they were raised to know right from wrong. The folks I work with are looking for some kind of spiritual hope for their loved one. More often than not, they find that hope in a commitment the adult child made to the Lord a long time ago, often in childhood or their early teens. Sometimes the child who is now walking in sin appeared to walk with God for a season. However, that ship has officially sailed. They are now living lives that completely oppose God and everything He’s all about.  Nonetheless, these parents cling to the belief that their child’s childhood commitment was the real deal and “proof” their child is a believer. 

I hate to be the bearer of bad news (truly I do). 

However, this line of thinking is not wise or biblical. It is personally comforting to believe a loved one is saved when they are living far from God. However, it is not in our best interest or theirs to hang all our hopes on a prayer a child (or an adult, for that matter) prayed at some point in the distant past, when there is zero fruit to indicate they have made the journey from spiritual death to spiritual life (Matthew 3:9-11, Matthew 7:16-20, Luke 6:43-44, John 15:4, Galatians 5:19-24). 

 Here’s why:

False hope keeps us from praying rational and compassionate prayers-

The most loving thing one human can do for another is pray for their salvation (Acts 2:21, Acts 4:12, 1stCorinthians 6:9-10, Titus 2:11-12).  Therefore, if a loved one does not live like a Christian the loving and logical thing is to assume they aren’t one and pray accordingly. If we get it wrong, the Lord will sort it out. 

There is very little space in the New Testament for Christians who don’t at least try and act like Christians-

There’s just not (Romans 6:1-23, Romans 7:4-6, Ephesians 2:1-10, 2nd Corinthians 5:17, 2nd Peter 1:3-11). It is normal for new Christians and even seasoned saints to stumble and even fall sometimes. No one this side of heaven is free of their sin nature. We should not assume that just because a Christian screws up (even in a really big way) they are unsaved. That being said, the Bible makes it clear: authentic believers in Jesus do not wallow around in sin for years and years with no apparent remorse or desire to change. Nor do they mock Jesus, Christianity or other Christians. True Christians do not write or speak about how freeing it is to depart the faith and live a life of unfettered sin. Jesus is clear: no fruit (or ONLY bad fruit) no salvation. That doesn’t mean anyone is doomed. As long as a person is breathing there is hope for redemption (John 3:16, Romans 5:7-9).  That said, we must be realistic about their spiritual state in order to help them. 

Children don’t always understand the commitment they made-

It is spiritually risky to assume a child or teenager understands or understood all the ins-and-outs of making a heartfelt commitment to Jesus when many saved adults struggle with the concepts of salvation and sanctification. We must understand that from a developmental standpoint the teen years are a period of life when people “try on” identities and decide who they want to be and how they want to live. If a teen or child “tries on” the identity of “Christian” or goes through the motions of living like a Christian for a season but never REALLY repents of their sin and follows through on a commitment to obey Jesus as the Lord of their life, the whole thing was (sadly) just another phase of childhood and nothing more. Consequently, it’s critical parents ensure children and teens who profess Christ are given a LOT of follow-up care and discipleship. It’s the best way to stack the odds in favor of a genuine commitment to Jesus (John 10:9). 

I am not arguing people “lose” their salvation. However, Jesus made it clear there will be people who make commitments to God who don’t really mean it or understand what that commitment entails. Those people inevitably “fall away” (Matthew 7:13-23, Matthew 25:31-46, Mark 16:16). If those folks die without truly knowing Christ as Lord, they will not make it heaven. We prove our love for these people by praying fervently they will understand their spiritual reality and seek God while He can be found (Isaiah 55:6, Hebrews 4:6-7, 2nd Peter 3:9, Matthew 24:13).  

How to Spot a False Teacher in the Church-

Lisa M. Price2 Comments

 There will be false teachers among you. They will secretly introduce destructive heresies, even denying the sovereign Lord who bought them—bringing swift destruction on themselves.  Many will follow their depraved conduct and will bring the way of truth into disrepute- 2nd Peter 2:1-2 

Last week, I was scrolling a social media site, and I happened upon a post entitled “twelve false teachers to avoid”.  There were a couple of people on the list I had never heard of but for the most part it was a “who’s who” of popular Christianity. The poster (not someone I know) did not give a list of reasons for placing those folks on their list. It was just a list of names. The comments were passionate. Many disputed the posters conclusions; others felt the poster was spot-on. 

I am not opposed to the notion of identifying false teachers the Church.  The New Testament frequently warns readers to be on the lookout for false teachers (Matthew 7:15, Acts 20:28-30, 2nd Peter 2:1-3, Jude 4). False teachers mislead and sometimes even entice people to sin (2nd Timothy 3:1-8). This makes all Christians look hypocritical, causing unsaved folks to reject Jesus because of the behavior of Christians (2nd Peter 2:1-2).  

Not good. 

Nonetheless, I don’t love the idea of publicly calling out false teachers. Such tactics lack grace, teach nothing and hurt those who may have made a mistake in their teaching and have since repented. All human leaders are fallible. Punishing anyone for immaturity or a mistake is worldly rather than Christian (Titus 3:11). Moreover, it seems to me it is more important for the average Joe or Jane Christian to be able to identify false teachers rather than be given a list of people to avoid.   So, in the interest of education I am providing a list, not of people to avoid but of characteristics to lookout for. The list is not exhaustive, but it’s a good place to start. 

First and foremost:

They are almost always squishy when it comes to sexuality-

This is the most glaring red flag for false teachers today. Most (not all) false teachers take a worldly stand on sexual issues. Oftentimes they openly promote LGBTQ lifestyles in the name of “love” or “grace”. It is neither loving nor gracious to celebrate any behavior God explicitly forbids (Acts 15:29, Romans 1:24-27, 1st Corinthians 6:18, 2nd Corinthians 6:9-11, 1st Thessalonians 4: 3-8). 

Their ministry is about something besides Jesus or living for Jesus- 

Many false teachers center their ministry entirely around the “prophetic word”. These self-proclaimed “prophets” have a fresh “word from the Lord” nearly every day and their predications typically have a very low rate of accuracy.  Other false teachers focus mostly on politics or psychology. They tend to make the Bible secondary in their teachings. False teachers often blend politics or psychology with the Bible explaining away sin in psychological terms or making patriotism a standard of holiness. For the record, I am not opposed to patriotism or psychology as long as we put God first and keep the rest in perspective.  I also believe God speaks to and through people, even today (Hebrews 12:25). Furthermore, the New Testament explicitly cautions readers not to become contemptuous or dismissive of prophecy (1st Thessalonians 5:20-21). That being said, a healthy Christian teacher focuses MOST of their teachings on living a victorious Christian life, understanding the teachings of the Bible and glorifying Jesus, NOT on politics, psychology or the prophetic word.

They resist authority including scriptural authority-

Most (all) false teachers resist any kind of authority and are rarely (if ever) under a denominational covering. Furthermore, they tend to become angry and belligerent when told that their teachings do not measure up to biblical standards. Truth-be-told there is little real spiritual authority anymore, even in many denominations (Judges 21:25). Therefore, it is critical Christians study the Bible for themselves so they can spot erroneous teaching when it is presented (Acts 17:11, 2nd Timothy 2:15).

The fruit is bad-

Most false teachers do not have (for the most part) good fruit. They don’t lead a lot of people to the Lord and when they do those folks tend to fall away. They also tend to lack the fruit of the Spirit (Galatians 5:22-23, 2nd Peter 1:3-11, Colossians 3). Be on guard for those who make salvation secondary and/or talk about Christian virtues but do not walk them out.  

They lack the character required for Christian leaders- 

The Bible sets clear standards for those in Christian leadership. Anyone can have a bad day (or even a bad season) but for the most part a healthy Christian leader should be mature and tested (1st Timothy 3:6). They should also set a good example, be kind, clear minded, able to teach and patient with difficult people.  They should not be pugnacious (fighty), greedy, gossipy or given to drunkenness (Ephesians 4:11-15, 1st Timothy 3:1-13, 2nd Timothy 2:4). If a Christian leader is dishonest, lacking in virtue and/or cannot live in peace with most people most of the time, he or she should not be followed.  

They are motivated primarily by money and attention- 

There is nothing wrong or sinful with having a big ministry or lots of followers, nor is it wrong to raise a lot of money for godly causes.  However, a lot can go wrong when a teacher or preacher tailors their teaching to gain a huge following and raise a lot of money (Mark 8:36, 1st Timothy 6:3-6, Titus 1:10-11).  If a teacher or preacher talks a lot about money but very little about sin and living a righteous life, chances are good they are more interested in a personal following than seeing souls saved and people sanctified. 

Ultimately, false teachers are a lot like the fig tree in Matthew 21:18-19. They tend to be all style with no real substance. They profess to believe all the right things but the more you look the more obvious it becomes that their lifestyle and teaching is a little “off”. The era of podcasts and YouTube has made it possible for false teachers to thrive with little or no real accountability. It’s on the individual Christian to choose who they follow wisely and practice discernment in all things. 

The Latest Trend in Pit-of-Hell Thinking

Lisa M. Price3 Comments

A son will not suffer the punishment for the father’s guilt, nor will a father suffer the punishment for the son’s guilt; the righteousness of the righteous will be upon himself, and the wickedness of the wicked will be upon himself- Ezekiel 18:20

There are basically three kinds of thinking.  

First, there’s good or wise thinking. Good or wise thinking is aligned with what the Bible teaches. Learning to think biblically does not mean life will always be easy or free of trials (2nd Corinthians 4:17-18, James 1:2, 1stPeter 1:6-7).  However, biblical thinking coupled with relationship with God ultimately leads to peace with God and eternity spent with God (Proverbs 3:5-6, Romans 5:1, Romans 12:2).  

There’s also bad or worldly thinking. Bad thinking is not always obviously erroneous. Bad thinking is bad because it is not aligned with the Bible and so it’s off, it’s worldly and therefore lacking in wisdom (Colossians 2:8, Philippians 3:19). This is the kind of thinking Christians end up with when they lean on their own understanding of how to do life rather than God’s (Proverbs 3:5-6). Bad or worldly thinking will not always completely ruin a person’s life, but it will lead them in a less than godly direction and ensure they never quite live up to their God-given potential.  

The final category of thinking is what I call “pit-of-hell” thinking. This type of thinking is literally, and I do mean literally, straight out of the pit of hell. The New Testament refers to it a: “doctrine of demons” (1st Timothy 4:1). Pit-of-hell thinking always has a demonic component to it that makes it very deceptive. Indulging in this kind of thinking ultimately causes an individual to become derailed spiritually, emotionally and morally.

 There’s no scarcity of pit-of-hell thinking in the world today. 

One wildly popular and sinister example of such thinking is a notion that originated with Sigmund Freud (1873-1939). Freud taught that individuals could trace all of their bad behavior, emotional problems and wrong thinking back to something their parents did or did not do to them in childhood. If an adult lacks self-confidence, can’t stand up for themselves, has a tough time making decisions, is angry, hates sex, is addicted to sex, can’t maintain a long-term relationship, allows themselves to be abused, is codependent, drinks too much, uses drugs or is a narcissistic jerk, it is all the fault of that individual’s parents, usually the mom. It is true that we are all influenced by our childhood experiences. Bad parenting is bad, partly because it has a generational impact (Lamentations 5:7). That said, if parents were responsible for all our sin God would have sent us a therapist rather than a savior (Acts 4:12).  

Following are the top four problems with this thinking: 

It prevents individuals from dealing with their problems and sin-

The first step in dealing with a problem or sin is to take personal responsibility for that sin and/or owning our part of the problem (Proverbs 28:13, James 5:16, Psalm 32:3). It is impossible to take responsibility, effectively confess a sin or repent of something that we are blaming our parents for. Conversely, when we take full responsibility for our sin, God forgives that sin and gives us the wisdom we need to move forward in a victorious way that breaks generational curses and sets us free from the bondage of sinful strongholds (Psalm 32:5, Psalm 51, 1st John 1:8-9). 

It leads folks to believe it’s okay to break the fifth commandment- 

Believing the lie that their mom and dad are ultimately responsible for our misery and sin leads us to believe that it’s okay to disrespect or dishonor our parents. This line of thinking is in direct violation to the fifth commandment (Exodus 20:12). This commandment is clear, unambiguous and repeated many times throughout the Old and New Testaments (Deuteronomy 5:16, Matthew 14:4, Matthew 19:16-20, Mark 7:10, Ephesians 6:2). It is one of the clearest teachings in all the Bible. God was so serious about this commandment there is blessing promised for keeping it and curses attached to breaking it (including a death penalty). Furthermore, nowhere in the Bible are we given a loophole when it comes to honoring/respecting our parents. It is impossible to honor or respect someone who you blame for all your problems and bad choices. 

It’s at the root of the estrangement epidemic- 

Children cutting their parents out is now a popular trend. Typically, the parents were not abusive just “toxic”. Toxicity is frequently defined as “not being supportive enough” or “not in tune to the child’s needs”.  The bottom-line is that these kids have bought into the lie that all of their problems and issues are the fault of their parents rather than the result of their own choices. This view is at the root of incalculable misery and hurt. No one wins in an estrangement. The parents are left devastated, and the adult child never really grows up and takes responsibility for their own behavior (Ezekial 18)

It’s not biblical– 

It’s just not. There is not a single Bible verse that indicates that anyone is responsible for our choices or sin except us. Period. People are not soulless automatons preprogrammed by childhood experiences. We are influenced by the experiences we have growing up but ultimately each one of us chooses how we respond to what we experienced.  

All parents are sinners, therefore they all make mistakes. Some even sin against their children (Romans 3:23). This does not make abuse okay or excusable (Romans 3:19). Parents who abuse their children will be held accountable for their sin (Ezekiel 18:4, Matthew 18:6, Romans 14:12). That said, no one is responsible for our adult choices except us and taking responsibility for our own junk is the first step in making a better future for ourselves. 

What is the Evilest Form of Evil and how do we Fight it?

Lisa M. PriceLeave a comment

 Do not be overcome by evil, but overcome evil with good- Romans 12:21 NKJV

Like it or not, evil is rooted in the hearts of all humans (Jeremiah 17:9, Genesis 6:5, Mark 7:20).

Contrary to popular belief, people are not fundamentally good, nor are they born perfect and later corrupted by questionable parenting, trauma and lack of education or poverty.  None of those things are good or desirable, but none of them cause people to become evil. The Bible teaches that human beings are sinners from the moment of their conception (Psalm 51:5).  It all started with Adam and Eve.  Adam and Eve (and every human since) chose to rebel against God and do life apart from God rather than with God. The first humans consciously chose to acquire knowledge of evil (Genesis 3). Since that ill-fated moment evil has lurked in the hearts of all people (Mark 7:20-22, Genesis 6:5, Jeremiah 17:9). 

It’s critical to note that not every human acts out in horribly evil ways, nor are we doomed to live lives of unrestrained wickedness (Luke 11:13). The is good news is that the God of the universe loved us so much that He chose to become a sacrifice for our sins (John 3:16, Romans 5:8 Isaiah 53, 1st Peter 2:24, 1st John 4:9-10). Anytime a sinful human puts their faith and trust in Jesus’ sacrifice and resurrection (Matthew 27-28) their sins are forgiven (Acts 10:34, Colossians 1:4). Furthermore, once we are “in Christ” (Romans 3:23-26, Romans 6:23, 1stCorinthians 15:21-22, 2nd Corinthians 5:17) the Holy Spirit dwells in us (John 14:16-17, John 14:26, Acts 1:8). The Holy Spirit gives Christians the power necessary to fight the evil in us and in the world (more on that later).

All that good news aside.

We are still a corrupted race even after we come into relationship with Jesus.  Evil still lurks the hearts of all humans. It is and will be a part of our operating system until we are fully redeemed and dwell in heaven (Revelation 21:1-4, Revelation 21:22-27).   

Evil comes in all sorts of different forms. There’s overt evil. Overt evil is out in the open. Overt evil is loud and proud; it openly seeks to harm others. Think serial killer or fascist kinds of evil. Covert evil is a little more subtle. It refuses to do good or withholds help from those that need it (Proverbs 3:27). The most dangerous kind of evil is evil that is unaware of its own evilness. It actually thinks it is doing good while it’s promoting evil and committing acts of evil (Isaiah 5:20). Those who think they are doing good when they are really doing evil are the most dangerous kinds of people

Evil that believes it’s doing good will gleefully corrupt and sexualize very young children in the name of “suicide prevention” “gender diversity” and “love”. Evil that thinks it’s good will deliberately incite hate and will even excuse murder in the name of “saving democracy” and “ending fascism”. Evil that thinks it’s good insists we must end the lives of unborn children in the name of “gender fairness” “bodily rights” and the need to ensure “all children are wanted and loved”. Evil that thinks it’s good will willingly euthanize an old or sick person in the name “quality of life”. Evil that thinks it’s good squashes free speech to further “tolerance” and protect the “well being” of others. Evil that thinks it’s good supports governments and religious belief systems that oppress women and minorities in the interests of “ending oppression”.

Evil that thinks it’s good is evilest kind of evil this fallen world has ever seen. Evil that believes it is good can and will justify every kind of unjustifiable behavior for the “greater good” and in the name of defending “human rights”. 

 As believers in Jesus, we must do everything in our power to fight this growing evil. We must stand against it and fight it with everything we have in us. We must fight for authentic good. We must actively look for opportunities to expose the corrupt and deceitful evil the world is touting as truth and virtuousness. Authentic good protects, defends and lays down its life for the weak and vulnerable. Authentic good values innocence and knows that humans are at their best when they choose to do life God’s way. Authentic good fights for the weak and chooses to love the unlovable. Authentic good prays for all people. Authentic good looks for occasions to usher in Kingdom values and Kingdom righteousness (Matthew 5:1-16, Matthew 6:10, Mark 1:14-15).

Evil that thinks it’s good cannot be defeated with the weapons of this world (2nd Corinthians 10:3-5). The weapons of this world are hatred, division, lies and violence. Christians cannot allow themselves to stoop to worldly methods or behaviors to fight evil.  When we behave like the world, we are allowing our own evil to run wild. God does not condone, bless or look away from evil especially in His own people (Romans 6:1-2).

Christians must fight the evil that believes it is good by making every effort to be firmly anchored to the immutable truth of God and His word. It is critical we take the time to know the unchanging principals of the Bible and learn to discern good from evil (Hebrews 5:14). Knowing the difference between good and evil keeps us from falling prey to the philosophies of this world that embrace death and call good evil. We fight evil with the love of Jesus and good works that glorify His name. 

How the Loss of One Truth Sent Western Culture Straight to Crazy Town-

Lisa M. Price2 Comments

The blood of Jesus His Son cleanses us from all sin. If we say that we have no sin, we are deceiving ourselves and the truth is not in us. If we confess our sins, He is faithful and righteous, so that He will forgive us our sins and cleanse us from all unrighteousness. If we say that we have not sinned, we make Him a liar and His word is not in us- 1st John 1:7b-10 NASB

Doctrinal teaching has fallen on hard times. 

Even many Christians are uninterested in learning the details of most doctrinal teachings. The attributes of God, redemption and justification by faith just don’t hold a lot of appeal these days. Although, perhaps, the doctrine that has fallen on the hardest of times is the doctrine of original sin. 

Nobody likes it.

Seriously. 

Even many Christians are uncomfortable with the whole concept. Original sin is a tough sell in a culture that is easily offended and obsessed with fairness.  Original sin is the belief that every human being is morally and ethically corrupted from the moment of conception by Adam and Eve’s choice to disobey God and eat from the tree of the knowledge of good and evil (Genesis 3, Romans 5:12, Ecclesiastes 9:3, Psalm 14:2-3). The doctrine of original sin teaches all humans are sinners from conception (Romans 3:23, Psalm 51:1-5). This means human beings cannot rehabilitate or fix themselves (Ephesians 2:8-9, Titus 3:3-7), we need God to do that for us. 

The above-mentioned gloominess aside, the criticalness of a doctrinal teaching is revealed by what happens when a person (or culture) stops believing it is true.  Most folks in the west stopped believing original sin was a reality about fifty years ago.  There are at least four ways the world has gone crazy town because we ditched the doctrine of original sin, including:

Criminals have become sympathetic victims rather than bad guys- 

Most western societies see criminals as victims and justice for actual victims of crime as unfair and unjust. Original sin teaches that all people (regardless of upbringing) have an inborn inclination towards evil. Conversely, most secular folks believe humans are born perfect and are corrupted by traumatic personal experiences or less-than-perfect parents. Christians believe even unredeemed people have a choice about whether they fully give into their sinful tendencies (Calvinists call this “common grace”). When a culture ceases to believe in original sin, bad behavior is no longer about choices it’s always about trauma and the whole notion of personal responsibility dies an ugly death. A criminal is not a criminal because they chose a life of crime, they are a criminal because of forces outside their control like poverty, abuse, suffering and neglect (Romans 2:5-8). The unintended consequence of this belief system is that our justice system often shows more compassion to lawbreakers than to law abiders (Isaiah 59:14-15). 

Parenting gets weird-

For generations parents have understood that kids are born with a tendency towards rebellion, bad behavior and disobedience (Proverbs 22:15, Ephesians 6:1). Even godless societies agreed it was the parent’s job to squash rebellion and steer children towards law-abiding behavior and decency. When parents stopped believing children were rebellious from birth all of sudden, they were forced to blame themselves and their own broken upbringing for the bad behavior of their kids. This has created a weird approach to childrearing where parents live in fear of traumatizing their children with any kind of discipline or even disapproval (Proverbs 13:24). As a result, children are oftentimes quite awful, and parents are unspeakably miserable when they should be enjoying one of the ultimate blessings of human existence (Psalm 127:3-5) 

Becoming our most authentic self suddenly seems like a great idea-

The death of original sin gave birth to the whole notion all people should do their best to “become my most authentic self”. This whole idea of finding our authentic self is unbelievably popular today. Nobody even questions whether this is something we ought to be doing. However, if one looks a little deeper at the fruit of this view it becomes clear that “being my most authentic self” is at the root of transgenderism, sexual deviancy, adultery, many divorces and most child neglect.  This is because as fallen beings our most authentic self is our sin nature. Consequently, our most authentic self is typically weird, sinful, selfish, vulgar and wants what it wants when it wants it (Ecclesiastes 6:1, Genesis 6:5). None of this nonsense should be celebrated or pursued. 

Everyone gets their own truth- 

Believing the lie that people are inherently flawless, logically leads to the belief that what each individual person thinks or believes is always right and true. Because no one wants to start calling people out for being wrong, we have instead conceded that everyone is entitled to their own individual truth. The truth each individual holds does not have to be provably true it just has to be believed by the individual. One does not have to be a rocket scientist to determine that eventually my “truth” will conflict with someone else’s “truth” at some point. This is when things get ugly because we all know deep down inside there cannot be multiple truths.

The fruit of denying the reality of original sin is clearly rotten. Sadly, we cannot force unbelievers to believe any Christian doctrine. However, as Christians we can see to it that we are walking in truth (John 8:32) and teaching truth to the next generation. When we walk in truth we instantly become the salt and light this world needs (Matthew 5:13-16)

The Big Uglies that Lead to Bigger Trouble-

Lisa M. PriceLeave a comment

Therefore, if anyone is in Christ, he is a new creation; old things have passed away; behold, all things have become new- 1st Corinthians 5:16-17 NKJV

Most Christians get what sin is.  

The most basic definition of sin is disobedience to God’s commands. We sin when go our own way and do our own thing with no thought to God and His will for His creation (us). Because we are endlessly creative in our degeneracy it is nearly impossible to give an exhaustive list of ALL the possible sins. Some classifications of popular sins would include sexual immorality, deceit, murder, and idolatry. 

Here’s the thing though: 

Sin is much more complex than a simple act. There’s always a lead-up. No one just wakes up one day and out of the clear blue sky decides “today I will commit murder”. The book of James tells us that sin has roots. James calls these roots “desires”. Some translations use the word “lusts” (James 1:15, James 4:1). 

I call them the big uglies. 

The big uglies are the attitudes and aspirations that, if left untended eventually give birth to life destroying sins like adultery, bitterness, murder, greed, deceit and slander. If we allow ourselves to entertain these attitudes sin is without question knocking at our door (Genesis 4:7). 

The top five spiritual uglies are:

Pride-  

Pride is perhaps the most pernicious of the uglies. Pride was the sin that transformed Lucifer into Satan (the deceiver) and got him thrown out of heaven (Ezekial 28:12-15, Isaiah 14:13-14).  Pride is easy to spot in others but difficult to see in ourselves. Prideful people see themselves as more important than others and therefore entitled to certain rights and privileges others are not allowed.  Prideful people are reluctant (to the point of unwillingness) to admit wrong even when it’s painfully obvious, they are wrong. Prideful people (sometimes called narcissists) refuse to humble themselves, or admit fault (Proverbs 29:23, 1st Peter 5:5-6). Prideful people believe in their heart-of-hearts they are better than others. This makes them unforgiving and unwilling to extend grace (Matthew 6:15, Ephesians 4:32, Matthew 18:4). A prideful person will do ANYTHING to save face and come out on top. Anything includes (but is not limited to) big sins such as lying, controlling others, slandering and boastfulness (Leviticus 19:16, Psalm 101:5, Romans 1:3, Revelation 21:8). God despises pride (Proverbs 6:16-19, Luke 14:11). 

Rebellion- 

Rebellion is the stubborn rejection of legitimate authority. Rebellion is the big ugly sin that led to the fall of mankind (Genesis 3). Rebellion is closely related to pride. Rebellion begins with a prideful belief that “I know what’s best” and usually ends with a determined unwillingness to take “no” for an answer. Rebellion eventually manifests itself in open defiance towards all authority including God. A rebellious person has an “it’s all about me” view of life. They have no respect for authority, rules or the needs of others.  God puts rebellion in the same category as witchcraft. Rebellion is ultimately a veneration of self and therefore a super icky form of idolatry (1stSamual 15:23). 

Selfish ambition-

Selfish ambition is the yearning to create a following for oneself.  It’s a longing to be a big deal. Selfish ambition hurts the church because the selfishly ambitious person is mainly interested in using Jesus to become well-known and well-thought of (Philippians 1:17, Galatians 5:19-20, Philippians 2:3). Selfish ambition sometimes looks like “spreading the gospel” or “growing the Kingdom”.  It’s not. Those things always lead to peace, flourishing and healthy community. Selfish ambition, on the other hand always leads to strife, envy and conflict in the church (James 3:14-16).  The whole point of Christian leadership is to point people to Jesus and help them grow into the image of Jesus (Ephesians 4:11-12). At the end of the day a selfishly ambitious leader is always more interested in elevating themselves than Jesus. 

Jealousy- 

These days most folks see jealousy as more of a character defect or a moral shortcoming rather than an actual sin. However, God sees human jealously as one of the foulest and most dangerous of sins. Jealousy or envy is deeply rooted in the sin of covetousness (Exodus 20:17). Jealousy is never content with what it has (1st Timothy 6:6, Hebrews 13:5). It wants what others have and will stop at nothing to get it. The pharisees were so profoundly jealous of Jesus authority and influence they murdered Him (Matthew 27:18). A truly jealous person cannot stand to share the stage with anyone. 

 Self-reliance-

Self-reliance is when we choose to do any part of life without consulting God through prayer and Bible study for direction.  Self-reliance is choosing to lean on our own flawed understanding of the world rather than seeking God’s wisdom and moral insight (Proverbs 3:6). A self-reliant person often sees God’s commands as cumbersome and difficult rather than God’s way of protecting His people from harm. This stupidity harms the self-reliant person and creates chaos in the lives of those they lead and influence. 

Here’s the thing about the big uglies: 

Literally, ANYONE can get entangled in a big ugly (Hebrews 12:1). Seriously. Some of God’s best and brightest drifted toward pride, rebellion, selfish ambition, jealousy and self-reliance (David, Solomon, Hezekiah, Peter). The key to avoiding the attitudes that lead to us (and those we love and serve) to hell is a gut-level commitment to sticking as close to Jesus as we can possibly get. No one can escape the appeal of sin without God’s help. Therefore, it is imperative we make God, prayer, God’s word and intimacy with God our number one priority. 

What do we do when we Become a Casualty of Lies and Slander?

Lisa M. PriceLeave a comment

One who walks with integrity, practices righteousness, and speaks truth in his heart.
He does not slander with his tongue, nor do evil to his neighbor, nor bring shame on his friend-Psalm 15:2-3 NASB

There are a handful of Bible stories and passages that qualify as my all-time personal favorites. These are the stories I go back to time and again. They make the list because there is something in them that resonates with me in a significant way. Elijah and the Prophets of Baal, Psalms twenty-three, Psalms eighteen, the  story about man who was healed by Jesus after his friends cut a hole in someone’s roof and David and Abigail. I love these stories because they all hit me in a personal way for one reason or another.  From time-to-time I will receive fresh insight from one of those stories as an extra bonus. 

Such is the case with the story of David and Abigail.

It’s just a really good story (1st Samual 25). 

It takes place near the end of David’s decade (give or take) of running from Crazy-King-Saul. David and his men were making ends meet by protecting people and property during sheep-shearing season. There were evil men who would steal the sheep and harass the shearers as they were trying to work. It was customary in those days for property owners to compensate men who had protected their property with gifts of food and/or money. David and his men spent a good part of a season protecting the property belonging to a man named Nabal.  Nabal knew exactly what David and his men were doing and what was customary in these situations.  However, when the season was over, he flat refused to pay David and his men for their service. 

 Instead of doing what all decent people did, Nabal said this about David:

  “Who is David? And who is the son of Jesse? There are many servants today who are each breaking away from his master.  Shall I then take my bread and my water and my meat that I have slaughtered for my shearers, and give it to men [whose origin I do not know?”- 1st Samuel 25:10-11 NASB

When David heard what Nabal said about him, he lost his mind. Like totally. Nabal was a jerk. His words were dripping with rude insinuations about David, his motives for running away from Saul and even whether or not David’s Mother was a virtuous woman.  Nevertheless, by any rational standard David’s reaction to Nabal’s disrespect was over the top. He assembled a group of men and headed out to Nabal’s property to kill him. Disaster was averted by Nabal’s beautiful and shrewd wife Abigail. She intercepted David and his men with a generous gift and some wise counsel. Her quick-thinking and wise words prevented a tragedy that would have gotten David sideways with the Almighty. When Abigail told Nabal what she did, he basically died of rage. David and Abigail eventually reconnected, got married and lived happily ever after. 

It’s just a great story.

Here’s the thing though, David didn’t lose his mind and begin plotting murder because Nabal refused to pay him.  David went ballistic because he knew Nabal was simply repeating things a lot of people were saying about David. David got to hear with his own ears the rude, false and totally unjust things that were being said about him, and those words hurt.

Adding insult to injury Nabal was the biggest of deals. He just was. He was a wealthy landowner in a world where money and land was everything. Nabal was a wicked jerk-face. However, he was also the kind of guy people listened to. His opinion carried a lot of weight in the community. 

David found himself a casualty of slander, gossip and injustice.  

Anyone who’s been there knows what it feels like. There’s a soul-sucking agony that comes with knowing people are talking trash about you.  The whole messy muddle gets even uglier when the things being said are lies, exaggerations or things that have been pulled out of context. On top of all that, we all know that if things are being said people will believe it. No questions asked, no digging a little deeper, they just believe what they hear.

Sigh. 

It’s maddening. And, as with David, these scenarios can cause us to lose our minds and say or do things that might feel good in the moment but are sure to bring nothing but embarrassment and hurt. 

In this story Abigail did more than just keep David out of trouble. She gave David some advice that’s good for anyone being slandered. She told David in no uncertain terms that God had more for him than petty revenge. She reminded him that he was better than all that.  She encouraged David to lay aside his anger, put his reputation in God’s hands and trust Him with the future (Psalm 18 was David’s future). She reminded him it is all too easy to say something or do something in a moment of anger that could derail Him from God’s best and give the gossips something real to talk about. 

Abigail was right. Then and now.

I would add that God has a way of bringing truth to light (Hebrews 4:13). It may not happen as quickly as we would like, but it always happens. God is good and fair and just. With God justice delayed does not mean justice will be denied (Matthew 12:20, Luke 18:7)

What is a Spiritual “Loin” and how do we Gird Them?

Lisa M. Price1 Comment

Then you will know the truth, and the truth will set you free- John 8:32 NIV

I am not a Bible translator. 

However.

I do know enough about the Bible and Bible translation to know there are words and phrases frequently misunderstood by readers due to an awkward translation from the original language (Hebrew, Greek or Aramaic) into English.  Occasionally a translation issue arises because there is not a truly suitable English word to use in place of the Hebrew, Aramaic or Greek. Most of the time translation problems occur because the translator really is simply attempting to make a difficult concept easier to understand or less weird for the modern-day reader.

Ephesians 6:15 is (in my opinion) an example of this.  

In Ephesians 6:14 Christians are told to “put on the full armor of God”. The purpose of doing so is to prepare ourselves spiritually to stand our ground against the devil and the various schemes he plots against us. In verse fifteen most contemporary translations tell us the very first step in the “putting on” process is to have: 

 “the belt of truth buckled around your waist”.

Here’s the thing:

I do not like to Monday morning quarterback in a field I am not an expert in.  Mostly because it me makes look like a prideful, dumb jerk. Nonetheless. In my opinion using the word “waist” here lacks accuracy and has led to some confusion as to what the passage is actually saying.  

 In the original Greek, the NASB and a few older translations, it simply says:

“Gird up your loins with truth”. 

There are some really good reasons translators would choose waist over loins. Loins is a weird word. It just is. It makes people uncomfortable and it begs all sorts of questions, such as: 

Does the word loins mean what I think it means? 

How does truth protect my “southern regions”?? 

What does that have to do with any of this? 

For reals. 

The Greek word used in this passage is osphus and it means exactly what you think it means. It means loins, as in loins. As in our inner thighs or to put it more bluntly (and accurately) the part of our bodies that we use to make babies.  

So. 

Here’s some facts we know about our physical loins:

Our loins are the most personal, private place on our physical bodies.  No one (except a few weirdos) shows their loins to complete strangers. Having our loin area exposed is humiliating, so we keep them covered up. Normal people do not make a practice of discussing their loins with anyone. It’s just too weird and personal.  If our loin area gets punched or kicked, it hurts. Really bad. It does not matter if the person is male or female— a blow to the loin area devastates a person’s ability to function, sometimes for a good while. 

Here’s the thing. 

We all have spiritual, emotional and psychological places every bit as vulnerable and sensitive as our physical loins. We all have areas of shame and regret. We have all had experiences we don’t like to talk about—or even think about. When one of those places is exposed or hit in some way (triggered), it hurts like the dickens and we feel broken and shattered. 

These are the places Satan likes to hit the hardest (1st Peter 5:8). 

Satan kicks at our metaphorical loins by reminding us of all the stupid sinful things we have done or have had done to us. He tells us the trauma we have experienced left us damaged beyond repair.  He tells us our past or present sin has disqualified us from ever being used by God in a significant way. Satan tells we are defined by what do and if we don’t do enough or do things the “right” way we are failures. He tells us we are worthless and completely lacking in value. 

All Lies. Every. Single. One. Of. Them. Straight from the literal pit of hell. 

The first verse in this formative passage on spiritual warfare tells us that the very first thing we must do to defend ourselves against the enemy is to protect our most sensitive emotional places WITH THE TRUTH OF GOD’S WORD (John 8:32). Satan attacks us with lies about ourselves, about God and about other people and what those people think about us (John 8:44)

If we do not know the truth about who we are in Christ, where our true value comes from and what God really thinks of us those lies will shake our confidence in the goodness and forgiveness of God, and make us want to quit Christianity altogether. It will leave us unable to function spiritually. When that happens, we’re done for emotionally and rendered useless for the good works we were created for (Ephesians 4:10) 

The secret to protecting our spiritual loins is to know who God is and who we are in Christ. We have to know deep down in our knower that God is good and kind (Psalm 84:11, Isaiah 63:7, Acts 14:16-17) We have to realize that when we put our faith in Jesus and His resurrection we were at that moment made clean by Him (Hebrews 9:14, Acts 13:38, 1st Corinthians 6:9-11, Ephesians 1:4). We have to believe that when Jesus forgives us it’s a done deal. God does not go back and relitigate our sin every time we mess up or make a mistake. We have to accept that God’s love for us is real,  unchanging and endless (James 4:7)

We have to believe God is who He says He is.