Speaking the Truth with Love - Ruth L. Snyder

This month we've been focusing on writing about controversial or taboo subjects. When I read the prompt, this verse came to mind:

"Brothers and sisters, if someone is caught in a sin, you who live by the Spirit should restore that person gently. But watch yourselves, or you also may be tempted." Galatians 6:1 (NIV)

It concerns me that there are topics that seem to be taboo in churches. Somehow it's fair game to denounce homosexuality (which we should), but we rarely quote verses about gluttony and the fact that it's a sin to eat too much. We complacently stuff our mouths while condemning those caught in the sex trade. The way I read my Bible, sin is sin. Sermons are preached on obedience to parents, and how to get to heaven, but when was the last time you heard a pastor preach about child abuse or hell? (Would these issues exist if we were all living by the morals laid out in Scripture?) Recently I was told that J.P. Yohannan was banned from a Christian event. The reason? Because he was teaching false doctrine? No. Rather, it was because people in North America, at a missions event of all places, don't want to hear the truth about selfishness and gluttony. It makes us feel uncomfortable. Are we really prepared to stand idly by while millions of people die without Christ? Or are we going to ignore that topic too, because it makes us feel uneasy?

Then there's the whole issue of which version of the Bible is most accurate. Bible translation takes skill and training, sensitivity to culture, and obedience to the Holy Spirit. Anyone who speaks more than one language knows there are certain phrases which just don't translate accurately, no matter how hard you try. It makes me sad that followers of Jesus Christ allow this issue to divide families and churches. I know people who were convicted of their sin and found salvation by reading The Living Bible, which is actually a paraphrase not a translation. Are we going to limit God with our rules?

Jon Mohr sums it up well in his song, Let the Walls Come Down. He reminds us that although we are in a spiritual battle, we are allowing walls made of tradition, culture, and pride to divide the body of Christ. While we're busy defending our "walls", others are dying without Christ. Listen carefully to the words.

Is there a wall you need to knock down? Ask God for wisdom, strength, and boldness to speak the truth in love.

For more information about Ruth and her writing, visit http://ruthlsnyder.com

All throughout the spirit realm a fearsome battle rages
The fates of men and nations hang suspended in the fray
Walls designed by satan in the twilight of the ages
Now stand as great divisions all across the world today
Walls not born of government nor strife amid the nations
But walls within our churches and between denominations
Stones of dry tradition carved in fear and laid in pride
Become a dismal prison to those withering inside
Chorus:
Let the walls come down
Let the walls come down
Let the walls that divide us
And hide us come down
If in Christ we agree
Let us seek unity
Let the walls
Let the walls come down
Let the walls
Let the walls come down
The body weak and powerless, crippled by division
The victim of a tragic and most cruel civil war
Brother fighting brother over culture and tradition
While countless lost and dying lie as casualties of war
It’s time to end the foolishness of warring with each other
And kneel in true repentance that our union be restored
May we then as brothers rally round the cross of Jesus
And carry on with diligence the mission of our Lord
Chorus
Oh children of God
Oh soon to be bride
Let us humble ourselves
And crucify pride
Throw off the flesh
And its pious facade
And unite in the name of God Chorus
- See more at: http://www.stevegreenministries.org/product/let-the-walls-come-down/#sthash.hjTGiHCA.dpuf

All throughout the spirit realm a fearsome battle rages
The fates of men and nations hang suspended in the fray
Walls designed by satan in the twilight of the ages
Now stand as great divisions all across the world today
Walls not born of government nor strife amid the nations
But walls within our churches and between denominations
Stones of dry tradition carved in fear and laid in pride
Become a dismal prison to those withering inside
Chorus:
Let the walls come down
Let the walls come down
Let the walls that divide us
And hide us come down
If in Christ we agree
Let us seek unity
Let the walls
Let the walls come down
Let the walls
Let the walls come down
The body weak and powerless, crippled by division
The victim of a tragic and most cruel civil war
Brother fighting brother over culture and tradition
While countless lost and dying lie as casualties of war
It’s time to end the foolishness of warring with each other
And kneel in true repentance that our union be restored
May we then as brothers rally round the cross of Jesus
And carry on with diligence the mission of our Lord
Chorus
Oh children of God
Oh soon to be bride
Let us humble ourselves
And crucify pride
Throw off the flesh
And its pious facade
And unite in the name of God Chorus
- See more at: http://www.stevegreenministries.org/product/let-the-walls-come-down/#sthash.hjTGiHCA.dpuf

Why Be Ashamed Of Having Been In A Cult? - Bruce Atchison

One topic that shouldn't be taboo in churches is having been in a cult. Unfortunately, most Christians seem reluctant to even mention the word. This is tragic since what ex-cult victims need most is understanding.

Having done extensive research for my How I Was Razed book, I learned that victims feel frightened and helpless when they leave their toxic church or aberrant group. During their years in the cult, it became their world. Leaders taught them not to speak to outsiders or have anything to do with them. Consequently all the members of the group knew only each other.

Ex-cult members also fear condemnation by "normal" people. Like anybody who was swindled by con artists, these people feel embarrassed to admit that they were taken in. As a result, they keep quiet and suffer in silence. Some even rejoin the group that had captivated them just for the companionship.

This sad state of affairs must be changed. Having been granted forgiveness by Christ, we must be gentle and caring when it comes to former cult members. These people have been through experiences that we might never have had. The last thing such individuals need is somebody pontificating about what a terrible mistake they made.

Though I wasn't in one of those Jim Jones-style cults, I know what it's like to be misled and not know it. Being young in the faith, and having nobody to disciple me, I know how easily being seduced by cultic missionaries is. What people need when they come out of a bad church is unconditional love and affirmation that they're not bad people because they genuinely believed lies.

It was for ex-cult members and Christians who care about the truth that I wrote How I Was Razed. I wanted to show, not tell, how deceived I was and how wondrously the heavenly father led me to the truth. My testimony of his providential guidance is available in e-book and paperback through Amazon, Barnes & Noble, and Virtual Bookworm Publishers.


Bruce Atchison is a legally-blind freelance writer as well as the author of How I Was Razed, Deliverance from Jericho, and When a Man Loves a Rabbit. He lives in a small Alberta hamlet with his house rabbit, Deborah.

Twitter handle: @ve6xtc