The Devil’s window

It is often quoted among Christian believers that our lives are paralleled by a spiritual universe that is warring over the lives of the Saints and the salvation of mankind. We read that our battle is not against flesh and blood, but against the rulers and principalities of darkness. Conservative denominations consider the battle to be more metaphorical and not imminent. The Holy Spirit is more an impersonal force than a weapon. Thankfully, this is not the case. If the Saints are to do diligence and be vigilant, they must hearken to the watchmen who dwell along the outer wall. In the sexual arena, a number of large gaps have appeared in the fortress wall, leaving us and our children vulnerable to attack. Some gaps are smaller and hidden from the pilgrim, while one is a type of stitch in time; a pivotal moment of permanence that sets the stage for a lifetime. In the sexual arena, the length of time between sexual awakening and the consummation of marriage is the Devil’s window.

If there is a formative time in the life of a Christian, it is childhood and early youth. The Devil knows his enemy and strikes with strategy and precision. By striking at the core of our humanity, our sexuality, He affects our virility that our offspring will not strike His head. His lethal medicine is preventative and self-preserving, and he wishes to give us the largest dose. He does so by widening the channel of time, with worldly rationality, fear, Christian psychology, and the illusion of freedom.

The Devil knows that a select few have a spiritual gift of Celibacy, and He understands it not. He cannot see the ways of God to preserve marriage through this gift, which is self-sacrificing and humbling. He cannot see that the gift holds exponential power to preserve marriages. He understands that if few have this gift, then keeping the majority out of healthy marriages is the key to sure defeat, hopelessness, doubt, shame and self-loathing. He tirelessly creates reasons and methods to this end, securing year after year to shoot His flaming darts into the hearts of our children.

In one of the wealthiest cultures in the history of mankind, it seems strange that a man cannot marry because of financial reasons. Yet this is a spiritual blindness and a lie, under the guise of wisdom and false responsibility. Should we place material things over personal righteousness? What happened to resisting temptations to the point of spilling blood? We will not even spill our purses! The idea that a man cannot afford to marry is a witness to our value of independence and lack of community. We must bear each others burdens. If we are to suggest a bride-price, then let us suggest a biblical financial inheritance.

Fear of divorce is a terrible motivator for spiritual decision-making, and shows a lack of preparation. It sets the tone for uncertainty and creates a spiritual environment of doubt. This is not a fertile place for a young person. The idea that younger couples will more likely divorce might be true in our Godless culture, but consider that the older one gets, the closer to death they are. Divorces of marriages after the age of 70 are almost nil! It was not even 50 years ago that teenage marriage was very common, and couples celebrated 50 years of marriage. Indeed, the ordinance of marriage has not failed us, we have failed it. We have placed it under our priorities of education and financial prosperity, and we are reaping what we have sown. Knowledge puffs up, but love builds up. Mammon is a terrible master.

The Church’s adoption of child development models, published by well-know psychologists, have trumped clear instructions in the bible. There are specific verses for child-rearing, but for some reason, we trust the carnal mind to advise us. Train your children in the way they should go, and when they are old they will not depart from it. It is encouraging to see better studies on brain neuroplasticity, indicating that neuropathways in children and youth are more plastic during that time, and behaviors in adulthood will follow the more well worn path. The focus in biblical child-rearing is not creating new opinions and ideas, but a focus on building godly habits and character. Practise makes permanent. It’s the word of God that is perfect.

The freedom that independence brings is one of illusion. We cannot serve two masters. If we love our freedom, we will hate God’s. The idea that we must “find ourselves” outside of God’s holy ordinances is a serious theological error. Freedom can only be found in Christ, and the holy ordinances are a means and revelation of Christ to us. The idea that a Christian can be sexually independent, within and without the ordinance of marriage, can only only find a home in the carnal mind. Let us be renewed in our minds.

The Devil knows his time is short. In the sexual battleground, His strategy is to widen the window of time for attack. If he can do so, he can focus his ammunition upon the vulnerability of unmarried youth, which is left mostly unguarded by biblical wisdom, teaching and instruction. By feeding he carnal mind, the devil creates a window of opportunity, a gantlet of temptation, that precious few will escape unscathed. The Holy Spirit will not protect us or our children when we fail to walk in biblical wisdom, reject the authority of scripture, and use it to make our lifestyles more convenient. If we turn a blind eye to the reality of the current state of our sexuality, the darkness will overwhelm us. Close the window, and stand guard!

Independence leads to spiritual death

 

The value of independence has been reinforced to such a degree in our culture, that it has pervaded our church culture, to be adopted as a core value. Some Christians have taken the position that valuing independence is not wrong and there are even scriptures to support it. Are they looking through the lens of independence to find scriptural support, or are they reading the scriptures first and arriving at conclusions later? We must do diligence in examining this issue because it affects every aspect of our spiritual lives. The issue of valuing independence is a critical one because it is an issue of spiritual life and death.

The freedom of independence seems to offer seems a strong argument for the support of the value of independence in the church. We read that it is for freedom that Christ has set us free. Upon reading this we must ask ourselves what Christ has set us free from. It is the bondage of sin and death. We once were a slave to sin. The love of money, lust, power, and worldly pleasures enslaved us. In the context of slavery in the bible, freedom from slavery to the world can only be found in slavery to Christ. We cannot serve to masters. Some may object by quoting scriptures that illustrate our relationship with God as son-ship. Even son-ship is not one of independence, nor is friendship with God. “If you love me”, says Christ, “you will obey my commands”. It does not matter which analogy is used, any and all analogies in the bible refer to our relationship with God as one of submission and service, slavery and servanthood. The freedom that independence brings is one of illusion. Freedom from sin and death can only be found in (joined, married to, unified with, under the authority of) Christ.

The analogy of the body of Christ given to us by Paul is both deep and meaningful. It is the perfect picture of the Church, Christ being the head. Paul says that we are all members of the body and fulfill an important role that allows for the body to be healthy and productive. One might suggest that this is a reference to the value of independence as we are referred to as independent parts. That is a clear theological error. We are not referred to as independent parts, but individual parts that are completely dependent on each other. The eye cannot say to the hand: I don’t need you! In the human body, to separate any part not only makes the part and the body less productive, the severed member will surely die. Some might suggest that this is taking Paul’s analogy too far. Is there any other scripture to suggest this?

Unfortunately, Christ’s illustration leaves little room for diverse interpretations. The Vine is also a living organism. The branches produce fruit. Christ instructs us to remain in Him that we will bear much fruit. Using this analogy, Christ says that if we do not take nutrients from the Vine, we will not bear fruit. Branches that do not bear fruit are only good to be gathered and “thrown into the fire”. This is a negative association for the branches that do not remain in the Vine, thus bearing no fruit. This is a reference to a severing and eminent spiritual death. To be independent of the Vine will always result in fruitlessness, and eventually death.

The value of independence in our spiritual and earthly lives ought to be examined carefully from the bible. We should not be careless in our words or actions. We ought not to approach our lives to casually, because what we believe affects how we act, and both have eternal consequences. We should neither think or act independently of the Head, or any members of the body. To be independent from the Body of Christ is to be dying a slow spiritual death.