Words: 823
Time to read: 4 minutes
One of the most effective devices that Satan has in his war against the Christian is bitterness. We begin to resent spiritual authority and magnify hurts, perceived or realized, that contribute to calcifying the heart towards the soft and tender voice of God.
This is not to say that real hurts don’t come from spiritual authority. As much as we’d hope that would not be true, it is. Even spiritual authorities are men. Perhaps cliché but accurate: the best of men are men at best. This is not an excuse for any type of abuse. Quite the opposite. The depths of man’s depravity and the lengths to which Satan will go to transform himself into an angel of light are staggering. We must be constantly aware, constantly on guard. As Paul framed it we cannot be ignorant of Satan’s devices.
Paul had written a scathing letter for the Corinthian church. It had been well received. Now, he seeks to exhort them as questions still remained over his authority as well as to encourage the church to accept the penitent sinner back into their fellowship. He admonishes forgiveness. If they forgive, then so too he forgives. The matter is seemingly forgotten, or at least resolved. At the end of his remarks on the case of immorality in the second chapter of II Corinthians, he makes the statement that Satan is looking to get an advantage of us. This would be achieved when a sharp rebuke was administered, but the ensuing drama did not resolve the sin but rather exacerbated its effect. Insult to injury. Salt on the wound. The Adversary would be able to inflict further, and potentially greater, damage in the heart and life of this local assembly if the sin was not dealt with properly. Later, in the seventh chapter, he speaks to godly sorrow and repentance. That was the end goal of what Paul had so pointedly addressed in his first letter. It was no caustic vituperation. His heart was repentance, not relinquishing him to the enemy. His heart was restoration, not merely castigation.
At the same time, Paul could not turn a blind eye to blatant sin. He had to deal with the problem. Many times we see the rebuke without fully understanding the disastrous consequences of sin. If sin has been dealt with biblically the correction process will not play itself out in front of the whole church. The issue is that many times in today’s world everyone knows everyone’s business in a way that was inconceivable even 15 years ago. For better or worse we are in a connected age and the sins of this age are demonstrably more extensive and repulsive due to its ease of access and ubiquity of technology. We must acknowledge this and deal with sin accordingly; however, it’s become taboo to address sin. Or you’re maligned as being mean-spirited. If the local church is to remain who she is to be for Christ’s honor and glory she cannot shy away from the responsibility of naming sin and leading in repentance.
The task then is to boldly call out sin starting with ours and dealing with it biblically. Though this is a difficult task it is simplified for us when we simply follow biblical doctrine. The purpose is always restoration and fellowship, both with the Lord and the local assembly. Failing to confront sin is an invitation for false doctrine and ruined lives, failing to restore is to open the door to Satan’s greatest device, bitterness. Both confrontation and restoration ought to demand a careful introspection that often is lacking in our modern culture. This introspection is a Spirit-led endeavor to rightfully demonstrate our condition and our desperate need for constant accounting with our Advocate, Jesus Christ. When this process is not thoughtfully considered pride and arrogance on the part of the spiritual leader are dangerous possibilities. The one confronted does not benefit from careful consideration or personal humility. Bitterness is waiting to spring up without care, hence Paul’s behest for forgiveness. Paul undoubtedly saw the havoc wreaked by bitterness time after time. He does not care to lose anyone else over such an important matter.
The device of bitterness is still very much in play today. Spiritual leaders who are calloused or insensitive to the delicacy of spiritual restoration can do perhaps greater damage in the aftermath. A heart is looking to get right. A sin has not only been identified but repented of. Let’s not allow our handling of the biblical process of restoration to be the stumbling block to unfettered bitterness toward the local church or godly, biblical authority in general. Men today who are capable and humble servants of Christ can tomorrow forget the immensity of their calling and become dominated by self-interest and hubris. Considering thyself. But considering the other as well. Let’s not open the door to any of Satan’s devices, much less his most astute and potent.