Years ago my friend went through some hard times and instead of the body of Christ rallying around her and supporting her, they made things worse. Her pastors made things worse. The other elders and ministers in the church made things worse. They made her think something was wrong with her, when in fact, something was wrong with them. Interestingly enough, when I went through hard times, these same ministers and pastors and elders, rallied around me and supported me. They gave me the encouragement and strength I needed to move forward in my calling. They undergirded me and provided a safe place for healing. Now, how could these same folks who were a stumbling block for one child of God, be the instrument of healing for another? Were these people delusional? Maybe they weren’t really believers? Maybe they were putting on a front for me and I was being deceived into thinking they were true believers? Well, believing the latter about them would be the easy way. It would be the “black and white” way. But life is not black and white, and neither are people, which includes God’s body.
I hear people often say they don’t believe in “the church” and that Christians are hypocrites. The fact of the matter is, some people are hypocrites, but even if that is the case, God is not a hypocrite. Just because the Church wounded you, I assure you that was not God’s intent. I assure you that a God of love would never do anything to cause you harm. When choosing God, we instantly receive salvation and instantly become His Bride, but we do not instantly become perfect. No, not by any means. There is a PROCESS of REFINEMENT that God has called us to and yet we must partner with Him in going through that process. We have a choice to receive His salvation and we have another choice to receive His sanctification.
I was on the phone the other day with a friend who works in ministry. She was so hurt by how this Christian organization was treating God’s people. The racism and cruelty were disheartening. “How can God’s people be this way?!” She asked in complete shock and disbelief. “Because they are still people”, I responded. If we do not yield to Holy Spirit to refine us, and remove our junk, we will be operating out of self. We will be walking in disillusionment and fulfilling the agenda of the evil one, all the while thinking that we are manifesting God’s kingdom. We may have good intentions in our hearts, but our hearts are deceitfully wicked. Only Yeshua knows the thoughts and intents of men’s hearts. Allow Him to test your heart and reveal those things that are hindering you from being all that He has called you to be. The process may be painful, but that pain is far less in comparison to the pain you will feel if you cleave to those things instead of to Christ.
SHALOM
