Rev. David Holwick F
First Baptist Church
Ledgewood, New Jersey
February 11, 2018
1 Thessalonians 4:3-7
OUR WEINSTEIN PROBLEM
I. Confronting a monster.
A. The first public accuser brought the gospel into the discussion.
Rachael Denhollander was the first young gymnast to
publicly report that Olympic doctor Larry Nassar
had molested her when she was 15.
There had been many others.
Some stayed silent and never reported him.
Some were silenced with financial settlements.
Others reported him and patiently waited while authorities
did nothing.
Rachael noted that the average pedophile is reported by
seven people before anyone takes action.
But after the Harvey Weinstein uproar, scores of young
women went public against the doctor.
He was tried, convicted, and sentenced to over 150 years in
prison.
Rachael was the star witness at the sentencing hearing for
Dr. Nassar.
She is an Evangelical Christian and got much attention for
highlighting the gospel when she said to the doctor:
"I pray you experience the soul-crushing weight of guilt
so you may someday experience true repentance and true
forgiveness from God, which you need far more than
forgiveness from me - though I extend that to you
as well."
[1]
B. It is as old as the Bible.
1) Power imbalance originated in the fall of Adam and Eve. Gen 3
a) Eve's curse includes the line, "Your desire will be for
your husband, and he will rule over you."
b) God created all of us with biological urges and desires,
which we promptly use against one another.
2) Men who use their power and prestige to take advantage of
women are frequent in the Scripture.
a) Judah unknowingly used his daughter-in-law Tamar as a
prostitute, then sentenced her to death by stoning
when it became evident she was pregnant.
She then presented proof that HE was the father.
He did admit his guilt, but he did not sentence himself
to the death he had threatened her with. Gen 38
b) David's son Amnon raped his half-sister Tamar. 2 Sam 13
1> He was obsessed with having her, then despised
her afterwards.
2> She shut herself off from the world, and her
brother took bloody revenge.
c) King David used his power to seduce Bathsheba. 2 Sam 11
3) One of the few Biblical men to stay pure is Jesus.
a) And some of his observers even wondered about him.
b) Dicey women were getting too close to Jesus, in their
opinion, and Jesus did not discourage them.
C. Is purity possible?
1) The Bible says it is.
a) Many passages in the Bible, in both the Old and New
Testaments, promote a high sexual ethic.
b) The Bible claims we can control our bodies and treat
each other with absolute respect.
2) Many doubt this is possible.
a) If the pillars of the Old Testament couldn't keep their
pants on, how can we expect to do better?
b) Yet even those with a secular free-love attitude deplore
how many men have behaving so badly lately.
3) I think the church can make a difference.
a) Maybe we won't, but we can.
b) What kind of a difference will YOU make?
II. How Christians should act in sexual matters.
A. Our highest goal should be sanctity, reflecting God in all.
1) Sex is not unsanctified, but the misuse of it is.
2) Pure sex is a reflection of the sacrificial love God gives.
B. Biblically, sex is limited to your spouse. 1 Th 4:3
1) Outside of marriage, sex can be very dangerous.
2) Even within marriage, it can become a weapon to hurt others.
3) Use sex to build up your marriage and as a tool to discover
a deeper intimacy in body and soul with the one you love.
C. If you are involved in sexual sin, seek to stop it.
1) Learn to control your body. 1 Th 4:4
a) Don't let sex and temptation overwhelm you.
b) Stay out of situations where you know you will be
tempted.
c) Vice President Pence was wise to follow the "Billy
Graham Rule" in not meeting alone with women.
2) Unbridled lust moves you away from God.
a) It may be one reason so many in our society have
drifted away from Christianity.
b) The worldly viewpoint sees sex as the ultimate
fulfillment.
Presbyterian pastor Ligon Duncan was flipping channels on his
TV one day and came upon the very conservative Roman
Catholic television channel "The Eternal Word Network."
That's the network that has shows by super-Catholics like
Mother Angelica.
For this show there was a priest doing a lecture to Catholic
students at a large university in the Midwest.
He was addressing the issue of sexual purity, and he was talking
about a young Catholic couple who came to him on one occasion.
They were living together and wanted to justify it.
They said to him, "Father, surely there couldn't be anything
wrong with something so beautiful as this.
Our love for one another overflows into our physical relations
with one another."
And he said to them, as he told the audience, "Of course there's
absolutely nothing wrong with your fornication - if you're a
pagan."
He said in effect, "That's how pagans act, that's not how
Christians act."
#63444
D. Godly sexuality respects other people. 1 Th 4:6
1) When we abuse sex, we not only hurt ourselves and the other
person, we hurt other people who are connected to them.
2) There can be eternal consequences if we abuse sex's power.
III. Dealing with sexual sin.
A. Exposure can be good.
1) A consistent theme in the Bible is that dark deeds need
to be brought into the light.
a) Ephesians 5:11 says, "Having nothing to do with the
fruitless deeds of darkness, but rather expose them."
b) Few things are darker or more dangerous than sexual
sin, because it not only affects our bodies, but
our souls.
2) The current exposure on abusers has had a powerful effect.
a) Powerful men will now have second thoughts about using
women for their own ends.
b) Women, too - a California state assemblywoman has been
accused of groping men while under the influence of
alcohol.
3) We should not overreact, so we are afraid to interact with
one another, or give a compliment.
a) But neither should we get back to sweeping abuse under
a carpet.
B. This is much easier to confront outsiders.
1) Rachael Denhollander noticed that Christians have enjoyed
castigating Harvey Weinstein and the Hollywood crowd
for their hypocrisy in the area of abuse.
2) But the church has plenty of hypocrisy of our own.
a) Spirituality and power are excellent levers to abuse
others, yet we don't like to confront those like us.
b) Denhollander had to leave her church when she criticized
them for reinstating a Christian leader who had
covered up the abuse of others for three decades.
c) I myself have seen Christians resist calling out others
because they don't want to cause unpleasantness.
d) But sin is not just on the outside - it is within the
church in a big way.
1> How many young church women have been hit on by
married church men?
2> My wife has.
IV. It takes more than forgiveness.
A. Christians are prone to glibness with abuse and sexual sin.
1) If someone acknowledges their sin and claims to repent,
that is enough for us.
2) Even the Amish are weak at this.
Back in 2004, 20-year-old Mary Byler did something
unthinkable - she brought charges against her three
brothers in the local courthouse.
They had abused her repeatedly for years.
Mary had told the Amish leaders, and they had punished
the brothers with six weeks of "shunning."
The brothers said they had repented -- but the abuse
continued.
In court, the brothers each confessed to the charges.
Most were given several years in prison.
But the judge was amazed at the size of the crowd who came
to support, and cry for, the oldest offender.
The judge told the courtroom,
"How many of you have ever cried for Mary Byler?
... You may have prayed for her, I don't doubt you have,
but how many of you cried for her?
For the loss of her childhood."
Mary had to leave the Amish community because many blamed
her for being unforgiving to her brothers.
This is a common experience of abuse victims.
#66011
3) Christian news articles on Rachael Denhollander all
mentioned her forgiveness of Dr. Nassar.
a) Almost none mentioned her call for him to repent.
B. Justice is just as important as forgiveness.
1) Those who harm others should be punished.
a) For those who abuse and rape, prison is appropriate.
b) For those who take advantage of underlings at work,
demotion or the loss of their job may be required.
2) Many abusers are adept at manipulating our feelings and
intentions so they can get themselves off the hook.
a) Politicians are adept at this.
1> Judge Roy Moore was an accused abuser.
2> He lost his election, but barely.
3> It can be argued he has never been convicted.
4> However, many Christians thought he was guilty and
still voted for him because they liked his views.
b) Judge abusers on their actions, not their politics or
theology.
V. Christians should take the lead.
A. We should treat one another appropriately and with respect.
1) Fraternity-style behavior should be rejected.
a) Don't use crude jokes and language about sex, and
rebuke those who do.
2) Don't refer to women sexually, like an object.
a) As Paul advised young Timothy in 1 Timothy 5:1-2:
"Treat ... older women as mothers, and younger women
as sisters, with absolute purity."
b) Train your sons to treat women with respect & honor.
c) Warn them about the deadening influence of pornography,
which leads many to prefer fantasy over reality.
B. Be aware of the power and danger of sexuality.
1) Teach your daughters to recognize dangerous situations.
a) Learn ways to fend off aggressive or inappropriate men.
b) Obvious advice - don't walk alone at night in bad areas.
c) Abuse often begins subtly.
1> Grooming of both the victim and their loved ones.
2) Even within the church we should not be naive.
a) Our church has a policy for the protection of children.
1> Policies can only go so far.
2> Everyone should be vigilant.
b) Be honest with yourself, as well.
1> Is your thought-life leading you astray?
2> Are you flirting in ways that could burn you?
C. Go from awkward to salvation.
Brian Bowman was starting a church in a suburb of Phoenix,
Arizona.
He used every opportunity he could to share the gospel.
Even sensitive topics were not out of bounds.
One young man who visited his church was Wes Sanders.
With only 50 attenders, Bowman was glad to see him.
He set up an appointment to meet Wes and his girlfriend Tiffany.
Over coffee, Bowman realized Wes and Tiffany were unmarried
but living together.
As he shared the gospel with them, Wes told Bowman, "I'm a
Christian. I grew up in church."
Then Bowman asked Tiffany if she had any questions.
She replied, "I've never been to church before, but from what
I understand, Wes thinks I'm going to hell.
And you think I'm going to hell.
My question is, if you think I'm going to hell and Wes thinks
I'm going to hell, how come Wes and I are sleeping together?"
Bowman let an awkward silence settle in before turning to Wes
and saying, "Wes, would you like to answer that question?"
Out of that awkward moment over coffee, Tiffany later accepted
Christ and was baptized.
She and Wes stopped living together until they could marry --
the first wedding Bowman conducted in their new building.
The couple are now serving as leaders of a new ministry.
#65280
My topic today is awkward on many levels.
But it is important stuff.
Honor God with your body and your soul will really grow.
Love our God by living the way he designed you to live.
=========================================================================
SOURCES FOR ILLUSTRATIONS USED IN THIS SERMON:
[1] “Key witness in Michigan State abuse scandal alleges double standard
in evangelical church,” by Bob Allen, February 1, 2018; <link>.
Also see “My Larry Nassar Testimony Went Viral. But There’s More
to the Gospel Than Forgiveness,” Rachael Denhollander interview
with Morgan Lee, January 31, 2018; <link>.
#63444 “Fornication Is Fine - If You're A Pagan,” by Dr. Ligon Duncan III,
Kerux Sermon #63148, "The Adultery Test,” February 14, 2007.
#65280 “Awkward Conversations Can Lead To Salvation,” by Mark Kelly,
Baptist Press, August 19, 2016; <http://www.baptistpress.org>.
#66011 “Sexual Abuse In The Amish Community,” ABC News; August 29, 2006
(“20/20” first aired this story on December 10, 2004); <link>.
These and 35,000 others are part of the Kerux database that can be
downloaded, absolutely free, at http://www.holwick.com/database.html
=========================================================================
Copyright © 2024 by Rev. David Holwick
Created with the Freeware Edition of HelpNDoc: Easily create Web Help sites