The Nature of Degeneration

The Nature of Degeneration
by Oswald Chambers “My Utmost for His Highest”

Just as through one man sin entered the world, and death through sin,
and thus death spread to all men, because all sinned . . . —Romans 5:12

The Bible does not say that God punished the human race for one man’s sin, but that the nature of sin, namely, my claim to my right to myself, entered into the human race through one man. But it also says that another Man took upon Himself the sin of the human race and put it away— an infinitely more profound revelation (see Hebrews 9:26 ). The nature of sin is not immorality and wrongdoing, but the nature of self-realization which leads us to say, “I am my own god.” This nature may exhibit itself in proper morality or in improper immorality, but it always has a common basis— my claim to my right to myself. When our Lord faced either people with all the forces of evil in them, or people who were clean-living, moral, and upright, He paid no attention to the moral degradation of one, nor any attention to the moral attainment of the other. He looked at something we do not see, namely, the nature of man (see John 2:25).

Sin is something I am born with and cannot touch— only God touches sin through redemption. It is through the Cross of Christ that God redeemed the entire human race from the possibility of damnation through the heredity of sin. God nowhere holds a person responsible for having the heredity of sin, and does not condemn anyone because of it. Condemnation comes when I realize that Jesus Christ came to deliver me from this heredity of sin, and yet I refuse to let Him do so. From that moment I begin to get the seal of damnation. “This is the condemnation [and the critical moment], that the light has come into the world, and men loved darkness rather than light . . . ” (John 3:19).

The Place of Ministry

by Oswald Chambers “My Utmost for His Highest”
He said to them, ’This kind [of unclean spirit] can come out by nothing but prayer and fasting’
—Mark 9:29

His disciples asked Him privately, ’Why could we not cast it out?’ ” ( Mark 9:28 ). The answer lies in a personal relationship with Jesus Christ. “This kind can come out by nothing but” concentrating on Him, and then doubling and redoubling that concentration on Him. We can remain powerless forever, as the disciples were in this situation, by trying to do God’s work without concentrating on His power, and by following instead the ideas that we draw from our own nature. We actually slander and dishonor God by our very eagerness to serve Him without knowing Him.

When you are brought face to face with a difficult situation and nothing happens externally, you can still know that freedom and release will be given because of your continued concentration on Jesus Christ. Your duty in service and ministry is to see that there is nothing between Jesus and yourself. Is there anything between you and Jesus even now? If there is, you must get through it, not by ignoring it as an irritation, or by going up and over it, but by facing it and getting through it into the presence of Jesus Christ. Then that very problem itself, and all that you have been through in connection with it, will glorify Jesus Christ in a way that you will never know until you see Him face to face.

We must be able to “mount up with wings like eagles” ( Isaiah 40:31 ), but we must also know how to come down. The power of the saint lies in the coming down and in the living that is done in the valley. Paul said, “I can do all things through Christ who strengthens me” ( Philippians 4:13 ) and what he was referring to were mostly humiliating things. And yet it is in our power to refuse to be humiliated and to say, “No, thank you, I much prefer to be on the mountaintop with God.” Can I face things as they actually are in the light of the reality of Jesus Christ, or do things as they really are destroy my faith in Him, and put me into a panic?

The Assigning of the Call

by Oswald Chambers “My Utmost for His Highest”

I now rejoice in my sufferings for you,
and fill up in my flesh what is lacking in the afflictions of Christ,
for the sake of His body,
which is the church . . .
Colossians 1:24

We take our own spiritual consecration and try to make it into a call of God, but when we get right with Him He brushes all this aside. Then He gives us a tremendous, riveting pain to fasten our attention on something that we never even dreamed could be His call for us. And for one radiant, flashing moment we see His purpose, and we say, “Here am I! Send me” ( Isaiah 6:8 ).

This call has nothing to do with personal sanctification, but with being made broken bread and poured-out wine. Yet God can never make us into wine if we object to the fingers He chooses to use to crush us. We say, “If God would only use His own fingers, and make me broken bread and poured-out wine in a special way, then I wouldn’t object!” But when He uses someone we dislike, or some set of circumstances to which we said we would never submit, to crush us, then we object. Yet we must never try to choose the place of our own martyrdom. If we are ever going to be made into wine, we will have to be crushed— you cannot drink grapes. Grapes become wine only when they have been squeezed.

I wonder what finger and thumb God has been using to squeeze you? Have you been as hard as a marble and escaped? If you are not ripe yet, and if God had squeezed you anyway, the wine produced would have been remarkably bitter. To be a holy person means that the elements of our natural life experience the very presence of God as they are providentially broken in His service. We have to be placed into God and brought into agreement with Him before we can be broken bread in His hands. Stay right with God and let Him do as He likes, and you will find that He is producing the kind of bread and wine that will benefit His other children.

Mary Magdalene and Jesus: Reversing the Fall

from

Befriending the Beloved Disciple: A Jewish Reading of the Gospel of John

By Adele Reinhartz

“The garden setting in which Jesus and Mary are alone together calls to mind other Biblical gardens, in particular the primordial Garden of Eden in Gen 2-3 and the garden that symbolizes the female lover in Song of Songs. A Genesis connection is perceived by many scholars. Sandra Sneiders points out that God walks around in the Garden of Eden (Gen 2:15-17; 3:8 ) just as the risen Jesus walks about the garden that holds his tomb. Nicholas Wyatt argues from Biblical and post-biblical literature that the Garden of Eden was profoundly associated with royal motifs. He suggests that from a Christian perspective the cross is the tree of life from which the first man had been driven away. After his death Jesus becomes the new gardener of Eden reversing the decree of banishment that had been passed on the first Adam. The allusion to Eden in John 20 also recalls the creation symbolism and imagery of the Johannine prologue. (1:1-18 )

Does reading Jesus as the new Adam transform Mary into the new Eve? The passage does not portray her using the familiar Genesis images. She does not evoke the woman who was made from Adam’s body, converses with the serpent, eats the forbidden fruit, offers it to Adam, and is banished with him from the garden. Nevertheless, some echoes of Genesis may be heard. Jesus calls her “woman”, just as the first man called his mate “woman” in Gen 2:23. Jesus then called her by name, just as Adam called the first woman by name (Gen 3:20). Jesus directive that Mary not cleave to him challenges the physical basis of the male-female relationship described in Genesis 2:24, according to which a man leaves his father and mother and clings to his wife and they become one flesh. This echo suggests a contrast between the sexual relationship that developed between the first man and woman and the relationship of devotion between Jesus and Mary”

Feeling God

The first commandment- according to Jesus- is to LOVE the Lord your GOD.
NOT just with the mind
but with the heart, soul, strength

HEARTlessness is a problem which I think is rampant in the church
Romans 1:31
(NIV)they are senseless, faithless, heartless, ruthless.
(KJV)Without understanding, covenantbreakers, without natural affection, implacable, unmerciful:

Matt 24:12Because of the increase of wickedness,

the love of most will grow cold,

“The heart is deceitful…”
logismos is deceitful too

2 Cor 10:4-5 (For the weapons of our warfare [are] not carnal, but mighty through God to the pulling down of strong holds) Casting down logismos, and every high thing that exalteth itself against the knowledge of God, and bringing into captivity every thought to the obedience of Christ;

“sets itself up against the knowledge of God“
KNOWing God is not just about the mind
any more than biblical KNOWing my husband in marriage is merely about a mental “connection”
“adam KNEW his wife Eve and she conceived”
That is why I compared CP with sex
I make an intimate deep connection EMOTIONALLY with God
I FEEL God
and I feel sorry for those who don’t. I wish everyone could FEEL God.
I believe this is available to ALL the saints, but logismos gets in the way:

Eph 3:16That he would grant you, according to the riches of his glory, to be strengthened with might by his Spirit in the inner man; 17That Christ may dwell in your hearts by faith; that ye, being rooted and grounded in love,
18May be able to comprehend with all saints what is the breadth, and length, and depth, and height;
19And to know the love of Christ,
which passeth knowledge,
that ye might be filled with all the fulness of God.
20Now unto him that is able to do exceeding abundantly above all that we ask or think, according to the power that worketh in us, 21Unto him be glory in the church by Christ Jesus throughout all ages, world without end. Amen.

in Mary Magdelene’s sandals…

Mary Magdalene has
an intensely intimate encounter
with the Risen Lord
in the Garden.
HE calls her “woman”.
She thinks he is “the gardener”
HE calls her “Mary” and she KNOWS…

Whoosh, I suddenly realized that the moment harks back to the first Adam and the first woman in the Garden.
Adam was assigned to be the KEEPER of the garden
He failed
Jesus is the KEEPER who fulfills the assignment flawlessly.

Biblically, I don not consider accidental that the term “KEEPER” is used of man, woman, God, Jesus in the Garden…

Adam’s assignment:
Gen 2:15 - 08104 shamar {shaw-mar’}
AV – keep 283, observe 46, heed 35, keeper 28, preserve 21, beware 9,
mark 8, watchman 8, wait 7, watch 7, regard 5, save 2,

~~~~~~~

of a wife:
Titus 2:5- “keeper at home”
3626 oikouros from 3624 and ouros (a guard, be “ware”)

~~~~~~~

of God:
1 Peter 1:5 – kept/guarded/protected
5432 phroureo {froo-reh’-o} AV – keep
from a compound of 4253 and 3708 horao {hor-ah’-o}

~~~~~~~

Mary Magdalene thinks of Jesus is:
John 20:15- “a keeper of the garden”
2780 kepouros {kay-poo-ros’}
from 2779 and ouros (a warden);; n m

I identify with walking in Mary Magdelene’s sandals.
I can walk in the Garden with JESUS, the second Adam, the KEEPER who will not fail.
I can partake of intimacy with my risen Lord in the garden.
I can feel the intense gratitude for His mercy,
the intense security of His perfect love.
I can wash His feet with my tears and wipe them with my hair,
I can pour out my inheritance, my alabaster box of precious ointment… upon my Lord.
HE is worthy
HE is good

I LOVE YOU, LORD!

John 20:11 but Mary stood outside the tomb crying. As she wept, she bent over to look into the tomb 12and saw two angels in white, seated where Jesus’ body had been, one at the head and the other at the foot.

13They asked her, “Woman, why are you crying?”

“They have taken my Lord away,” she said, “and I don’t know where they have put him.” 14At this, she turned around and saw Jesus standing there, but she did not realize that it was Jesus.

15“Woman,” he said, “why are you crying? Who is it you are looking for?”
Thinking he was the gardener, she said, “Sir, if you have carried him away, tell me where you have put him, and I will get him.”

16Jesus said to her, “Mary.”
She turned toward him and cried out in Aramaic, “Rabboni!” (which means Teacher).

17Jesus said, “Do not hold on to me, for I have not yet returned to the Father. Go instead to my brothers and tell them,

“I labor in birth until Christ be formed in you“

In Christian marriage as God intends, wouldn’t a wife be respected as a “co-heir”, valued and appreciated as “bone of my bone” and “help MEET”… as Adam must have felt toward Eve prior to the Fall (see link)?

“I labor in birth until Christ be formed in you“- Paul to the Galatians

I had assumed that “the childbirth” in 1 Tim 2:15- ““she shall be saved through the child-bearing” (YLT) referred to Christ being formed in herself and the “restoration” is of garden intimacy with the LORD. But Paul speaks of himself laboring in birth on behalf of another! Suppose the passage refers to her travail/pain in a difficult marriage until Christ is formed in her husband? … whereupon they can experience garden of Eden intimacy with each other?

The latter possibility “fits” with the conditionality of the fulfllment of 1 Tim 2:15 upon the actions of “they“…
“she shall be restored in the childbirth if they continue in faith, love, holiness, with sobriety”. This possibility gives a whole different dimension to the wifely calling of “help MEET” making her quite instrumental in her husband’s sanctification via her travail on his behalf.

I think any woman who allows Jesus to be formed in her and “continues in…” is restored to the garden state of intimacy with the LORD (as Eve enjoyed before the transgression). I know that by experience, I FEEL intimate with my LORD. And I HOPE that draws my “Adam” back toward the garden- for intimacy with the Lord, and with his “eve”- as Bushnell poses had Eve not followed Adam out…

Had Eve remained steadfast with God, Adam might through the double influence of God and Eve, have returned to God. Marriage might have been consummated by Adam, the husband, forsaking the devil, his father, and cleaving to his wife, thus returning, like the prodigal he was, to the heavenly Father’s home.

The passage can be taken as a PROMISE for the marriage of ANY CHRISTIAN WOMAN- that she will be saved/restored/made whole in a reversal of the fall’s consequences She can be restored through “the child-bearing”!

–>restored to her position beside Adam in dominion over creation per Genesis 1:26-28
–>restored to her inheritance as a joint heir with Christ
–>restored to intimacy with the LORD which was severed by Eve when she left the Garden.

I think the “she” in 1 Timothy 2:15 refers to “Eve” as representative of “everywoman” who is living under the consequences of Eve’s action. And the “saved” is not Christian salvation but restoration. Click here for Blue Letter Bible lexicon definition of- “she shall be saved” It can’t be salvation through Jesus because it is conditional upon the actions of whoever “they” are. “IF THEY continue in ….”
Some of the meanings of saved are – made well, healed, restored
She shall be saved(made well, healed, restored- future) if they continue in fidelity, holiness, love

Paul’s use of “Eve” as representative of in not unique to 1 Timothy. He says “For I am jealous for you with godly jealousy. For I have betrothed you to one husband, that I may present you as a chaste virgin to Christ. But I fear, lest somehow, as the serpent deceived Eve by his craftiness, so your minds may be corrupted from the simplicity[a] that is in Christ.” 2 Cor 11:2-3

Katharine Bushnell writes

it seems God’s design that the “new woman” in Christ Jesus, shall no more “turn away,” as did Eve, to her husband, but remaining loyal to God alone, and true to her destiny as the mother of that Seed,- both the literal, Jesus, and the mystical Christ, the Church, – shall lead man about,- out of the wilderness of the inefficiency of egotism into the glorious liberty of the children of God. For, who shall specially conquer Satan, if not the sex to whom God gave the honor from the beginning of being in eternal enmity against Satan, in the promise, “I will put enmity between thee and the woman?” But woman must be truly meek to fulfill this her promised destiny

Though this is written about another passage, I find it consistent with and supportive of a similar perspective on 1 Timothy 2:11-15.

Based on my own personal experience of marriage tribulation, seems as though I carried the lion’s share of travailing. He had job issues (which goes along with the consequences of the Fall upon Adam). Here is a testimony which resonates with ME as an example of “laboring in birth” until “Christ be formed” (in myself, and on behalf of my husband too)

My husband was cursed by things his daddy spoke over him. Instead of blessing him his daddy cursed him by telling him “you will never be able to support a mama cat” and other derogatory, demeaning, put downs.

We lived just over the poverty line for many years and it went down instead of up. Until it got to the point where my husband (who has a PhD) could not seem to get motivated to look for an adequate job and he was making only 24K annual with 10 mouths to feed… I thought that I might have to find something which paid a living wage, but the Lord knows it probably would have sunk me because I was so tired and overwhelmed already taking care of a family of 10 and dealing with the hurtful “dog kicking” behavior of my husband not dealing with his root issues and thinking everything is “my fault”. My husband seemed to want to shift lots and lots of responsibility onto me but there is only so much one person can handle.

So, WHAT HAPPENED??? Well, I pressed into the LORD, sat at HIS feet and learned from HIM, gave up any efforts to change my husband (per 1Tim 2:11-12) and focussed on my own spiritual growth, health, interests. And I prayed spiritual warfare. I prayed that the generational curses over him would be broken by the blood of Christ and HIS authority. I prayed the word curses and negative prophecies his daddy had spoken over him would be broken in Jesus Name. By prayer, I tore down proud arguments and every high thing that sets itself up against the knowledge of God. (2 Cor 10:3-5) God heard and answered and I think he started living with me in a more understanding way as the Lord tells husbands in 1 Peter 3… and then he got a job which pays nearly 4 times as much, and we got a wind turbine easement for our property (and sited for one), and we signed a gas lease for our property. I am blown away by how the blessings are being poured out upon us! I feel as though a yoke of bondage has been lifted from us and we are free.

We WERE living under a curse
(not a curse from GOD. GOD does NOT CURSE HIS CHILDREN!)
NOW we are blessed!

“she shall be RESTORED through the child-bearing”

God hasn’t put a period at the end of our sentences yet…”

from Beth Moore’s “Beloved Disciple” (pg 153 )

“Read John 3. List each person identified and write a brief description __________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________Imagine being named in a letter that turned out to be inspired Scripture for all the world to see! Whether in commendation or criticism, having your name immortalized in scripture is a heavy thought! When I see a portion of Scripture with brief testimonials similar to the segment we’re studying today, I almost shiver… At times I would have been anywhere from devastated to humiliated over what might be written in my life’s theoretical one-sentence statement. I love knowing that as long as we’re kicking and breathing, we can change the course of our testimonies. God hasn’t put a period at the end of our sentences yet…”

I love the SKY…

“To the Overcomers” (lyrics)

To the Overcomers
I know your deeds, I’ve seen your service
I recognize the reputation of your lives
But I know you live near Satan’s shadow
And I have seen your faithful struggles to survive

And to the one who overcomes I’ll give the manna
He’ll have a pure white stone with his own secret name
She will possess the morning star in all its splendor
All this and more for them because they overcame
All this and more for them because they overcame

So just hold on, do not grow weary
For I am He who searches hearts and minds
Behold I’m standing at the door and I am knocking
And the one who hears and opens it will find

That the one who overcomes will rule the nations
On the throne he’ll sit beside me dressed in white
She will become a column in God’s holy temple
They will all eat freely from the Tree of Life
They will all eat freely from the Tree of Life

The overcomers come to understand
That they are precious poems printed
In the palms of His hands

And to the one who overcomes I’ll give the manna
He’ll have a pure white stone with his own secret name
She will possess the morning star in all its splendor
All this and more for them because they overcame

And to the one who overcomes I’ll give the manna
He’ll have a pure white stone with his own secret name
She will possess the morning star in all its splendor
All this and more for them because they overcame
All this and more for them because they overcame
All this and more for them because they overcame

“overcome”- greek word study

Rom 12:21 “Be not overcome by evil, but overcome evil with good.”

overcome- nikao (link to Blue Letter Bible- every occurance of the word)

AV — overcome 24, conquer 2, prevail 1, get the victory 1

What kind of vessel will I be?

20 In a large house there are articles not only of gold and silver, but also of wood and clay; some are for noble purposes and some for disposal of refuse. 21 Those who cleanse themselves from the latter will be instruments for noble purposes, made holy, useful to the Master and prepared to do any good work. 2 Tim 2 (TNIV)

According to 2Tim 2:20-26- (Click here for a parallel view of several versions) we have the opportunity to become a transformed vessel! We can be transformed from a dirty pot full of “refuse”(TNIV), an “ignoble” (NIV) or “dishonorable” (NASB) vessel, to a “vessel fit for the master’s use”. Interesting how the master has both “in HIS house”. I think some people will choose to remain an unclean vessel their whole life and go to heaven that way. They are, after all, “in HIS house” according to the scriptures.

I have wondered if the unclean pot might be a bedpan or a chamber pot? Did they have those in NT times? “The Message” puts the pots in the kitchen:

“In a well-furnished kitchen there are not only crystal goblets and silver platters, but waste cans and compost buckets—some containers used to serve fine meals, others to take out the garbage. Become the kind of container God can use to present any and every kind of gift to his guests for their blessing.” 2 Tim 2: 20-21 (the Message)

I’ve been in the process of having the uncleanness purged out of the vessel that is ME. The process is not easy, but it it GOOD!
Oh, LORD, please keep up the scrubbing until I am utterly and completely purged of all the garbage! I have an inkling that the junk is burned off too, through a process of fiery trials…

When through fiery trials thy pathways shall lie,
My grace, all sufficient, shall be thy supply;
The flame shall not hurt thee; I only design
Thy dross to consume, and thy gold to refine.

I found a wonderful Ray Stedman sermon “Fit to be Used” which quotes John Stott saying: 

If the promise is to be inherited (’he will be a vessel for noble use’), the condition must be fulfilled (’if anyone purifies himself from what is ignoble’).

and this is Ray Stedman:

The great question, however, is to what end, for what purpose is he using you? Here the apostle is pointing out to Timothy that it is for one of two purposes. “In every house,” he says, “there are vessels.” That is true of all homes — we have “vessels for honor,” i.e., dishes we eat from, pots and pans we cook in, decorated vases, etc., are all vessels unto honor. They are not only useful but they are preserved, they are permanent, we want to keep them. But every house also has “vessels for dishonor” — we have garbage cans, slop buckets, bedpans, trash barrels, wastebaskets, etc. We do not display them. They are useful, but they are not presentable. We may even intend to dispose of them, sometimes after only one use. Those are vessels of dishonor.

Winter

I AM…

Hosea11:4
I led them with cords of human kindness,
with ties of love;
I lifted the yoke from their neck
and bent down to feed them.

Thank YOU, Lord for your tenderness.

Thank YOU that YOU are…
…the Bread of Life Jn 6:35
…the Light of the World Jn 8:12
…the Door of the Sheep Jn 10:7-9
…the Good Shepherd Jn 10:11-14
…the Resurrection and the Life Jn 11:25
…the Way, the Truth, and the Life Jn 14:6
…the True Vine Jn 15:1,5

Lord, you said that
one who comes to YOU shall never hunger
one who believes in YOU shall never thirst…
and you told the woman at the well “If you knew the gift of God, and who it is who says to you, ‘Give Me a drink,’ you would have asked Him, and He would have given you living water.”
Lord, I ask YOU.. please Lord, may I have LIVING WATER?
Lord, help me to come to you that I may partake of Bread of Life…
LORD, I hunger
LORD, I thirst
LORD, I KNOW YOU are the ONLY ONE who can fill every empty place in my being.
Satisfaction, Life, Fullness is ONLY IN YOU!

Psalm 63
My soul thirsts for You;
My flesh longs for You
In a dry and thirsty land
Where there is no water.
2 So I have looked for You in the sanctuary,
To see Your power and Your glory.

3 Because Your lovingkindness is better than life,
My lips shall praise You.
4 Thus I will bless You while I live;
I will lift up my hands in Your name.
5 My soul shall be satisfied as with marrow and fatness,
And my mouth shall praise You with joyful lips.

6 When I remember You on my bed,
I meditate on You in the night watches.
7 Because You have been my help,
Therefore in the shadow of Your wings I will rejoice.

God made me female and God loves me female!

I read a moving post yesterday on Molly’s blog. She links to a place with post after post of Christian women accepting as a matter of fact that their very femaleness renders them less capable

“these women… share that their femaleness makes them more emotional, more inclined toward error, etc.”

I used to be right there with those women agreeing with the lies. Underlying my self-rejection and self-deprecation -deep down inside- I really believed that God loves His sons more than His daughters, that He prefers sons… There were even some scriptures which I thought “confirmed” that. Really, that is a LIE right from the pit of hell. And I honesty wonder how many women AND men -deep down inside- (behind the denial and the protestation) believe that to be a woman is inferior and less desirable than to be a man.

1 Peter 3 refers to woman as “the weaker vessel”.
This is not a defect,
but by God’s design and intentional on God’s part.
Self rejection and self hatred is sin.
God made me female and God loves me female!
HE rejoices over me with singing
I am HIS beloved
Zephaniah 3:17 “The LORD your God is with you, he is mighty to save. He will take great delight in you, he will quiet you with his love, he will rejoice over you with singing.”

(see also Is God punishing women for what He Himself made them—because they are women, not men?

God’s protection in the furnace…

“I promise to… obey“

see also “I renounced unbiblical wedding vows!”

what is the fruit of suffering?
see Romans 5:3-5 and 1 Pet 5:10
What is one of the BIGGEST sources of suffering among American Evangelicals (hint, the divorce rate is @ 35% and no different from the divorce rate of non-christians)

Life is a furnace.
Marriage is a furnace.
Furnaces bring the dross to the surface so God can scoop it off.

Is it God’s will to run away from pain? What purpose has pain?

God has stepped in and supernaturally protected me at times. Walking with HIM through deep valleys and fiery trials and places which sure seemed helpless and powerless, EXCEPT that HE WAS WITH ME, and HE IS GOD!

I recall reading another testimony of GOD’S POWER and I searched around and found it.

from link

Quote:
Several days later, I heard the Lord say, “Submit to God. Resist the devil. Daughter, you must resist the physical abuse in my name.” That day, I had the opportunity to prove that I had really heard the Lord’s voice. My husband pinned me to the floor, straddled me, and slapped me. He was purple with rage. As he began to draw back his fist to punch me, I felt no fear. I immediately said, “In Jesus’ name, you will never strike me again!”

My husband was shocked that he could not throw the punch. I was shocked too. He jumped off me in a rage. He cursed me, but, he could not hit me. Glory to God! He had indeed watched over His Word to perform it. Many years have passed since that incident, but my husband has never again struck me. God showed us both that He did not approve of this kind of treatment for wives.”

Prayer is not trivial. God’s power is not trivial. “We do not battle against flesh and blood”

God did a miracle for me. My husband was a sexual addict and I was the blow up doll. Whatever GOD asks me to do HE is responsible to EQUIP me to do!!!! HE says in several passages about married women that they are to be CHASTE (1 Peter 2 and Titus 2). NOTE CAREFULLY- MARRIED WOMEN ARE TO BE CHASTE!!! Wouldn’t be in there so much unless it was a struggle for some of us (all of us????)

I said to GOD that HE is going to have to DO SOMETHING!!! Because what is going on is NOT CHASTE!!!! It was almost like GOD put an invisible shield around me. Whenever my husband came near me, he would go impotent. He could masturbate to porn, but he could not come near me and maintain an erection. It SCARED him and he KNEW that it was GOD dealing with him.

A woman attempting to “buy” love and acceptance from her husband sexually, by domestic servitude, slavic obedience, etc falls so far short of GOD’s CALLING and intention for her as a help MEET and KEEPER of the home (link goes to my other blog with more on these biblical wifely roles)

Abandoning the husband and the marriage may relieve the pain… but sometimes I think fighting the demons overcomes the pain for good. My husband was abusive, but MUCH of the inner torment which that inflicted upon me came out of my own unresolved issues and unhealed wounds from an abusive childhood. I have good boundaries now and I don’t accept unacceptable behavior… but I remain married to a difficult man. I consider it my CALLING (and GOD must think my husband is pretty special to provide and EQUIP for him such a help MEET, a KEEPER of the home )

I have compassion upon the victim. I am a former victim. Victimhood will go with her until she deals with the underlying issues, unhealed wounds which render her a victim. I used to feel like I had a bullseye on me, a scarlet V that drew abuse. A victim can learn to stand up for herself. Sarah (in the bible- our role model for dealing with a disobedient husband) is assertive! (see Gen 21:10-12)
If a mother role models being steamrollered by and then running away from bullies, her children will follow her example.

My children used to be afraid of their father.
I role modeled that.
Now they know how to stand up to him with dignity and strength.
I role modeled that.
…which is perhaps, the single most gratifying aspect of my own recovery. Long term generational curses are broken and my children have a NEW heritage.

Sexual Sin within Christian Marriage

From 1Thes 4:3-8, it seems there exist choices in how one possesses “his vessel” (some translations render “vessel” as “wife”; some render “vessel” as his own body. I think GOD deliberately used a word which can mean wife or body- and the teaching of the passage applies to BOTH. John Piper thinks the RSV rendering “wife” is more accurate- link ).

Back to the CHOICE in the passage:
Does he possess his wife/his body in “sanctification and honour”?
Or does he do so “in the lust of concupiscence”/”passion of lust”?
Engaging in the “passion of lust” is to “go beyond and defraud his brother”. I think “brother” can be his WIFE (or her husband). His transgression/ his lusting transgresses boundaries and DEFRAUDS HER.Here is the passage in 3 Bible versions:

quote:

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1Thes 4:3 For this is the will of God, your sanctification: that you abstain from unchastity;
1Thes 4:4 That every one of you should know how to possess his vessel in sanctification and honour; 5 Not in the lust of concupiscence, even as the Gentiles which know not God: 6 That no man go beyond and defraud his brother in any matter: (AV)

~~~~~~~~~

4 that each one of you know how to take a wife for himself in holiness and honor,
5 not in the passion of lust like heathen who do not know God;
6 that no man transgress, and wrong his brother in this matter, because the Lord is an avenger in all these things, as we solemnly forewarned you.
7 For God has not called us for uncleanness, but in holiness.
8 Therefore whoever disregards this, disregards not man but God, who gives his Holy Spirit to you. (RSV)

~~~~~~~~

1Thes 4: 3 God wants you to be holy, so don’t be immoral in matters of sex. 4Respect and honor your wife. [a] 5Don’t be a slave of your desires or live like people who don’t know God. 6You must not cheat any of the Lord’s followers in matters of sex. Remember, we warned you that he punishes everyone who does such things. 7God didn’t choose you to be filthy, but to be pure. 8So if you don’t obey these rules, you are not really disobeying us. You are disobeying God, who gives you his Holy Spirit. (CEV)

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1 Tim 2:12-15 – promise of RESTORATION!

1 Tim 2:12–And I do not permit a woman to teach or to have authority over a man, but to be in silence.
1 Tim 2:13–For Adam was formed first, then Eve.
1 Tim 2:14and Adam was not deceived, but the woman, having been deceived, into transgression came,

“Adam was not deceived”

“not deceived” does not translate into “innocent”:

Job 31:33 (NASB)
“Have I covered my transgressions like Adam, By hiding my iniquity in my bosom,”

Hosea 6:7 (NASB)
But like Adam they have transgressed the covenant;There they have dealt treacherously against Me.

Gen 3:22-24 describes who was expelled from the garden. Only Adam was expelled. Eve fulfilled the prophetic utterance of God in Gen 3:16 when she chose to follow him out of the Garden

Now what?
Are all women doomed to fulfill the pain of Genesis 3:16 without mercy, redemption, or restoration? I don’t think so, and I think Paul is preaching HOPE and RESTORATION in 1 Tim 2:11-15

1 Timothy 2:15 and she shall be saved through the child-bearing, if they remain in faith, and love, and sanctification, with sobriety. (YLT)

She can be restored through “the child-bearing”!

–>restored to her position beside Adam in dominion over creation per Genesis 1:26-28
–>restored to her inheritance as a joint heir with Christ
–>restored to intimacy with the LORD which was severed by Eve when she left the Garden.

Love

from Suzanne’s Bookshelf

1 Cor. 13

If with the tongues of humans,
I talk, and even of angels -
but love, I have not,
I am become a timbring gong
or a tinkling cymbal.

And if I have prophesy
and fathom all mysteries
and all knowledge
and if I have faith
to remove mountains

But do not have love

I am nothing.

And if I give away all my belongings
And surrender my body to suffering
for the sake of self glory

But do not have love

I gain nothing.

Love is generosity of spirit
Love is acts of kindness. Kindness in deed is love.

It does not envy

Love

does not brag
does not puff up
does not act shamefully
does not seek self
does not get irritated
does not find fault

does not delight at injustice
but rejoices along with truth

always sustains
always trusts
always hopes
always supports

love

never fails.

Whether prophesies, they will be left aside
or tongues they will end
or knowledge it will be left aside.

For in part we know
and in part we prophesy
but when that which is complete comes the end comes
that which is in part will be left aside.

When I was a child
I talked like a child
I thought like a child
I argued like a child

But when I became an adult
The things of a child I left aside.

Now we see
through the looking glass
in riddles
but then face to face.

Now we know in part
But then we will know
Even as we are known.

As so remain faith, hope and love,
these three things
but the greatest of these

is

love.

I translated this some time last summer and Kurk has posted it alongside the Greek for Valentine’s day. It was an exercise to demonstrate a translation which maintained a fair degree of formal equivalence, certainly more than any of the published translations IMO. It is intended to maintain a consistent literary style and reveal some of the word play derived from this chapter. (I forget if this is where Lewis Carrol got the title for his second Alice book.)

I have been posting here over the last few days

Suzanne: “after 30 years of silence I am still processing…”

I see Suzanne as an overcomer by the word of her testimony. She expressed such deep pain… (from here.)

Charis,

I’ve been one [complementarian] most of my life so I am not writing as an outsider.

Most complementarian women seem to be in group number 4, those who I would admire, and I just wish that I had known that, for those women who survive, submitting actually means saying no. I just never figured that out.

Who is going to prevent young women from learning the hard way as some of us here have.

But now I feel despised because I was never able to set boundaries myself although I tried long and hard. They were simply never respected.

I don’t see enough recognition for the fact that the responsibility of the wife is to say no, and if it isn’t accepted then she should leave.

You yourself describe submission as sharing in the suffering of Christ. But the true complementarian view is that submission is joyous. Quite frankly I just don’t see you as a “complementarian.”

I can’t semantically equate “submitting” with “saying no”.

…

Charis,

I know it is highly unfair to categorize and I am aware that I reveal my own disillusionment. I am open to criticism. We are all human and fallible.

Let me say that two years ago, I would have expressed myself as you do. I felt that I was able to hold things at bay and endure. I felt that this is what I needed to do as a Christian.

However, several very disturbing things happened. At that time, I also began to get severe headaches. I thought of going to the doctor, but I remembered that at the clinic there is a sign which asks you to give information of partner abuse. I knew in my heart that I should not lie to the doctor about this. I knew that the doctor would tell me to get out. I then put my energy into getting out rather than going to the doctor. It has taken almost a year to begin to feel physically whole again but I am improving daily.

I feel that my body was an alarm clock. At 50 my body said that I could not physically continue to stand up to a bully and be on guard at all times. It was time to rest.

This is my view in retrospect. I also have some complementarian relatives, for example, my brother, who has now renounced his former beliefs. However, his wife is unable to do this. I now look back and think of all the advice she gave me and how damaging it was. I didn’t believe it entirely, but I acquiesced enough to remain in a bad situation. I think the really terrible thing was that I was taught that divorce was shameful.

I have many regrets and after 30 years of silence I am still processing what happened to me. Maybe I will express this in different terms later.

For me, leaving my husband has meant cutting all ties with all male authority churches. I cannot bear physically to hear it preached. In fact, my former husband has also broken all connection with male authority churches. I believe that our (mildly) complementarian church did both of us a terrible disservice.

However, because of what happened between us, now that I have left, I do not think that I should ever see him again. I do forgive him and wish him well. I am happy to have the children live with me and visit him.

(Just in case … – I am not open to receiving advice from others on whether I should see my former husband again. That is a private matter.)

The pain is part of “the child-bearing”, part of the sanctification process of Christ being formed. Suzanne’s testimony reflects this. Divorce is painful. Divorce hurts. God knows that. HE hates divorce, NOT because HE is mean and cruel and judgmental… NO. HE hates divorce because HE understands precisely how it hurts HE has experienced divorce

Bring the brokenness, the hurt, the pain under HIS almighty hand, in submission to HIM and HE will form a very precious vessel fit for the master’s use…

like Suzanne: who, though persecuted, presses on in her calling of taking the veil off scriptures so that we can see TRUTH more clearly- Suzanne’s Bookshelf: Which Bible?- What gifts! What gold refined by fire!

my response to that unseemly display by B-men toward my Christian sister:

I see a thread here there and EVERYWHERE of judging as “REBELLIOUS” anyone and especially any woman who does not consent without question to the “christian soup of the day”

I need to think about this, meditate some more… I am thinking that Jesus was viewed by the Pharisees as a rebel and a sinner because he “came eating and drinking”.

So, when you are branded with the same brand as Jesus, is it not a badge of honor for you Suzanne? Your response to such vitriolic, unchristlike behavior is a real life-before our very eyes- example of a woman sharing in the sufferings of Christ, and refusing to revile when she is reviled.

I commend you for your good witness of Christ by your response to mistreatment. (In so doing, you role modeled genuine, Christlike, biblical submission for whoever was watching )

see also: “Biblical Grounds for Divorce”