Many of you will know
that Sunday Adelaja, "the pastor of the largest Church in Europe" based
in Kiev, Ukraine has been exposed as a serial adulterer and has
confessed to sexual relations with "at least 70 women" (he cannot
remember them all) of his congregation.
This
may not be a big deal in the western world but in the post soviet world
with a resurgent, strident and increasingly nationalistic Orthodox
church this is a big deal. They label all free churches as cults and
"western plots". To have one of the most well known christian leaders
in the area exposed in such a manner makes it vastly more difficult for
other free churches.
To the secularists of
the former soviet world that Sunday has been exposed as first a
financial scam artist and now a serial adulterer only confirms to them
that the religious leaders are the same as their corrupt politicians.
Remember
John's thing about the stuff in the world? You know "the lust of the
flesh, the lust of the eyes and the pride of life" not being "of the
Father"? That one?
So in the charismatic world
we have this "culture of honour" stuff where "the man of God" teaches
the people of God to honour the man of God. Right! (I really do wish I
was making this stuff up!) So the leader ends up with all of his/her
pride of life issues filled to the max. They have titles, preference,
place and end up being the head of a personality cult. We have made
"pride of life" into a spiritual accomplishment!
Likewise
we have the prosperity gospel where material blessing is a sign of
God's favour. The "man of God" is honoured with every material,
financial blessing so that they live like a rock star and teach that you
can have the same if you have enough faith (or can manipulate enough
people to give to you!). We have made possessing whatever our eyes see
as the proof of the blessing of God.
Why is that we celebrate pride of life as honour and baptize rank materialism as blessing but sexual "variety" as scandalous?
Actually
some do NOT view a variety of sexual relationships as scandalous. They
say that David was the man after God's own heart and he had multiple
wives. They say that Solomon was the wisest man who ever lived and he
had hundreds. They say we live under a better covenant so we should
have at least as much as they did!
But those
who believe such nonsense tend to hide it for fear of losing followers
and finances but my question stands- Why do so many accept pride of
life and its attendant personality cults rebranded as a "culture of
honour", the lust of the eyes rebranded as the blessing of God and
cannot see that they are on the same list as the "lusts of the flesh"?
The
logic of pride works like this, If I can have everything I want in
title, position and honour and if I can have everything I want in
finances and things why can I not have everything I want sexually?
Indeed why not?
Why not? Because cultures of
honour and the prosperity gospel have nothing to do with the Kingdom of
God just as using your position and power to seduce members of your
congregation has nothing to do with the Kingdom of God.
How many times must we see these things to get the lesson?
Jesus
walked among us as with a band of brothers. He called us friends. When
the crowd tried to make Him a king, he ran from them. When will we
learn to do the same?
Your brother
Steve
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