Ravi Zacharias In The Clutches Of Ungracious Christians?

            I am not going to claim that Ravi Zacharias was sinless; that he was not sexually immoral.

I am also not here to dispute the actions of various Christian leaders who responded to Ravi’s sins by either erasing his work or having disassociated with his ministry in some form or the other. That’s their call. Punitive actions may be necessary, as I said before; I am not here to dispute that.

            But I wonder and hence I request you to think if the Christian community were gracious in their action against Ravi.

At this point in time, Ravi (the sinner) has been punished posthumously. Ravi’s victims are passionately supported [maybe compensated] and being prayed for.

However, there is another entity that’s involved in this situation – Ravi’s family. How have they been treated by the Christian community?

Was the Christian community gracious in their actions against Ravi?

In other words, did Ravi’s family, in some way or the other, appreciate the graciousness of the Christian community?

To begin with, let us consider a few punitive actions taken against Ravi Zacharias:

1.      The Christian and Missionary Alliance (C&MA) which had ordained Ravi Zacharias revoked his ordination and expelled him posthumously.¹

2.      Ravi Zacharias’s books will no longer be offered by HarperCollins Christian Publishing, ““In September, when the most-recent sexual misconduct allegations against the late Ravi Zacharias surfaced, HarperCollins Christian Publishing immediately suspended all projects and shipments of his work,” said Casey Francis Harrell, vice president of corporate communications. “Following the findings in the independent report, the company will immediately take all his publications out of print...””²

3.      Christian author, Lee Strobel, announced that he would halt the printing of his book that featured Ravi. Similarly, Ravi’s forthcoming book Jesus for You will not be released.³

4.      Prominent Christian apologists who served with Ravi Zacharias at RZIM are actively erasing their association with RZIM. They want nothing to do with RZIM.

Essentially, there is a mass movement to erase Ravi and his works from the annals of Christendom.

In this very context, Philip Yancey’s quote becomes very meaningful, “Christians get very angry toward other Christians who sin differently than they do.”

The punitive actions against Ravi Zacharias seem to be a classic case in point.

Grace is nowhere to be found in and through these punitive actions. Why do I say this?

Sadly, Ravi’s son Nathan Zacharias describes the ungraciousness and the hypocrisy exhibited by the Christian community: (Emphasis Mine)⁴

Many of those remaining at RZIM, along with some former global leadership, have worked very hard to distance themselves from my dad. They’ve busted out their thesauruses and called him every name they think is appropriate. They’ve damned him, erased him, and expressed regret that they were ever involved with him in what was a very successful ministry. If they feel he should be erased and reduced to only the sum of his sins, then they have some hard questions to answer about their theology given the way God allowed his success while these things were allegedly happening. God sure is lucky to have them here to save Him from allowing Dad’s material to ever positively impact another person.

They can’t even acknowledge the reality that God blessed them (wrongly, it would seem, according to their logic) in their own ministries alongside Dad either. Of course they still benefit from the status that came as a result. 10 years ago, no one would have paid any attention to the statements of many of them. Their audience now is a result of the platform they got from their days at RZIM with Dad.

They want no piece of, him, association with him, or remnant of him. Nothing at all.

            Do Nathan’s words sound like the Christian community were gracious? Sadly, no!

            Nathan’s words reveal the hypocrisy of the Christian community.

Those who are actively erasing Ravi or disassociating with his legacy in some form or the other enjoyed [substantial] financial benefits and fame through their association with Ravi and RZIM. While they do not want to do anything with Ravi, would they, with the same intensity, return all the financial benefits they accrued over the years of their association with RZIM?

In his passionate blog to defend his father, Nathan Zacharias presents this scenario, “They want nothing to do with his ministry legacy. But they’re glad to hold on to his financial legacy.” (Emphasis Mine)⁵

Hypocrisy at its finest!

By being gracious, the Christian community could have ensured that the Zacharias family is comforted and encouraged through this gruelling period. Isn’t that the least one could expect?

Nathan’s words, showcasing the pain in his heart, reveal the ungraciousness and the hypocrisy of the Christian community.

The big question is this, how would Jesus have responded to Ravi Zacharias?

Knowing Jesus, HIS response would have been filled with grace and mercy. Knowing Jesus, HE would not have ignored Ravi’s family, who are in pain, enduring this tribulation.

That’s the Jesus the Bible reveals. That’s the Jesus we love, believe, and worship.

Have we been Christlike through our actions against Ravi?

You decide.

But when we think of the late Ravi Zacharias, let us be gracious. May his family be blessed with comfort, encouragement, strength, and peace from our Triune God.

Endnotes:

¹https://www.cmalliance.org/news/2021/02/12/statement-on-the-findings-of-ravi-zacharias-independent-investigation/

²https://www.christianitytoday.com/news/2021/february/ravi-zacharias-books-harper-collins-lee-strobel-rzim-report.html

³Ibid.

⁴https://defendingravi.wordpress.com/

⁵Ibid.

Websites last accessed on 31^st March, 2021.

Ungracious Christians

            Philip Yancey, in his classic “What's So Amazing About Grace?” describes ungraciousness as, “Ungrace does its work quietly and lethally, like a poisonous, undetectable gas. A father dies unforgiven. A mother who once carried a child in her own body does not speak to that child for half its life. The toxin steals on, from generation to generation.” Around us, ironclad in their pristine saintly attire, are ungracious Christians.

            A pastor requested prayer for an 80 year old pastor who was beaten up. Instead of sympathizing or offering his prayer support, a Christian responded by asking if the beaten up pastor was living a good Christian life or not.

            Isn’t it fascinating that we love to judge the spirituality of our fellow Christians? We are experts in ignoring the plank firmly lodged in our own eye while we rabidly bark at the speck in our brother’s eye (Matthew 7:5).

            How quickly do we forget that grace is the spirit of Christianity!

            If not for God’s grace, we would be doomed to eternal dungeon. Christ is the embodiment of grace and Christians are called to be Christlike – to be loving and gracious to each other.  

            If grace is at the heart of Christianity, why do Christians morph into ungracious beings to irrationally judge their fellow brother and sister? Who is responsible for this malady in Christendom?

            But unjust judgment and harsh condemnation is common in Christianity. The Bible amplifies this predicament. Even the Lord was not spared. Christ was condemned by the religious leaders.

            Philip Yancey, in “What's So Amazing About Grace?” captures this thought wonderfully, “Having spent time around "sinners" and also around purported saints, I have a hunch why Jesus spent so much time with the former group: I think he preferred their company. Because the sinners were honest about themselves and had no pretense, Jesus could deal with them. In contrast, the saints put on airs, judged him, and sought to catch him in a moral trap. In the end it was the saints, not the sinners, who arrested Jesus.”

            The religious leaders condemned Christ because they assumed greater knowledge. They not only assumed greater knowledge, but they believed that their knowledge was inerrant and infallible. Those religious leaders were proud and egotistic.

            Spiritual pride is the cause for ungracious and judgmental attitude. The super-spiritual Christian basking in spiritual pride thinks more highly of himself than he ought to (cf. Romans 12:3). When sober judgment of oneself is eclipsed by spiritual pride, he condemns his neighbor at every given opportunity.

            Recently I had the privilege of hearing a friend tell me that she lives a perfect Christian life. I was shocked to hear this statement from an ostensibly spiritually mature woman, who is well respected in her church.

            Did she not read her Bible that says that there is no one righteous, not even one (Romans 3:10) or that “If we claim to be without sin, we deceive ourselves and the truth is not in us. If we confess our sins, he is faithful and just and will forgive us our sins and purify us from all unrighteousness. If we claim we have not sinned, we make him out to be a liar and his word is not in us.” (1 John 1: 8-10, NIV). These super-spiritual Christians think that they do not and cannot commit sin.  

            This super spiritual Christian forgets that it is because of God’s grace that he is able to live a righteous life. In this context, he forgets two very important aspects.

            First, his life is a gracious gift from God. Because God offers him life, he is able to live righteously.

            Second, this person is able to live a righteous life because God has placed a fence of protection around his life (cf. Job 1:10). If God had allowed Satan to inflict veridical damage upon this person’s life, this person, even if he had genuinely lived a righteous life, could have suffered under people around him. They could have suspected him of some offense or the other. They would have then showered inordinate malice upon him.

            So the so-called super spiritual Christian cannot be super-spiritual if not for God’s grace. Although he is a product of God’s grace, he remains ungracious to his brethren.

            Who is responsible for this malady?

            There is no dearth of sermons on living a Christian life. The church should not be blamed for emphasizing a holy lifestyle, for Christians cannot be hypocrites. But when we meagerly succeed at living a morally upright life, we, with all guns blazing, condemn sinful people.

            How often do you hear sermons on being gracious to your sinful neighbors? For every sermon about living a Christian life, there should be ten sermons about being a gracious Christian. This is the responsibility of the church.

            The church should take responsibility for the prevalent malady of spiritual pride.

            Being gracious is not to approve the sins of our neighbors. Grace does not encourage sins (cf. Romans: 1-2).

            But God loved us while we were unrepentant sinners (cf. Romans 5:8). So we should love our neighbors while they remain unrepentant.

            How can we share the love of Christ if we do not love our neighbors? Would our neighbors be receptive to a gospel message from people who disrespectfully condemn their sinful lifestyle?

            There is a huge disparity between disapproving a sinful lifestyle and disrespectfully condemning a sinful lifestyle. A sinful lifestyle can be lovingly disapproved.  Condemnation is usually accompanied by hatred towards the person committing the sin.

            If a friend lives a blatantly sinful life, we should continue our friendship with him. We should be kind to him and his family, encourage him in his other noble endeavors, visit, dine with him etc. Yet we should lovingly disapprove of his sinful lifestyle and try to gently talk him out of that sinful lifestyle.

            Christ did not crucify the woman who was caught in adultery. HE empathized with her and lovingly counseled her to not sin. Christ did not disassociate HIMSELF from sinners but HE entered their homes and fellowshipped with them.

            Condemnation raises its ugly hood when our friend commits a sin. We immediately break our friendship with him and vilify him in public and private. This is not an appropriate Christian practice.              

            Here is an intriguing factor while we criticize our fellow Christians, which is wonderfully revealed in the Bible.

            On one hand, Christians are capable of glorifying the blatantly sinning Christian. As a case in point, the Corinthian church was proud of their member who was sleeping with his father’s wife (1 Corinthians 5: 1-2).

            On the other hand, Christians could condemn those who may outwardly appear as sinners but who are faithfully living a holy life, “For John came neither eating nor drinking, and they say, ‘He has a demon.’ The Son of Man came eating and drinking, and they say, ‘Here is a glutton and a drunkard, a friend of tax collectors and sinners.’” (Matthew 11: 18-19, NIV).

            If Christ the Lord and John the Baptist were victims to such condemnation, what prevents you and me from being condemned? Persecution is native to Christianity.  

            We will be condemned by our own family. Our dearest friends would flee from us when we are in difficult situations. When we stand for the Lord and HIS word, we will be condemned and persecuted (2 Timothy 3:12). But let us continue to remain in the Lord, love and obey HIM despite the harsh condemnation from our fellow Christians.

            How do we remain gracious?            

            Step into the shoes of those who need grace. First, judge ourselves with a sober judgment. We are as much as a sinner as he is.

            Second, consider our neighbors at par with us or better than us. If we are no greater than him, we have no business to venomously judge him. Instead, love him just as God loves him and us.  

            We will be gracious if we are humble. The fast track to humility is to experience soul-wrenching pain. Unless we experience soul-wrenching pain, it is very difficult for us to remain humble.

            If a friend or an acquaintance asks you for prayer either pray or don’t pray. It is even acceptable if you do not pray, for God will care for HIS people. But please do not insult either the person asking for prayer or the person to be prayed for.  

The Dirty Church

The church is to be a beautiful community that worships the only living God, nurtures the seeker with the truth, fellowships in the loving community of saints, and encourages the brokenhearted with Christ’s love. In other words, the church looks ‘upward’ in worship, ‘inward’ to edify, and ‘outward’ to serve those in need.

However, the church, from Christ’s time on earth, has been losing these components slowly yet steadily (cf. Mark 11: 15-17). A church can profess her allegiance to the Lord Jesus, yet be corrupt in her core values and expressions. In other words, the church, from the surface, could seem adherent to the biblical teachings, but avoid being truthful, loving and gracious, and thus corrupt.

When resolving a situation, the church could opt to enforce law or grace. Here is a rather dense situation to highlight the church’s corruption. A church rejects the marriage proposal of a couple because one partner has had multiple divorces. Not only is the church ungracious, but she could be successful in driving away the couple from her precincts. While rejecting the proposal, the church may have even cited a few scripture passages (e.g. Malachi 2: 16). But is this the only viable or the most biblical option for the church? If you say yes, please allow me to contradict you.

I submit that the church should have married this couple, of course, with bible-centered pre-marital counseling. If this couple were married, it is possible that this marriage would survive and the past sins of divorce, repented. By rejecting the marriage proposal, the church eliminated a magnificent opportunity for the person to repent and establish a family. More importantly, the church may have even driven these two away from Christianity. (You could argue that the multiple divorcée, as in the past, would reject/divorce this partner as well. This, however, is an ‘argument from ignorance’ i.e., one cannot predict if that marriage would result in divorce.)

Now then, why should the church not be radically gracious in solemnizing such a marriage? The church may have either rejected this proposal to avoid unnecessary criticism (for the leadership to have their job intact) or because she is profusely legalistic (so to abandon grace into oblivion). In both these instances, the church abandons the minority. This is in total contradiction to the gospel of the Lord Jesus Christ. (If the church leadership claims ignorance on this matter, then they are inadequate for leadership.)

It is good to err on the side of grace, than on the side of law. But only strong and courageous leaders (Joshua 1: 9) would dare to err on the side of grace. The selfishly fearful, corrupt and theologically impotent leaders would cite the law to evade being gracious. They defy the Lord’s act of running after that one lost sheep, leaving the ninety-nine. Losing one sheep is insignificant to these leaders. They satisfy the majority, even at the cost of one sheep and the gospel! The Lord is the epitome of grace (John 1: 14-17); when the church adheres to the law and abandons grace, the church becomes corrupt.

The first entity to take responsibility for the church’s corruption is her leadership. Christ showed the way for mankind to follow. Similarly the church leadership ought to be role models for the flock to follow the Lord. If the leadership is legalistic, the essence of the church would be legalistic.

However, it could be healthier to have a legalistic leader than a weak leader. If the leadership is weak, then the church would travel the way of the powerful group in the church, and the powerful, if biblically correct, will remove the weak leader (so to resolve the problem). If the weak leadership remains, the church is bound to be sold to the devil in one form or another. If leaders are ruled by fear, they will inevitably succumb to the temptations of the evil one.

The elaborate description of Jesus cleansing the temple in Mark 11: 15-17 presents an instance of a ‘dirty church.’ The Lord’s house was transformed into a house of business instead of a house of prayer. The Lord cleansed the temple by driving out the offenders (15). Wait! Did HE really drive them out? I don’t think so! Verse 17 fascinates me, for the Lord taught ‘them’ the true intent of the church. ‘Them’ refers to those who abused the temple precincts and the spectators. Hence the Lord not only cleansed HIS house off its filth, but taught the abusers the truth. Isn’t this what today’s church leaders ought to do and isn’t this where they fail?

We take pride in proclaiming the church as a congregation of sinners, and truly so. Sin is inevitable in the congregation of sinners. When sin is encountered, the sinful act should be eliminated by the power of God, and the sinful actor cleansed by the Word of God. 

Today’s church seems more intent on driving out the sinners; not the sinners who sin against God, but those who disagree with the leadership. The formula of today’s church seems to be if-you-don’t-agree-to-my-agenda-you-will-be-fired. Thus, instead of church multiplication, church division seems to be the order of the day. Where is the fault? It’s obviously in the insecure arms of the weak leadership.

I am part of a ‘facebook prayer group’ of a certain church. One day, I realized I wasn’t a part of that prayer group. Upon digging for clarity, I discovered that the church leadership had me removed from that group, because my blogs seemed to implicate that church. Thus far, I have not received a response as to what unholy or unbiblical content from my blog merited such an ungracious decision. If I am a sinner, where is the teaching to correct me? If there is no teaching, does it imply I am correct? If I am correct, why should I be removed? Or am I a terrible sinner beyond correction? This is not a personal rant, but an illustration of what I see as a failure of the church.

The church seeks easy, or evil, solutions today. Quite a few AGM’s (Annual General Meeting) of the contemporary church present a sad yet hilarious scene. The powerful oppress the powerless and the seemingly-more-spiritual oppress their brothers and sisters. If you speak the truth, you are mandated to shut up. Is this the gospel of our Lord Jesus Christ? Laugh-out-Loud! It is the case of weak and unbiblical leadership. Weak leadership manifests in several ways. You are fired if you disagree; you are disciplined if you speak the truth. Both situations were a reality in the life of Martin Luther and many others who stood firm for truth. Welcome to the dirty church.

George Barna and Frank Viola expressed this sentiment as they dedicated their book, “To our forgotten brothers and sisters throughout the ages who courageously stepped outside the safe bounds of institutional Christianity at the risk of life and limb. You faithfully carried the torch, endured persecution, forfeited reputation, lost family, suffered torture, and spilled your blood to preserve the primitive testimony that Jesus Christ is Head of His church. And that every believer is a priest .a minister ... and a functioning member of God's house. This book is dedicated to you.” ¹ Weakness hides behind law, discards grace and Christ out of the church. The church then is sold to the devil.

I think it was Malcolm Muggeridge who ridiculed the church to say, “they have taken that which belongs to the soul and institutionalized it.” Do you belong to a dirty church that destroys a soul, or do you belong to a grace-abounding, Christ-filled, Spirit-anointed church?

You can for all you want shout at the top of your voice that you are anointed. But if you discard grace from your life, you are discarding Christ. If you are abandoning Christ from your life, are you a true disciple of the Lord Jesus? You need to answer these questions as much as I need to. Amen.

References:

¹ George Barna and Frank Viola, Pagan Christianity, 2007. 

The Heart of Salvation: Grace of God

God supernaturally regenerates a man’s heart (John 3:6), and some naturally degenerate the regenerated hearts (Matt 23:15). The malady and the parody of superior religiosity are wonderfully portrayed in the Bible. 

This is a classic case of infighting, which in our context is the spiritually proud fighting God Himself. What is the solution then? The solution is brutally presented in these verses “But the greatest among you shall be your servant. Whoever exalts himself shall be humbled; and whoever humbles himself shall be exalted” (Matthew 23:11-12 NASB).

Is it not interesting that Paul appeals to the “grace” that God has given him to exhort believers not to think too high of ourselves, but with sober judgment? “For by the grace given me I say to every one of you: Do not think of yourself more highly than you ought, but rather think of yourself with sober judgment, in accordance with the measure of faith God has given you” (Romans 12:3, NIV). 

If we do not think too high of ourselves, we will not look down or even condemn others. If ‘humility’ should be our constant attitude, then assimilating God’s grace is the foundation. If we integrate God’s grace, then we will not possess a superior attitude of ourselves. This is how the equation works. 

To summarize, if we integrate God’s grace, we will be humble and gracious; hence we will not look down or condemn others.

The major stumbling block for one to integrate God’s grace is our delight in our “spiritual successes.” This delight infuses into us a spirit of achievement. This feeling of achievement results in a superior thought of oneself. But the fact of life is rather simple; nothing is possible outside of God. 

What we are is because of HIM. When we delight in ourselves, we become bigger than God, and in the process we violate this verse, “He must become greater; I must become less” (John 3:30, NIV). So, our objective in our Christian life and ministry is to become more and more invisible and let God be more and more visible through our lives.

Having emphasized on the need to dwell in the grace of God, please allow me to recapture the process of our salvation:

1. When a sinner believes in Christ, he is “born again,” and he becomes a “new creation” (Matthew 19:28; John 3:3; 2 Corinthians 5:17; Ephesians 2:5; Titus 3:5).

2. His sins are forgiven (Acts 10:43; 1 John 1:9).

3. He is redeemed by the blood of the Lord Jesus Christ shed on the cross (1 Peter 1:18-19).

4. God’s righteousness is credited to him (2 Corinthians 5:21).

5. Since God’s righteousness is credited to him, he is now reconciled to God. His position changes from being God’s enemy to God’s friend (Romans 5:10-11; 2 Corinthians 5:18-19; Colossians 1:19-20).

6. He is now adopted into God’s family (Rom. 8:15).

7. He begins a process of spiritual growth called “sanctification” or “growing in holiness” (Romans 8:3-4; 2 Corinthians 4:16; Hebrews 10:10; 1 John 3:2-3).

8. When the Lord Jesus Christ comes again (2^nd coming), he will either be resurrected (if he is dead) or he will be transformed (if he is still alive) - (John 6:40; 1 Corinthians 15:51-53; 1 Thessalonians 4:16-17).

9. Finally, he receives a new physical body which he (all who believe in Christ) will possess throughout eternity (Romans 8:17; 1 Corinthians 15:51-53; 2 Thessalonians 1:10).

I see nothing but grace firmly imprinted in our salvation. We are saved by grace through faith.

Having been born by the grace of God, how now do we live?  

Spiritual Pride

           Our superior religiosity or spiritual success can so blind us that we fall prey to devil’s deceit and snare. We imagine ourselves as righteously priceless in God’s kingdom. If our ministry (service to God and man) flourishes, we believe it to be because of our righteousness (good works), and that our good works is the result of us remaining in God. We delight in these verses for these verses fuel our superior religiosity:

“For it is You who blesses the righteous man, O Lord, You surround him with favor as with a shield.” (Psalm 5:12, NASB)

“A faithful man will abound with blessings…” (Proverbs 28:20a, NASB)

“He who dwells in the shelter of the Most High will abide in the shadow of the Almighty...” (Psalm 91:1ff, NASB)

            On one end of our religious tightrope walk, we suppose we are righteous because of our superior communion with God. On the other end, we conclude we are God-appointed “holy-commandos” to cleanse all the sin and filth that surrounds us. This is at the core of superior religiosity.

            Pride inculcates a strong “I” or a powerful self-will even without one’s cognizance, thereby slowly yet surely corroding man’s dependence on God. C.S Lewis said this in Mere Christianity, “A proud man is always looking down on things and people; and, of course, as long as you are looking down, you cannot see something that is above you.”

            The spiritually proud are so convinced of their righteousness because they are internally persuaded that they distinctly hear God’s voice without a doubt. But we ought to know that God never contradicts HIS word. God will never ask HIS disciple to condemn, but only to be gracious.

            Spiritual pride puts on a façade of God’s presence in them. The spiritually proud boast outwardly of their superior religiosity, whereas their religiosity corrodes in their inner being. A truly religious person reveals God’s grace and resists condemnation. God’s will is for us to be gracious even as HE is gracious to us (Matthew 5:48). This is Christlikeness.

            While we are on this superior religiosity mode, we forget or ignore the one most foundational aspect – that we are products of God’s grace. We were saved by grace through faith (2 Timothy 1:9; Titus 3:5; Ephesians 2:8-9). Furthermore, we forget or ignore the constant presence of God’s grace, since we continue to sin in our thoughts, words, and deeds (Proverbs 20:9; Jeremiah 2:35b; Romans 3:10; 1 John 1:8). Oh that we would incorporate the fact that we cannot survive outside of God’s grace!

            The constant presence of God’s grace in our lives is a sobering thought that should crush our pride into a relentless dependence on God’s presence and grace. Not only that, we should actively proclaim God’s grace to all.

            We are mandated to make disciples of all nations (Matthew 28:19), not destroy them. May we live up to this mandate by the grace and power of God.

            Overcoming the innate corruption of one’s inner self is at the heart of Christianity. In my opinion, the theology of “works” within Christianity is a product of that corruption, and hence it needs to be completely debunked and the theology of “God’s grace” should overwhelm all Christians. HE wills and so we will. More on this later. Amen. 

Heart of Condemnation

            We may think there are no ugly crimes perpetrated within Christendom, especially in the likes of Nirbaya or a Sandy Hook massacre. That thought could lead us to be smug in our glass houses, thinking all is well within Christendom. But no, not all is well in Christianity.

            Do we think of our church as the best, our denomination so close to God’s heart, our music and worship even appealing to the heavenly realms, our knowledge of the Bible so vast, deep and impressive, our prayers greatly remarkable and efficient, and our sermons enchantingly admirable?

            How often do we mock at our neighbors faults? How often do we boast to our family and friends that we are so unlike the other sinful and appalling mortal (Cf Luke 18:9-14)?

            If we have gone through these motions, then welcome to the world of spiritual pride!

            At the heart of spiritual pride is a deeply embedded superior religiosity that looks down on everybody around. Let me give you an example from my own life. By the grace and power of God, I discarded smoking and alcoholism several years ago. My immediate response to practicing Christians who drink and smoke was that of a holy scorn. I mocked the legitimacy of their Christianity. How can they continue to drink and even drink like a fish, and smoke and even smoke like a chimney, and yet claim to be practicing Christians! I walked with a powerful halo around my condescending head showering utter disregard to these Christians.

            Condemnation also manifests in other ways – subtle as they may be. Couple of days ago, I had a short chat with a person I shall leave unnamed. He was shifting home, hence they requested their Pastor to visit and bless their new home. But on the day of their moving in, they were told that the Pastor was ill and cannot visit. If the Pastor was genuinely ill, then one should give him the latitude, for he is also a human being with a legitimate need to rest and recover. However, we need to ask one question here, if the same request had come from a powerful and influential member of that church, or from a rich member of that church, or from one of the elders, would the Pastor have visited the home in spite of his illness? The answer is only known to that Pastor and of course, God. If a Pastor or a church leader shows favoritism, then the person who has been deprived of the Pastor’s attention has been condemned to a state of humiliation.

            The holocaust was motivated because of the Nazi principle, “Life unworthy of life.” Then and literally, the Nazi’s decided who lived and died. Today and not so literally, we decide who lives and dies. Those condemned die a million deaths. One would not realize this fact unless they have experienced condemnation.

            The Bible screams against spiritual pride. I will endeavor to dig deep into this subject soon. May the good Lord bless and keep us always. Amen.