Has anyone else been a victim of “Church Hurt”?
- Thread starter GospelScribe
- Start date
-
Christian Chat is a moderated online Christian community allowing Christians around the world to fellowship with each other in real time chat via webcam, voice, and text, with the Christian Chat app. You can also start or participate in a Bible-based discussion here in the Christian Chat Forums, where members can also share with each other their own videos, pictures, or favorite Christian music.
If you are a Christian and need encouragement and fellowship, we're here for you! If you are not a Christian but interested in knowing more about Jesus our Lord, you're also welcome! Want to know what the Bible says, and how you can apply it to your life? Join us!
To make new Christian friends now around the world, click here to join Christian Chat.
There are “religious” folks in the church who believe that every Christian should be as sinless as our Lord Jesus. And, of course, none of us are (except the delusional).
”There is therefore now no condemnation to those who are in Christ Jesus, who do not walk according to the flesh, but according to the Spirit.“
Romans 8:1 NKJV
So, why do I feel so judged (condemned) by the Pharisees in my life?
”There is therefore now no condemnation to those who are in Christ Jesus, who do not walk according to the flesh, but according to the Spirit.“
Romans 8:1 NKJV
So, why do I feel so judged (condemned) by the Pharisees in my life?
-
1
- Show all
"Church hurt" is another name for spiritual abuse. This occurs any time that church leaders abuse their God-given authority, or church members' treatment of others is inconsistent with the teachings of Scripture. Rarely is the core issue a basic teaching of the Christian faith.
I've seen it personally in several situations. In one, a temporary pastor embraced some very slanted information about the state of the congregation and came in swinging a proverbial club. 40% of the members left within three months, and the congregation folded completely within a few years. In another, the pastor would run out anyone who disagreed with him on secondary issues. Surprisingly that congregation is still functioning... though it's smaller than it was.
I'm glad to hear there are people who have never experienced this kind of c**p in their Christian walk. That gives me hope.
I've seen it personally in several situations. In one, a temporary pastor embraced some very slanted information about the state of the congregation and came in swinging a proverbial club. 40% of the members left within three months, and the congregation folded completely within a few years. In another, the pastor would run out anyone who disagreed with him on secondary issues. Surprisingly that congregation is still functioning... though it's smaller than it was.
I'm glad to hear there are people who have never experienced this kind of c**p in their Christian walk. That gives me hope.
-
3
-
1
- Show all
If you mean what I think you mean yes. it all goes back to a "monks cloak" which at the time intended to be a halloween costume, but later turned into a very functional outfit after finding how warm it was. But according to the hip pastor who by the way routinely wears carharts to preach in, who didn't actually see the outfit, but heard about it through second hand rumors, called me on the phone in the middle of the week essentially accusing me of cross dressing in a "mini skirt (It does make use of a skirt, but it's full length). Though not specifically because of that I went back to my old church which was pastorless for awhile. Worn it multiple times there, no complaints, Ironic the old suit and tie pastor has no objections and the "hip" carhart guy can't stand it. works great in the winter in a 100 year old church building with poor insulation.
-
1
-
1
- Show all
Ya know?
I've had some horrible dating experiences. Some of the nightmares told in the news and internet. ...doesn't mean that I gave up on the concept of being a part of a normal marriage....or decided to become LGBTQ....No....I kept at it until I found the love of my life.
And I've had some horrible experiences in churches. Every bad thing imaginable...from being called names in front of the congregation to being completely ignored even after giving significantly above and beyond the call of duty to that group of believers.
BUT
That doesn't mean that Jesus didn't rise from the dead or that Jesus isn't God and that He told us to not to gather together or to not give to God.
I've had some horrible dating experiences. Some of the nightmares told in the news and internet. ...doesn't mean that I gave up on the concept of being a part of a normal marriage....or decided to become LGBTQ....No....I kept at it until I found the love of my life.
And I've had some horrible experiences in churches. Every bad thing imaginable...from being called names in front of the congregation to being completely ignored even after giving significantly above and beyond the call of duty to that group of believers.
BUT
That doesn't mean that Jesus didn't rise from the dead or that Jesus isn't God and that He told us to not to gather together or to not give to God.
-
2
- Show all
Oh the old sinlessness in the flesh doctrine pushers... Yes i 100% agree people who push that doctrine are delusional.. The truth is not in them..
(1 John 1:8) " {8} If we say that we have no sin, we deceive ourselves, and the truth is not in us."
Because your guilty of sin... The response to that conviction is to turn to the LORD and thank Him for the Atonement He secured on the cross that secures forgiveness for that sin.. Then smile and know you are forgiven and loved..
(1 John 1:8) " {8} If we say that we have no sin, we deceive ourselves, and the truth is not in us."
Because your guilty of sin... The response to that conviction is to turn to the LORD and thank Him for the Atonement He secured on the cross that secures forgiveness for that sin.. Then smile and know you are forgiven and loved..
As I said in my intro thread, I was raised primarily in my younger years, by my extremely legalistic aunt and uncle. So much of their worldview was based in fear - if I did anything they didn't approve of (even if it wasn't against Scripture), they had no problem telling me that I was going straight to hell. I endured that teatment for a few years, and then around the time I was 15 I started to emotionally withdraw from the church. I still went on a mostly-regular basis, mainly to please my Mom, but my heart wasn't truly in it. By the time I was 20, I was starting to make some very bad choices (which I will not detail here, since kids might be reading this). But to put it simply, the only vices I didn't have during this time were drinking or smoking heavily, driving recklessly, and doing drugs. The fallout from my other sins, both mental and emotional, are part of what led me back to God - I just couldn't take the chaotic stress anymore. The circumstances of my life then had been the epitome of the phrase, "living hell"...and I didn't know where to go or who to turn to. But my Mom slowly helped me to truly repent, and over time I started reading my Bible, watching preachers, and praying again. I'm much better now, but my days are far from perfect.
Yeah, it was absolutely insane in those days. One of the clearest memories I have from that time, was of my aunt seriously insisting that the 1990s "Teenage Mutant Ninja Turtles" cartoons were Satanic (no joke - she literally said that). As such, I was forbidden to watch the program in her home, but one morning I tried to do so anyway. I was caught though, and punished for it; I'm not sure if she was more bothered by my disobedience in general, or the specific nature of it.
On a related note, both of them had their own "secular" (and I truly despise that term) TV shows, which they enjoyed watching at the time. For my aunt it was "Murder, She Wrote", while my uncle introduced me to "Star Trek: The Next Generation". So in hindsight, I look back at their behavior and consider it to be fairly hypocritical. They mostly watched the TBN network, especially during the day, but when it came to primetime their choices were different...and I was kept somewhat on the outside. Even now, as an adult myself, I think of those days and wonder, "Where was the sense in all of this?"
On a related note, both of them had their own "secular" (and I truly despise that term) TV shows, which they enjoyed watching at the time. For my aunt it was "Murder, She Wrote", while my uncle introduced me to "Star Trek: The Next Generation". So in hindsight, I look back at their behavior and consider it to be fairly hypocritical. They mostly watched the TBN network, especially during the day, but when it came to primetime their choices were different...and I was kept somewhat on the outside. Even now, as an adult myself, I think of those days and wonder, "Where was the sense in all of this?"
Yeah, I was maybe 18 or so, when I quit seeing my aunt and uncle on a regular basis. My mother moved my sister and I away from them, many years later saying she wished she had done so earlier. She also confessed that her initial failure was one of her life's biggest regrets. My aunt passed away in 2003, and then my uncle moved to a different town in 2010...eventually passing as well in 2017.