Romans 1:22 Claiming to be wise, they became fools,
Only a fool worships an idol instead of the living and true God revealed to us in the Lord Jesus Christ. And so it is with the RASN (revilers, abusers, sociopaths, narcissists). RASNs worship the idol-god of self. They set themselves up as a god and demand to be worshipped. That is the only use they have for others – to provide this supply of worship.
But making oneself out to be God is the essence of evil madness. The Bible says over and over again that those who worship idols are blind, deaf, and fools. Isaiah mocks the idolater by describing a man who cuts down a tree, then uses half of it for firewood and the other half to carve into a god which he bows down to!
RASNs, as you know, regard themselves to be the wisest of the wise. They are superior. As such, they are entitled. They know, while you are an idiot. If you voice an opinion, they regard you with contempt and tell you to go back to your corner with a dunce hat on. And RASNs cannot hide this attitude indefinitely. They may try to keep the mask on but eventually that sneer of contempt for you forms on their face and in their tone which cannot be hidden.
RASNs become fools. They ARE fools. Their RASNhood leads them to say and do absolutely stupid things. Blinded by their self-exaltation, they lack discernment. They become near-sighted and take off running on some fools errand. For instance, they will arrogantly insist upon some particular opinion in a setting which no thinking person would voice such a thing. They launch out on actions without thinking through the outcome.
For example, if someone dares to deny them worship, or if someone dares to disagree with them or make a suggestion as to how the RASN might be wrong, the RASN will set out to punish and destroy. Think of the domestic abuser for instance. Here is his spouse working successfully in a career and advancing, making a very good salary. But the abuser cannot have that. It is a threat to his power, his control, and his superiority. So what does he do? He works to sabotage her success, even going so far as to cause her to lose her job. The result? He has just cut off the limb he was sitting on. Her success benefitted him in many ways. But being the fool that he is, he destroyed it all.
RASNs demand they be regarded as “right.” As being the one who knows. Whose opinions are to be accepted always. This wicked egoism drives people away and far from leading them to respect the RASN, instead results in them wanting nothing to do with him, let alone worship him.
RASNs are fools. They may have the highest academic degrees. They may possess great factual intelligence. But wisdom? Empty tank. Lacking love for others and wallowing in self-love, they show themselves to be the fools they are. The beginning of wisdom is the fear of the Lord but RASNs fear nothing except being exposed for what they are.
ArtsyK
This site is wonderful and validating. Just subscribed. I found your posts today, after a good bit of searching on the topic of “churches and evil.”
Earlier today, I sent the following message to a well-known international ministry. ( I won’t call them out by name.):
“Do you have any material (past sermons, CDs, books) that address dealing with evil in the family structure? Quite a few people, including myself, grew up with sociopathic or narcissistic parents. (I’m not talking about good people who do bad things, I’m taking about true malevolence.)
Recently I’ve seen several books/interviews about people who were raised by sociopaths and later found the Light. These individuals brilliantly convey their deep faith and their long journey to it. There is also a common struggle to their journeys: how to interpret “honor thy father and mother” and “forgiveness” in the context of their own experiences.
For my own journey, I’ve crossed a great valley, and know that forgiveness does not mean putting myself back in harm’s way. And I honor my parent by being grateful for the courage and faith I now have, as a direct result of my journey. However, many people never make it this far. A cousin, abused by a sociopathic mother for years and later molested by her uncle, ended up committing suicide in her mother’s home. This cousin had joined a church, and spent much of each day dedicating her life to God. Yet, she misunderstood the teachings and thought she had to keep going back to her mother to “forgive,” to make the relationship work. It was finally too much to bear. And that’s just one example.
Given that one of the favorite hiding places of evil is the church (the pedophile uncle was a deacon at his church), how do we “be real” and recognize/address such evil in our presence?”
>>> Within 2 hours of my submitting the above message to the ministry, someone from the ministry CALLED me on the phone! (Kudos to them for this speedy response and a call at that.) The response however was: No — they have no such materials to address the evil-in-family topic I mentioned, though they admitted it was a common scenario. They just sell sermons, books, etc. to address what a family should look like.
HUH?
Jeff Crippen
Thankyou! You can find my book Unholy Charade at Amazon. I also have a couple more there such as Wise as Serpents which should help. (Jeff Crippen)