A Diversion Tactic of the “Religious” RASN

Listen to this insightful quote from a pastor of days gone by (in the 1800’s) regarding how the wicked divert attention from the own evils:

Speculation about theological doctrine is often found in an unnatural union with habitual neglect of moral duty. And among the endless winding paths of the depraved human heart, this is one – to seek in quarrelsome discussions about orthodox versus erroneous doctrine, protection from the shafts of conviction for the person’s own plain violations of the law of God.”

John Brown, Sayings of Our Lord, Banner of Truth

Understand? In applying this tactic to the RASN (reviler, abuser, sociopath, narcissist), it is that practice of diverting attention from his/her own wickedness by injecting some religious subject which lends itself to debate. This kind of RASN habitually presents himself as a religious scholar, able to recite Scripture and present the most minute theories about doctrinal subjects, all the while having the intention of diverting attention away from his own evil life.

This is one reason RASN’s creep into the church, especially when the RASN perceives that a particular church is naive about evil. “Oh, my, what a fine Christian he must be. He knows so much.” But what is really happening is that whenever a discussion, a sermon, a Bible study…starts getting too close in consideration of sin….this kind of RASN will derail the topic and divert the discussion onto some debatable sidetrack.

If we are wise, we must not permit this sidetracking to happen. We must not become people who are caught up in cold, dead orthodoxy whose churches are characterized by a pride of knowledge. RASNs in disguise very often love such places and, concealing their true selves, lurk in the shadows where the light of God’s truth does not expose them.