Unholy Charade - Jeff Crippen

Unmasking the Domestic Abuser in the Church

Author: Jeff Crippen Page 53 of 88

Idols are False Gods, a dream, an imagination

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On November 25, 2020

In Biblical Teaching

Psalms 115:3-8 ESV  Our God is in the heavens; he does all that he pleases.  (4)  Their idols are silver and gold, the work of human hands.  (5)  They have mouths, but do not speak; eyes, but do not see.  (6)  They have ears, but do not hear; noses, but do not smell.  (7)  They have hands, but do not feel; feet, but do not walk; and they do not make a sound in their throat.  (8)  Those who make them become like them; so do all who trust in them.

G.K. Beale, my favorite theologian, wrote a book called We Become What we Worship: A Biblical Theology of Idolatry. It is an incredibly important Bible doctrine that we all need to know well. Beale points to the verses above from Psalm 115 as his central text. Especially verse 8 – those who make them become like them. 
The typical local church of our day is worshipping false gods fashioned by their own devices and imaginations. As they do so, they themselves become increasingly blind. They have eyes but do not see, ears but do not hear – just like their idols.

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Audio Improvement on our Sunday Broadcasts

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On November 23, 2020

In Blog News

Yesterday we used some new microphone equipment in our worship service. I think you will find a marked improvement in the sound quality.  You can watch the worship service on our Facebook page (Christ Reformaton Church) either during the livestream at 11am Sundays, or Facebook will also retain a recording of the service for later viewing too.  We upload just the sermon portion of the service to our youtube channel (Unholy Charade) and to sermonaudio.com/crc
We also livestream on Facebook the Sunday morning class at 9:30am and it likewise is saved by Facebook for later viewing. We upload the class to our youtube channel.
Some of our viewers are catching on to the feature on Facebook livestream that lets them comment, ask questions, etc duruing the Sunday morning class. We read the questions aloud and then answer them or respond to comments.
It seems to me that increasingly we are able to offer a real opportunity for people to become part of Christ Reformation Church. You can even participate in the weekly Lord’s Supper observance during the morning service. We broadcast it as well and you can have bread and cup wherever  you are.
One pattern I am seeing, and I fully understand it, is that people look and look and look and search and search and search for a church that is a real body of genuine believers and which is wise about evil or at least truly willing to learn. Some people have searched for years, literally, and still come up empty. And then they remember us and join us as their church and realize they have finally found a real church home.

The Blinding Work of our Enemy in this Spiritual War

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On November 23, 2020

In Counseling

Proverbs 26:23 ESV  Like the glaze covering an earthen vessel are fervent lips with an evil heart.

Here is a very important insight shared today by Survivor, a commenter at my Light for Dark Times blog. She pointed us to the verse above.

Even Christian marriage counselors do not understand the machinations of mind control. In fact, I believe that mind control was even used on the counselors by my abuser. It seems that the veneer of a deceitful mind can circumvent even very intelligent people.

Mind control. Not the kind that a Jedi knight in Star Wars exercises, but the kind of deceptive darkness that Satan is a master at using. We should not be surprised if his servants wield the same weaponry.

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Part 2 of An Appearance of Godliness is Published now at lightfordarktimes.com

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On November 20, 2020

In Churches/Church Response

An Appearance of Godliness: Case Studies in Evil (Part 2) is now published at Light for Dark Times. This is the series that you can help me turn into a book with your comments and experiences. Just comment or email me at swordtrowel@gmail.com

A Warning to Those who Harbor the Wicked

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On November 18, 2020

In Churches/Church Response

Jeremiah 7:5-8 ESV  “For if you truly amend your ways and your deeds, if you truly execute justice one with another,  (6)  if you do not oppress the sojourner, the fatherless, or the widow, or shed innocent blood in this place, and if you do not go after other gods to your own harm,  (7)  then I will let you dwell in this place, in the land that I gave of old to your fathers forever.  (8)  “Behold, you trust in deceptive words to no avail.

Listen to Matthew Henry’s comment on these verses. The underlining is mine:

Those that had power in their hands must thoroughly execute judgment between a man and his neighbor, without partiality, and according as the merits of the case appeared. They must not either in judgment or in contract oppress the stranger, the fatherless, or the widow, nor countenance or protect those that did oppress, nor refuse to do them justice when they sought for it. [Matthew Henry, Commentary on Jeremiah]

We all know that abusers and other evildoers work very hard to gather allies for themselves. And frankly, in local churches, they don’t have to work all that hard to accomplish this. We have firsthand testimony time after time after time of how a pastor, other church leaders, or church members did exactly what the Lord is commanding Jeremiah’s countrymen to repent of. They do countenance (approve) of these wicked people and protect them from judgment.

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Some Common Sense from the Ananias and Sapphira Scripture

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On November 16, 2020

In Churches/Church Response

Acts 5:7-9 ESV  After an interval of about three hours his wife came in, not knowing what had happened.  (8)  And Peter said to her, “Tell me whether you sold the land for so much.” And she said, “Yes, for so much.”  (9)  But Peter said to her, “How is it that you have agreed together to test the Spirit of the Lord? Behold, the feet of those who have buried your husband are at the door, and they will carry you out.”

A wise lady sent me the following observations about this account of Ananias and Sapphira and their sin and what it tells us about this widespread oppressive teaching in churches that a wife is to “respect” her husband by remaining silent even when he is wicked:

Isn’t it interesting that Ananias AND Sapphira were questioned separately? So if she was not supposed to hide the truth about their joint decision…why should a wife have to keep hiding the truth about what the husband is really like behind closed doors? If he treated a co-worker the same it would be seen as  verbal harassment and assault. Both have safeguards under the law. Therefore when a woman comes forward she is doing the right thing by saying her husband is actually committing a crime against her. I think this is why the Christian witness before the world is so odious on this topic. It defies common sense that we would encourage a woman to stay in a situation where crimes are continuously committed against her. How is that showing the love of Christ before the world?

I think that says it all.

Watch Out for this Leaven – It has Permeated the Visible Church

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On November 16, 2020

In Churches/Church Response, False Teaching

I received this email from a friend this morning and am very thankful to her for taking the time to write and point out a prevailing false teaching that is soooo commonly pushed in churches. This stuff will guilt and demean and it can sound so “biblical.”  The screenshots she mentions follow below and then my reply to her after that.

Dear Pastor Crippen,
Every morning we get an email devotional from the Institute for Creation Research. I am sending two screen shots of the devotional this morning. I was quite shocked to read the commentary. I thought it would be of interest to you. The passage that is mentioned has always been confusing to me but the interpretation given here makes it sound like women remain under “a sentence.”  That doesn’t make sense since I know Jesus redeemed me and freed me from the curse of the law. He paid for it all. I would love to hear your commentary on this passage.
Thank you for fulfilling your calling. I have written before but will say it again- your ministry is literally saving lives.
A concerned friend in Christ,

Here is the devotional that she sent. As she mentioned it is put out by the Institute for Creation Research.

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Announcing a New Series – Want to Help me write a book?

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On November 13, 2020

In Abusers

This post was published this morning at my other blog, lightfordarktimes.com, but I am also publishing it here at Unholy Charade because I would really like all of you to see it. If you haven’t followed LFDT’s yet, please go there and sign on to follow. This post is the first in a series which will become a book and…well, here it is and I explain what this series is for – [I will just publish this first post in the series here at Unholy Charade. The rest will appear each Friday at LFDT’s] –
I have the outline of a new book sitting here on my desk, which I never seem to have time to get started on. So I thought what I would do is write it here with a weekly installment, and have you all provide your observations and comments and thereby…help me write the book!
Here is the central theme scripture the book title is drawn from and which is really a statement of the purpose of the book:

2 Timothy 3:1-5 ESV  But understand this, that in the last days there will come times of difficulty.  (2)  For people will be lovers of self, lovers of money, proud, arrogant, abusive, disobedient to their parents, ungrateful, unholy,  (3)  heartless, unappeasable, slanderous, without self-control, brutal, not loving good,  (4)  treacherous, reckless, swollen with conceit, lovers of pleasure rather than lovers of God,  (5)  having the appearance of godliness, but denying its power. Avoid such people.

Most all of the wicked people I have had to deal with as a pastor, in the church, were this very kind of person. They had the appearance of godliness, but they denied its power. Let’s see if we can think through what this means.

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More Wisdom About the Wicked

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On November 11, 2020

In Abusers

I found this quote in an old commentary on the book of Jeremiah:

The most wicked, we know, flatter themselves while they can retain the good opinion and applause of the world; and as long as they continue in honor, they slumber in their vices.

The author continues:

…though hypocrites flatter themselves, and the whole world enourages them by its adulations [applause] all this will not avail them; for they must at last come before the tribunal of God and that before God truth only will be approved and honored.

The particular kind of wicked person we deal with here – the domestic abuser (including the narcissist, sociopath, and psychopath) fits this description quite well. Evil people flatter themselves that they are quite right with God. They boast about what fine saints they are. They quote Bible verses left and right. And what encourages them to be able to “slumber in their vices,” un-troubled by conscience, is that they are receiving the praise, applause, and adulation of the world, including that of worldly churches.

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Watch Out for the Usual Suspects

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On November 9, 2020

In Churches/Church Response, False Teaching, Getting Free

I suppose that you get email advertisements from various Christian vendors and organizations like I do.  Here is one that just came announcing a book and a DVD series on the church:

That isn’t the greatest resolution on the picture so I don’t know how well you can read it. What I wanted to emphasize and warn you about is what I call “the usual suspects.” The evangelical church and associated organizations almost always utilize their “go to” people. Whether it be a conference or a new book that needs endorsing or some teaching series like this one, you can be sure that the list of “speakers” and authors will include the same names over and over and over. This in itself is a danger because far too many Christians consider what these people say to be “gospel.” Often it isn’t.

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