Unholy Charade - Jeff Crippen

Unmasking the Domestic Abuser in the Church

Author: Jeff Crippen Page 60 of 88

Let Me Say this Once Again – Evil Claims it can Read Our Motives and Thoughts

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On April 20, 2020

In Abusers

1 Corinthians 2:11  For who knows a person’s thoughts except the spirit of that person, which is in him? So also no one comprehends the thoughts of God except the Spirit of God.

I have written on this subject before but it has happened to me so often that I believe it is an extremely common tactic of wicked people – domestic abusers, spiritual abusers, and others. In an effort to accuse and disempower his target/victim, an evil man will use these kinds of statements as a weapon:

  • I know why you did that
  • I know why you enrolled in that class
  • I know why you moved to that location
  • I know why you said that to me

And guess what? He will go on to complete the sentence even if you don’t want him to. He will attribute an evil or a stupid or some other kind of bad motive to you. It is all about accusing, guilting, and shaming.

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Nets, Fish, and the New Creation

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On April 15, 2020

In Victims

John 21:1-11 After this Jesus revealed himself again to the disciples by the Sea of Tiberias, and he revealed himself in this way. (2) Simon Peter, Thomas (called the Twin), Nathanael of Cana in Galilee, the sons of Zebedee, and two others of his disciples were together. (3) Simon Peter said to them, “I am going fishing.” They said to him, “We will go with you.” They went out and got into the boat, but that night they caught nothing. (4) Just as day was breaking, Jesus stood on the shore; yet the disciples did not know that it was Jesus. (5) Jesus said to them, “Children, do you have any fish?” They answered him, “No.” (6) He said to them, “Cast the net on the right side of the boat, and you will find some.” So they cast it, and now they were not able to haul it in, because of the quantity of fish. (7) That disciple whom Jesus loved therefore said to Peter, “It is the Lord!” When Simon Peter heard that it was the Lord, he put on his outer garment, for he was stripped for work, and threw himself into the sea. (8) The other disciples came in the boat, dragging the net full of fish, for they were not far from the land, but about a hundred yards off. (9) When they got out on land, they saw a charcoal fire in place, with fish laid out on it, and bread. (10) Jesus said to them, “Bring some of the fish that you have just caught.” (11) So Simon Peter went aboard and hauled the net ashore, full of large fish, 153 of them. And although there were so many, the net was not torn.

As we work in this ministry to expose evil, specifically the evil of abuse, we should also take some “time-outs” as Jesus did.  He would go off by Himself and talk with His Father, and that is not a bad thing for us to do as well.  In fact, it is a necessity.
As evil as these days are, the Christian is a person of hope.  Not just the “cross your fingers” kind of hope, but genuine hope of a real certainty.  Christ has conquered sin and death.  He has already initiated the New Creation in us.  Our redemption draws closer and closer.  On that Day, we will never know abuse nor the abuser again.

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If They Didn't Really Know Him – How can they say he repented?

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On April 13, 2020

In Churches/Church Response

2 Timothy 4:14-15  Alexander the coppersmith did me great harm; the Lord will repay him according to his deeds.  (15)  Beware of him yourself, for he strongly opposed our message.

The Apostle Paul was wise about evil. Notice that in this warning to Timothy, Paul does not make any excuses for Alexander nor does he minimize his culpability. Paul does not tell Timothy to “pray” for Alexander or to urge him to repent.
The typical line that professing Christian people use on victims of domestic abuse is something like, “but I’m sure he is sorry. I’m sure he has changed. I just know that he loves you.” Blah, blah, blah. But here is my question for everyone who lays that kind of load on a victim:

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"He has Really Changed – You Need to go Talk to Him"

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On April 8, 2020

In Abusers, Churches/Church Response, Counseling

Romans 8:16  The Spirit himself bears witness with our spirit that we are children of God,

I know what it feels like. To have someone come up to you and tell you how much your abuser has changed for the good. After years of evil treatment at his hands, you finally were able to get away and start healing. But now, along comes some “well-meaning” person who has recently communicated with him and they just have to tell you that he is a changed person.
Now, they don’t have to complete the sentence. They have already said enough to let you know why they are telling you this. They think that you need to go see for yourself. No, they think that you need to forgive and forget now that the devil you knew is transformed into an angel.
Are these kind of people thinking that they are helping? I suppose in some cases. But the fact is that when someone does this to you, do you go away feeling encouraged? No! You feel triggered and re-traumatized. The thing is very DIS-couraging. People can be so, so, stupid, can’t they?

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The Wicked Use Bribery Against the Righteous

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On April 6, 2020

In Abusers

Exodus 23:8  And you shall take no bribe, for a bribe blinds the clear-sighted and subverts the cause of those who are in the right.
Proverbs 17:23  The wicked accepts a bribe in secret to pervert the ways of justice.

If  you search the Bible for the word “bribe” and its various forms, you will be surprised I think at how many times it is the subject of Scripture. This should tell us to be wise to this evil and very common tactic.  In my previous post I talked about how the wicked use false witnesses against the righteous and mentioned that such liars are often recruited with a bribe.
So it is today.

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Excellent Thoughts from My Friends

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On April 1, 2020

In Biblical Teaching

In the last couple of weeks I have received some comments from a few friends who all have survived wicked abuse. I decided what they said is too valuable to keep to myself, so here they are for all of you. They don’t address one specific tactic or subject, but here they are all in one place:

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Sometimes it is the Christian's Duty to Flee From Danger

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On March 30, 2020

In Churches/Church Response

Matthew 24:16-18  then let those who are in Judea flee to the mountains.  (17)  Let the one who is on the housetop not go down to take what is in his house,  (18)  and let the one who is in the field not turn back to take his cloak.

These verses are of course from the Lord’s words to His disciples which we call the Olivet Discourse (Matthew 24-25). Jesus is speaking to them here about the coming destruction of Jerusalem, but we can correctly apply what He says to our own daily lives now as well:

We see that flight from danger may sometimes be the positive duty of a Christian. The servant of Christ undoubtedly is not to be a coward. He is to confess his master before men. He is to be willing to die, if needful, for the truth. But the servant of Christ is not required to run into danger, unless it comes in the line of duty. He is not to be ashamed to use reasonable means to provide for his personal safety when no good is to be done by dying at his post. There is deep wisdom in this lesson. The true martyrs are not always those who court death, and are in a hurry to be beheaded or burned. [J.C. Ryle, Expository Thoughts on the Gospels, p. 318-19]

One of the most deceitful and wicked wolves hiding in sheep’s clothing that I have ever known used to love to push this business upon people. “Oh but just think of your reward in heaven if you willingly undergo this suffering,” he loved to say to people who were being reviled and maligned by some other wolf among the flock. Of course if anyone were to malign HIM, he would blow up in anger and not stand for it for a second. Abusers have double standards you know.  Always double standards.

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New Short Book Published – Who is a Christian? (Jeff Crippen)

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On March 26, 2020

In Biblical Teaching


This 28 page booklet, which is based on my sermon by the same title, is now available on Amazon both in print and kindle formats*. I hope it will be a valuable tool for evangelism, but also to present to someone who thinks they know Christ but…perhaps do not. As most of our readers know, one of the chief reasons domestic abusers are able to hide in churches and win pastors and members as their allies against the victim is because so many “Christians” are not really born again.
This is the description that appears on Amazon:

Most people who profess to be Christians think that they know the answer to the question that is the subject of this book: Who is a Christian? It is my opinion however that they do not. The majority think, for example, that a Christian is someone who: has prayed to receive Jesus, has been baptized, walked down a church aisle at an “altar call”, and whom God has forgiven of their sins, and continues to forgive them no matter how they live. And yet, Jesus distilled it all down to the essentials when He told Nicodemus, you must be born again. Myriads of “Christians” are not. They are the same people they always were. They do not know Christ, and He does not know them. It is my hope that this small booklet will cause the real Christian to further appreciate what Christ has done for and in them, and that it will shock the “almost Christian” into a realization of their desperate need to be born again.

Also, the audio and PDF of the sermon, Who is a Christian?, can be found at sermonaudio.com/crc

*Unholy Charade is a participant in the Amazon Services LLC Associates Program, an affiliate advertising program designed to provide a means for website owners to earn advertising fees by advertising and linking to Amazon.com and affiliated sites. See additional information here.

**Another Look at the Abuser as Reviler

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On March 23, 2020

In Abusers

How long, O God, is the foe to scoff? Is the enemy to revile your name forever (Psalms 74:10)
“Blessed are you when others revile you and persecute you and utter all kinds of evil against you falsely on my account. (Matthew 5:11)
But now I am writing to you not to associate with anyone who bears the name of brother if he is guilty of sexual immorality or greed, or is an idolater, reviler, drunkard, or swindler—not even to eat with such a one. (1 Corinthians 5:11)
Or do you not know that the unrighteous will not inherit the kingdom of God? Do not be deceived: neither the sexually immoral, nor idolaters, nor adulterers, nor men who practice homosexuality, nor thieves, nor the greedy, nor drunkards, nor revilers, nor swindlers will inherit the kingdom of God. (1 Corinthians 6:9-10)

I want us to think some more about this word “revile” and the person who is called a “reviler” in Scripture. Every abuser is a reviler. As you can see from just these verses, a reviler is not a Christian. Revilers will not inherit the kingdom of God. That is about as plain a way of stating it as you could want.

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Shamelessly Plugging "In My Father's House"

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On March 19, 2020

In Blog News


Most of you know already that we published this small book recently. It is available on Amazon,  just go there and search under my name or the book’s title. (and here is a link for your convenience*)  I am posting this reminder because I really believe this is an extremely helpful and important tool for all of you and for people you know.  Why? Because it enables people to get a clear handle on the big, big, main theme of the Bible. It clears away the fog and turns on the lights of understanding about just what God is doing for us in Christ. And it does so in very few pages.
This blog is the primary arena for getting the word out about the book, so I would very much appreciate it if you all could help spread the word.
And by the way, a second short book of similar format, illustrated, is going to be published soon called, Who is a Christian? You all know how important that subject is for a day in which there is no clear answer to that question, but there are many false answers to it. Most all of us have been recipients of abuse as a result.  So keep an eye out for it. And…we are still moving closer to publishing a 330 page book called Wise as Serpents: Growing Wise to the Evil Among Us.
 

*Unholy Charade is a participant in the Amazon Services LLC Associates Program, an affiliate advertising program designed to provide a means for website owners to earn advertising fees by advertising and linking to Amazon.com and affiliated sites. See additional information here.

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