The road to learning about my own arrogance as a Christian

While you all know that I don't condone a homosexual/bi/transgendered lifestyle, I think this passage will put some things into perspective. While we are so apt to call out the sin of another, we forget to look at our own...much less admit it. Until the church body can admit its own sins, maybe we should take a step back from condemning another due to his/her sins. NO, I'm not saying to advocate for their lifestyle. What I'm saying is........clean your own house first.

1 Corinthians 6:6-11
Names of God Bible (NOG)
Settling Disagreements between Christians

6 When one of you has a complaint against another, how dare you go to court to settle the matter in front of wicked people. Why don’t you settle it in front of God’s holy people? 2 Don’t you know that God’s people will judge the world? So if you’re going to judge the world, aren’t you capable of judging insignificant cases? 3 Don’t you know that we will judge angels, not to mention things in this life? 4 When you have cases dealing with this life, why do you allow people whom the church has a low opinion of to be your judges? 5 You should be ashamed of yourselves! Don’t you have at least one wise person who is able to settle disagreements between believers? 6 Instead, one believer goes to court against another believer, and this happens in front of unbelievers.

7 You are already totally defeated because you have lawsuits against each other. Why don’t you accept the fact that you have been wronged? Why don’t you accept that you have been cheated? 8 Instead, you do wrong and cheat, and you do this to other believers.

9 Don’t you know that wicked people won’t inherit the kingdom of God? Stop deceiving yourselves! People who continue to commit sexual sins, who worship false gods, those who commit adultery, homosexuals, 10 or thieves, those who are greedy or drunk, who use abusive language, or who rob people will not inherit the kingdom of God. 11 That’s what some of you were! But you have been washed and made holy, and you have received God’s approval in the name of the Lord Yeshua Christ and in the Spirit of our God.

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 1 Corinthians 5
Names of God Bible (NOG)
How to Treat Christians Who Live Like Non-Christians

Your own members are aware that there is sexual sin going on among them. This kind of sin is not even heard of among unbelievers—a man is actually married to his father’s wife. 2 You’re being arrogant when you should have been more upset about this. If you had been upset, the man who did this would have been removed from among you. 3 Although I’m not physically present with you, I am with you in spirit. I have already judged the man who did this as though I were present with you. 4 When you have gathered together, I am with you in spirit. Then, in the name of our Lord Yeshua, and with his power, 5 hand such a person over to Satan to destroy his corrupt nature so that his spiritual nature may be saved on the day of the Lord.

6 It’s not good for you to brag. Don’t you know that a little yeast spreads through the whole batch of dough? 7 Remove the old yeast of sin so that you may be a new batch of dough, since you don’t actually have the yeast of sin.

Christ, our Passover lamb, has been sacrificed. 8 So we must not celebrate our festival with the old yeast of sin or with the yeast of vice and wickedness. Instead, we must celebrate it with the bread of purity and truth that has no yeast.

9 In my letter to you I told you not to associate with people who continue to commit sexual sins. 10 I didn’t tell you that you could not have any contact with unbelievers who commit sexual sins, are greedy, are dishonest, or worship false gods. If that were the case, you would have to leave this world. 11 Now, what I meant was that you should not associate with people who call themselves brothers or sisters in the Christian faith but live in sexual sin, are greedy, worship false gods, use abusive language, get drunk, or are dishonest. Don’t eat with such people.

12 After all, do I have any business judging those who are outside the Christian faith? Isn’t it your business to judge those who are inside? 13 God will judge those who are outside. Remove that wicked man from among you.

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A friend of mine on Facebook made this comment on the discussion we were having: "The problem for Christians is that non believers put us up on a impossible pedestal that no human can reach. Only Jesus did. We are not perfect and should never ever say we are. We must strive to do Gods will and share his gospel while confessing that we too are sinners who are saved because Jesus died for us and through him we ask forgiveness and grow in our salvation. "
To which I replied: "I think that would be OUR faults. WE, as Christians, make ourselves out to be much more holy than we really are. That, in turn, makes it seem as if others put us on a pedestal. You're right, we're not perfect; however, too many in the body use that as an excuse to continue in their sin."

While I won't often share between the two of us in a blog, it was in commenting to her that I, myself, realized just how arrogant I'd gotten as a Christian.  We, as Christians, have gotten our panties in a bunch so much at the sins of those "outside the church walls", that we've forgotten to look at our own reflections....the reflection that God's Word shows back to us.  If we were to be honest, we'd hate what we see. We claim we love God, but do we really? We claim we serve God. Do we really? I know that love and service to God doesn't NOT equate to us being perfect...as in..NO sin whatsoever.  What does it mean, though?  It means that we love God enough to do HIS will (which is HIS Word). It means that, even when we fail, we get up, dust ourselves off, acknowledge it, and go forward into all truth. It doesn't mean we use our failings as a crutch to continue sinning. Yes, we are only human.  However, we have the Holy Spirit inside us...guiding us into all truth...and God's Word is truth. Rightfully divide the Word of God. Discern what you are told by other so-called Christians. There are many "sheep in wolves clothing" who are eager to feed off the ignorance of Christians.