Incremental Confession
When I heard the report about Ted Haggard, I was absolutely stunned. I felt like the little kid who shouted out to Shoeless Joe Jackson during the Black Sox scandal, "Say it ain't so, Ted! Say it ain't so."
And Thursday, he did say it wasn't so -- at first.
Friday, he said it "sort of" wasn't so.
Saturday, it was so.
Although I was floored by the report, I was not surprised by the response.
I've noticed that often, when people are caught in some kind of sin, they confess incrementally.
First, they deny it. Then a day or so later, they admit a little bit. Finally, in a couple more days, they come clean (although not always entirely.)
Have you noticed this tendency in human nature?
Why do people behave that way?
How should a church deal with someone who is confessing incrementally?
You ask the hard questions.
ReplyDeleteI'll ask another - - - - what makes ANY OF US think that God's words: "Be sure your sin will find you out" do not apply to us????
If David was, as God said he was, a man after God's own heart, and HE could enter sin - - - - - what makes any of the rest of us think we are immune.
Our only hope is daily dependence on the still small voice.
It was so sad to read the reports about Ted and the sin he admitted to. There are 2 things that come to my mind over this:
ReplyDelete1) The need to have honest accountability partners that are not afraid to ask the hard questions to keep integrity in check.
2)We as Christians need to be praying fervently for God's chosen leaders, even if they have been caught in an embarrassing sinful situation. We need to lift them up - not tear them down. I once heard that Christians have the only army that attacks its own soldiers when they are hurt. We should love them back to spiritual health.