More on Marriage, Ministry, and Credibility
Al Mohler notes in passing that Stephen Arterburn, co-author of Every Man's Battle and Every Young Man's Battle, has been divorced twice and recently began his third marriage - to a young woman he met at one of his purity seminars!
Sigh.
Yikes! That's awful. Mohler pointed out what I thought were Arterburn's most disturbing words - Embracing the divorce and walking right into it meant I was truly stepping off any kind of pedestal I'd crafted for myself. This marks a couple of times now that I've read from Christians a call to "embrace divorce." What's the deal with that? Ought we not to mourn the broken relationship and repent?
ReplyDeleteI have not read any of Arterburn's books, but I know many in my church who have. I will heed my pastoral call to "warn the flock."
Thanks for the link, Paul.
* Did David write any Psalms after he had slept with Bathsheba and Uriah killed? Do we percieve the Psalms he wrote any differently because he was an adulterer?
ReplyDelete* Did Moses write anything after he killed an Egyptian? Do we percieve the writing down of the Decalogue any differently when we know it was done by a murderer?
* Did Paul write anything after he hunted down Christians?
Does the truth of what he has written change because of his own actions?
* Was Paul hunting down Christians while he was writing epistles?
ReplyDelete* Was Moses murdering soldiers while he read Israel God's Law?
* Did David write Psalms on the sanctity of life and marriage in the middle of the Uriah/Bathsheba failing?
There seems to be a fatal difference between Paul/David's/Moses' ministries and Stephen Arterburn's: Repentance.
ReplyDeleteRead
Psalm 51
Exodus 3
Acts 22
1 Timothy 1:15
Examples of the humility of these men.
From my reading of Arterburn, it would appear to be "The blind leading the blind"
True faith, true life-giving christianity transforms. New creation, wholeness...redemption. It is not divorce. Twice. It is restoration. That is the message that is taught to us, and the life we are all called to.
Hello,
ReplyDeleteI know this is an old post, so I don't know if you will notice it. However I was searching for info on Arterburn, wondering if I should listen or not. I am divorced because my ex hit me and hit my child.
My ex refuses to let me go, even though we are legally divorced. Not only is he stalking me, but he is reading a lot of baloney from Rejoice Ministries that says he is married to me forever no matter what, something they call a "Stander's Affirmation".
His beliefs and his actions are scaring me, my friends and my love interest. Everyone is afraid of retaliation and that I may be killed. My love interest is afraid he may be attacked. My ex already has taken me to court multiple times with false accusations. His church believes I will burn in the lake of fire if I ever remarry (or even have relations). His church is also causing conflict in my children as they are telling the kids that mom is evil for divorcing their father.
I think sometimes divorce for good reasons is warranted. Must I be sentenced to never have love in my life just because my ex husband is angry and punitive? I had many years of no affection and mistreatment by him. He is very angry that I have embarrassed him in the "Christian" community by divorcing him and telling his pastors that he hit me and the children and borrowed thousands from my elderly mother without paying her back. When is enough, enough? Do "Christians" have to persecute single women who just want to be happy and treat them like they are sinners when they just wanted to be away from domestic violence?