And that is exactly what the group provided for me for several months. Unfortunately the tone and demeaner of the group has turned very sour and vicious in the last few weeks. There are those in the group who seem to be far more hurt than the rest of us. And the way that they deal with the pain is to attack practically everything that moves that identifies itself as christianity, if it does not happen to fit in their little box that they have created for their faith.
Two days ago, one of the members posted a question about a very famous and successful pastor. One of the other members of the group posted a very slanderous and libelous statement about this pastor. And then the person posted several more. When I confronted the individual concerning the obvious error of their statements, the person just replied with more slander and more libel about this pastor. This person had no proof or actual documentation for the statements that were made. The person just continued their untrue, unsubstantiated rhetoric and refused to stop. The group page's tenor, as a whole, seemed to be very accepting of the continued slander. There were a few who did agree with my concerns, but they were in the great minority in relation to the group as a whole.
I realized that the group had become a very unhealthy place for me to continue to spend time in "cyber-fellowship". I did not want to become like those who were dealing with their pain by continuing to question and tear down legitimate teachers and pastors. So, I removed myself from the group last night. The group page made sense to me at first, while it, for the most part, discussed the false teachers and preachers in the WOF/Prosperity movement. It seemed to be a way of assuring each other that we were free of of the lies and deceptions that we had all succumbed too. However, I do not believe that Jesus and His church as a whole should be attacked for the errors of the false teachers in the WOF/Prosperity movement. It is clear from one very famous scripture passage, where Saul, on his way to persecute christians in the city of Damascus, encountered the Lord Jesus himself, that it is not only the individual christian that you are persecuting when you attack, but you are also persecuting Jesus too. When Jesus confronted Saul, Jesus asked him "Saul, Saul, why dost thou persecute me?" Saul had never actually had physical contact with Jesus, but Saul was famous for his persecution of the church at Jerusalem. Obviously, Jesus takes it personal when you hurt His own.
So, what did I learn from all this. First, I now realize that the pain that I feel is shared by others. I also learned that some in the group were hurt so bad, that they had actually descended into anger toward God. And I learned that groups, unguided by personal accountability to the scriptures, can get off in a ditch quickly.
So if any one is reading this, pray that I find and maintain healthy, and whole friendships. Pray also, that I find other believers who desire to encourage and exhort those that they are in relationship with, to grow in the honoring and glorifying of Jesus Christ. Christian friends should behave "christianally" toward each other and toward our culture in general, and not like savage inquisitors,
