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From America, to Italy, to Nigeria, and beyond, the increasing incidence of sexual corruption in high political office makes it appear as if the more we advance, the more too many of us—despite the Gospel of JESUS CHRIST—stay the same.
Certainly, American morality—with its explicit Constitutionally-enshrined values of the fear of GOD, fairness and equality (slavery and widespread disenfranchisement notwithstanding)—seems to have taken a decisive nosedive in recent decades.
But whether the apparent rise in the incidence of corruption is actual, factual, or true, or whether it emerges as a consequence of increased exposure, due to electronic media and the Internet, remains to be seen.
What we do see, and what we must resolutely guard against in ourselves, and in our spouses, is our “rising” in the marketplace, and making a “success” out of our lives, only to find ourselves having failed our families, hurt our beloved wife/husband, and sinned against GOD.
The Washington Post of several months ago published a stunning set of photos and names as follows, of men holding (or having held) political office, who have lost or compromised their positions, their credibility, and in some cases, their families—due to the exposure of adultery or other egregious sexual behavior, like ‘hawking’ their bodies via Internet photos, or even in public toilet encounters, all in the pursuit of attracting sexual partners outside their marriages.
What in the world would possess sane, conscious, presumably responsible professionals and public servants to risk thwarting their destinies, and disgracing themselves, their families, their associates, and everything around them, for illicit sex?
Well, the operant word here is “possess”, because all of us must resolutely protect ourselves and our Beloved spouses, from allowing ourselves to be “possessed” by any habit, desire, taste, practice or relationship, that does not give GOD Glory.
Renowned leadership expert John C. Maxwell, in one of his books on excellence in leadership, identifies adultery as one of the major, common dangers facing men who become (or are becoming) leaders.
By the special Grace of GOD, every one of us who is a leader, has an upward or ascending trajectory in our careers or callings, within which each milestone (achievement, promotion, or increase, etc.) is a nodal point, that we can track or chart to the next milestone, from level to level.
Wonderfully enough, when many of us reach particular milestones like these, as we rise, we sometimes “fall” into diverse temptations which, if we are not vigilant, can make a mockery of our progress, and even turn us into “castaways”. (1 Colossians 9:27). GOD forbid!
I call these negative nodal points “milestone temptations” and “milestone failures”.
Why do you think that this would be the case?
Well, all too often, hand in hand with the exciting ascension to our leadership in one area or another, goes immense and dangerous pride.
Anyone who knows GOD, who reads HIS WORD, and who studies HIS Ways, knows fully well that Father GOD does not tolerate pride:
- “Thy terribleness hath deceived thee and the pride of thine heart”.
[Jeremiah 49:16]
- “Pride goes before destruction”. [Prov. 16:18]
- “A man’s pride shall bring him low”.[Prov. 29:23]
And, a careful study of the men (and women, too) who have transited from the apparently good and decent to the notorious, will usually reveal two or three traits which they have shared in common — one is pride; another, greed or lust (often sadly accompanied by a lying tongue); and lastly, insensitivity or selfishness.
Otherwise sane and thoughtful men, in particular, often swell up with pride and its twin brother, lust, as soon as they are accorded more responsibility, earn a promotion, win an election, come into bigger money, or are appointed to a higher post in any organization.
Except that they are grounded in the WORD of GOD, these are the milestone temptations which often profoundly affect even the children of GOD.
By the way, do you, yourself, remember to openly admire and praise your Beloved?
For, it frequently starts with admiration by strange women, or men–admiration that may have been lacking at home, from one’s own Beloved, in that relentless, reactive dance that married couples sometimes dance, called ‘keeping malice’, for ‘reasons’ that both have, more often than not, already forgotten after awhile. Yet, for stubbornness, or just plain mean pettiness, they keep the embers of anger hot or resentment hot.
Or, it might actually have begun as “his fault”, but by the time she commences ‘operation payback’, what started out as a short ‘two step’ dance might just morph into a dangerous ballet, within which attenuated alienation sets in with satanic precision.
These should not be named among the Children of GOD who are married, or single.
Prevention Always Better Than Cure
To avoid, no, to prevent these developments in your marriage, remember first and foremost, that your Beloved is both your best friend and your Covenant partner.
And, Covenant, first of all, is not at all like contract; a covenant relationship is non-negotiable,(that is, divorce is not option) and it is signed, sealed, and delivered in the Presence of GOD as Principal Witness.
In Covenant love, therefore we follow the precepts of Father GOD, LORD JESUS, HOLY SPIRIT, among which are these simple pride-resistant ones:
(1) “Be ye angry, and sin not: let not the sun go down on your wrath.”
[Ephesians 4:26]
In our marriages, any number of things may lead to anger, rightly or wrongly. And there is truly a phenomen that GOD recognizes, called ‘righteous anger’.
However, in the aforementioned scripture, the joining of ‘be ye angry, and sin not’ clearly speaks to the understanding that our keeping malice overnight is tantamount to sinning against GOD, and sinning against our covenant love.
Covenant couples must endeavor to settle their feuds, disagreements, and arguments within the shortest possible time, so that the misunderstanding or disagreement of today, does not carry over into tomorrow, for
“Sufficient unto the day is the evil thereof.” [Matt 6:34]
Now, this is not the medium for exploring the different ways in which to do this, but one thing is for sure:
(2)Be Quick to Forgive
Try to always remember what our LORD and Savior, JESUS CHRIST, told the Disciples when they asked HIM how many times one should forgive the person who has hurt, caused offense, or otherwise wronged one.
And who can sometimes do it better than our closest neighbor, our Beloved husband or wife?
Then came Peter to Him, and said LORD, how often shall my brother
sin against me, and I forgive him? Till seven times?
JESUS said to him, I say not to you, until seven times, but until seventy times seven.
[Matt. 18: 21-22]
Secondly, on forgiveness, having our prayers answered by GOD is also inextricably linked to our forgiveness of others. Or said in another way, unforgiveness is a hindrance and a stumbling block to blessings in our lives.
And Jesus answering saith unto them, Have faith in GOD. For verily I say
Unto you, that whosoever shall say unto this mountain, Be thou removed, and be
thou cast into the sea; and shall not doubt in his heart, but shall believe that those
things which he saith shall come to pass; he shall have whatsoever he saith.
Therefore I say unto you, What things soever ye desire, when ye pray, believe that
Ye receive them, and ye shall have them.
And when ye stand praying, forgive, if ye have aught against any; that your father
also which is in heaven may forgive you your trespasses.
But if ye do not forgive, neither will your Father which is in heaven forgive your
trespasses. [Mark 11: 22-26]
Unforgiveness, indeed, is a stumbling block to salvation.
(to be continued)
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