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Through Scoundrels and Scallywags, Ruffians and Ragamuffins, the Kingdom Advances

By Anita Mathias

Pieter Bruegel de Oude - De bruiloft dans (Detroit)

So Bill Gothard, who taught 2.5 million people his 32 hour Bible course, is widely accused of sexual harassment, but wealthy Christians attribute their family and business success to him.

2.5 million people study the Bible for 32 hours! Despite him, above him, around him, and quite possibly through him, the kingdom advances.

 

Joyce Meyer’s finances perennially raise eyebrows, but, on a blogger’s trip to Cambodia, I meet a young man who became a Christian after listening to her on TV for 3 months, and then converted his whole village.

And the Kingdom marches on.

 

And so I suspend judgement on all morally ambiguous preachers—lest I find myself fighting against God.

For somehow above them, around them, perhaps even through them, still the Kingdom advances.

* * *

The Lord gave the word; great was the company of the preachers (Psalm 68:11). Ruffian and ragamuffins, saints and scoundrels, great was their company.

They had affairs; their greed corrupted them; they gave full vent to their jealousies; their ambition was unrestrained.

They preached the word, they prayed, they spread the fire, strange or otherwise.

And despite them, above them, around them, perhaps even through them, the Kingdom advanced.

* * *

And through those who sighed and volunteered to teach Sunday school, and to lead youth groups. Through those who led Bible studies to which people thronged to talk about themselves, and to make friends—but who yet were hospitable. Through those who gave their widow’s mite to churches and ministries which squandered it on a leader’s ego. But on the kingdom too, a little.  Oh yes, on the kingdom too.

Through all these, the kingdom advances.

* * *

Despite—or through–crusaders and inquisitors and conquistadors and colonizers with a Bible in one hand and a sword in the other, the Kingdom advances.

It advanced to Mangalore on India’s west coast, when the Portuguese converted the entire town to Roman Catholicism in the sixteenth century, and so Jesus was one the first words I spoke.

It advances through those who are mean about abortion or immigration or gays or women preaching or women bishoping. Who support guns and invasions and bombings and all things Israeli. It advances.

 

“Gold, girls, glory, power yes; mixed-up motives, yes; but still the kingdom advances.”

It is like a mustard seed, bursting into a tree, which one day shall cover every nation, every village, the entire world, and the gates of hell shall not prevail against it, and neither shall our shenanigans.

We forget about the Kingdom at times, and seek power and glory, but you, God, are not perturbed.

For you know it’s all yours, the kingdom, the power and the glory, for ever and ever, Amen.

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Filed Under: In which I explore this world called Church Tagged With: Preachers, the Kingdom

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Comments

  1. Anna says

    July 8, 2014 at 11:14 am

    Great post, Anita!

    • Anita Mathias says

      July 12, 2014 at 6:49 pm

      So glad you liked it, Anna!

  2. Gail Daniels says

    July 5, 2014 at 3:18 pm

    Hi Anita, how true this is – I actually came to know that Jesus saves while living in Bermuda and watching the PTL Club on American TV channels. Jim Bakker and his wife ended up in a scandal about air-conditioned dog kennels and much other money wasting rubbish, but I know I was saved through their teaching, and firmly believe in the lessons they taught.

    I believe that it is hard to criticise those that give up their lives to teaching the Word of God and the available salvation given freely through God’s grace and Jesus’ sacrifice, as they, above all, are in line to be attacked by the evil one, unlike those of us living safe comfortable lives.

    I watched sadly at the media glee at the fall of these leaders, as I did at Jimmy Swaggart’s demise. But as Jesus himself said, “Let he who is without sin cast the first stone.” and I am sure I am not resistant to the feeble little temptations I get in my own life, and try to remember to rely entirely on the Holy Spirit for strength and guidance.

    Thanks again for your interesting blog.

    • Anita Mathias says

      July 6, 2014 at 11:31 am

      Yes, I am sure it is just childishness on our parts to expect our preachers or Christian leaders who have inspired us to be perfect–and I know I often fall prey to that childishness myself, feeling deeply shocked when someone I have respected or been inspired by is revealed to have particularly egregious feet of clay.

      Perhaps if we focus on God and just see Bakker etc as flutes through which the music of God is played we would feel less shocked and even wounded by the fall of our preachers.

  3. Lilly Vasanthini says

    July 4, 2014 at 5:58 am

    A really good post Anita.. Reading it almost thrice.. Took me back to…

    Matthew 7:3

    “Why do you look at the speck that is in your brother’s eye, but do not notice the log that is in your own eye?

    Lovely thought to ponder on the whole day

    • Anita Mathias says

      July 4, 2014 at 7:14 am

      So glad you liked it, Lilly!

  4. Marcy says

    July 3, 2014 at 4:25 pm

    This is a good reminder. Very good. Some are more obviously or heinously flawed than others — but all of us are flawed.

    On the other hand, let it never be an excuse to dismiss sin — and let great fruitfulness not be used to negate or make up for sin.

    • Anita Mathias says

      July 3, 2014 at 4:42 pm

      Yes, we are all flawed, and the Kingdom advances despite, around, above, and sometimes even through us. Thanks for commenting, Marcy!

  5. Bev Murrill says

    July 3, 2014 at 3:45 pm

    Great post Anita… I’ve personally been in some of those churches where rogues and ruffians were our leaders… and I grew and changed, sometimes because I learned what not to do through watching what they did. It was reverse mentoring… we learned who to be by seeing who they were… but through it all, the Kingdom marched on.

    • Anita Mathias says

      July 3, 2014 at 4:41 pm

      Thanks, Bev. I have long been puzzled by seriously flawed, seriously gifted Christian leaders. I think the weakness is the mirror image of their strength. They have developed their intellect, or Bible knowledge or teaching or writing gifts at the expense of emotional health, or healthy relationships, or common humanity.
      It’s amazing that you learned what not to do by watching the “rogues and ruffians.” I have often observed that churches take on the colouration and weaknesses of their leaders…
      I almost didn’t want to write this post, but in the current Gothard scandal, I was impressed by how many people quietly say their lives and families have been changed through his teaching. I myself have long thought bits of his teaching were toxic, in being overly hierarchical.

      • Marcy says

        July 6, 2014 at 3:24 am

        “They have developed their intellect, or Bible knowledge or teaching or writing gifts at the expense of emotional health, or healthy relationships, or common humanity.”

        YES!

        Nouwen’s little book In the Name of Jesus says something along these lines — that those who are so absorbed in the heady world of thoughts and ideas are vulnerable to carnal sin. I’m sure that is not the only direction the error / imbalance can lie.

        http://www.goodreads.com/book/show/2520.In_the_Name_of_Jesus

  6. mari howard says

    July 3, 2014 at 3:32 pm

    Most – possibly all – ‘gurus’ have weak points, as in the Classical idea of the ‘tragic flaw’ – the medium is not the message!

    We do them a disservice by expecting that they will be above reproach, and/or exclaiming, losing faith, or whatever when their weaknesses are revealed. This of course shouldn’t mean that anyone in any position of power/influence (or not!) should think it is okay to give in to temptation … we are meant to struggle with and overcome that … but it does point that there is only one who was ‘tempted, yet without sin’.

    • Anita Mathias says

      July 3, 2014 at 4:43 pm

      It’s hypocrisy that gets me. Jesus railed against that more than against any sin!

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anita.mathias

Writer, Blogger, Reader, Mum. Christian. Instaing Oxford, travel, gardens and healthy meals. Oxford English alum. Writing memoir. Lives in Oxford, UK

Images from walks around Oxford. #beauty #oxford # Images from walks around Oxford. #beauty #oxford #walking #tranquility #naturephotography #nature
So we had a lovely holiday in the Southwest. And h So we had a lovely holiday in the Southwest. And here we are at one of the world’s most famous and easily recognisable sites.
#stonehenge #travel #england #prehistoric England #family #druids
And I’ve blogged https://anitamathias.com/2020/09/13/on-not-wasting-a-desert-experience/
So, after Paul the Apostle's lightning bolt encounter with the Risen Christ on the road to Damascus, he went into the desert, he tells us...
And there, he received revelation, visions, and had divine encounters. The same Judean desert, where Jesus fasted for forty days before starting his active ministry. Where Moses encountered God. Where David turned from a shepherd to a leader and a King, and more, a man after God’s own heart.  Where Elijah in the throes of a nervous breakdown hears God in a gentle whisper. 
England, where I live, like most of the world is going through a desert experience of continuing partial lockdowns. Covid-19 spreads through human contact and social life, and so we must refrain from those great pleasures. We are invited to the desert, a harsh place where pruning can occur, and spiritual fruitfulness.
A plague like this has not been known for a hundred years... John Piper, after his cancer diagnosis, exhorted people, “Don’t Waste Your Cancer”—since this was the experience God permitted you to have, and He can bring gold from it. Pandemics and plagues are permitted (though not willed or desired) by a Sovereign God, and he can bring life-change out of them. 
Let us not waste this unwanted, unchosen pandemic, this opportunity for silence, solitude and reflection. Let’s not squander on endless Zoom calls—or on the internet, which, if not used wisely, will only raise anxiety levels. Let’s instead accept the invitation to increased silence and reflection
Let's use the extra free time that many of us have long coveted and which has now been given us by Covid-19 restrictions to seek the face of God. To seek revelation. To pray. 
And to work on those projects of our hearts which have been smothered by noise, busyness, and the tumult of people and parties. To nurture the fragile dreams still alive in our hearts. The long-deferred duty or vocation
So, we are about eight weeks into lockdown, and I So, we are about eight weeks into lockdown, and I have totally sunk into the rhythm of it, and have got quiet, very quiet, the quietest spell of time I have had as an adult.
I like it. I will find going back to the sometimes frenetic merry-go-round of my old life rather hard. Well, I doubt I will go back to it. I will prune some activities, and generally live more intentionally and mindfully.
I have started blocking internet of my phone and laptop for longer periods of time, and that has brought a lot of internal quiet and peace.
Some of the things I have enjoyed during lockdown have been my daily long walks, and gardening. Well, and reading and working on a longer piece of work.
Here are some images from my walks.
And if you missed it, a blog about maintaining peace in the middle of the storm of a global pandemic
https://anitamathias.com/2020/05/04/a-mind-of-life-and-peace/  #walking #contemplating #beauty #oxford #pandemic
A few walks in Oxford in the time of quarantine. A few walks in Oxford in the time of quarantine.  We can maintain a mind of life and peace during this period of lockdown by being mindful of our minds, and regulating them through meditation; being mindful of our bodies and keeping them happy by exercise and yoga; and being mindful of our emotions in this uncertain time, and trusting God who remains in charge. A new blog on maintaining a mind of life and peace during lockdown https://anitamathias.com/2020/05/04/a-mind-of-life-and-peace/
In the days when one could still travel, i.e. Janu In the days when one could still travel, i.e. January 2020, which seems like another life, all four of us spent 10 days in Malta. I unplugged, and logged off social media, so here are some belated iphone photos of a day in Valetta.
Today, of course, there’s a lockdown, and the country’s leader is in intensive care.
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https://anitamathias.com/2020/04/06/on-yoga-and-following-jesus/
#valleta #valletamalta #travel #travelgram #uncagedbird
Images from some recent walks in Oxford. I am copi Images from some recent walks in Oxford.
I am coping with lockdown by really, really enjoying my daily 4 mile walk. By savouring the peace of wild things. By trusting that God will bring good out of this. With a bit of yoga, and weights. And by working a fair amount in my garden. And reading.
How are you doing?
#oxford #oxfordinlockdown #lockdown #walk #lockdownwalks #peace #beauty #happiness #joy #thepeaceofwildthings
Images of walks in Oxford in this time of social d Images of walks in Oxford in this time of social distancing. The first two are my own garden.  And I’ve https://anitamathias.com/2020/03/28/silver-and-gold-linings-in-the-storm-clouds-of-coronavirus/ #corona #socialdistancing #silverlinings #silence #solitude #peace
Trust: A Message of Christmas He came to earth in Trust: A Message of Christmas  He came to earth in a  splash of energy
And gentleness and humility.
That homeless baby in the barn
Would be the lynchpin on which history would ever after turn
Who would have thought it?
But perhaps those attuned to God’s way of surprises would not be surprised.
He was already at the centre of all things, connecting all things. * * *
Augustus Caesar issued a decree which brought him to Bethlehem,
The oppressions of colonialism and conquest brought the Messiah exactly where he was meant to be, the place prophesied eight hundred years before his birth by the Prophet Micah.
And he was already redeeming all things. The shame of unwed motherhood; the powerlessness of poverty.
He was born among animals in a barn, animals enjoying the sweetness of life, animals he created, animals precious to him.
For he created all things, and in him all things hold together
Including stars in the sky, of which a new one heralded his birth
Drawing astronomers to him.
And drawing him to the attention of an angry King
As angelic song drew shepherds to him.
An Emperor, a King, scholars, shepherds, angels, animals, stars, an unwed mother
All things in heaven and earth connected
By a homeless baby
The still point on which the world still turns. The powerful centre. The only true power.
The One who makes connections. * * *
And there is no end to the wisdom, the crystal glints of the Message that birth brings.
To me, today, it says, “Fear not, trust me, I will make a way.” The baby lay gentle in the barn
And God arranges for new stars, angelic song, wise visitors with needed finances for his sustenance in the swiftly-coming exile, shepherds to underline the anointing and reassure his parents. “Trust me in your dilemmas,” the baby still says, “I will make a way. I will show it to you.” Happy Christmas everyone.  https://anitamathias.com/2019/12/24/trust-a-message-of-christmas/ #christmas #gemalderieberlin #trust #godwillmakeaway
Look, I’ve designed a journal. It’s an omnibus Look, I’ve designed a journal. It’s an omnibus Gratitude journal, habit tracker, food and exercise journal, bullet journal, with time sheets, goal sheets and a Planner. Everything you’d like to track.  Here’s a post about it with ISBNs https://anitamathias.com/2019/12/23/life-changing-journalling/. Check it out. I hope you and your kids like it!
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