Predators in the Pew: Protecting Against Child Abuse in Your Church

Jonathan was sick to his stomach. No pastor ever wants to see a child hurt. Yet his church was facing a lawsuit over sexual abuse that recently occurred in their children's ministry. He was bogged down with conversations with a lawyer, shepherding the distraught families in his congregation, feeling guilt over his failed leadership, and trying to hold things together. In his own words, Jonathan said, "It felt like a bomb just went off and I'm cleaning up the mess."

"Jimmy" was a friendly man who had joined First Baptist Church about a year ago. He was kind, and the members of First Baptist took a quick liking to him. He volunteered to teach a Sunday school class and got to know "Peter," an 8-year-old boy. Things started innocently. A hug at the end of class. Gifts for Peter. Lots of extra attention.

And then it happened. Jimmy took advantage of Peter. He made Peter keep it a secret. Peter cried a lot over the next few days (which was not like him), and eventually his mother got the secret out of him. She contacted the pastor immediately, but the church made excuses. She was so outraged that she sued the church.

When Churches Fail Our Kids

Sadly this is an all-too-familiar story. If you pay any attention to the news, you know that sexual offenders show up in churches. Like predators hurting defenseless prey, they do unspeakably horrible things to our children. Much could be prevented, but many churches do not know how to protect their children and how to respond when child sex abuse happens. It all adds up to being irresponsible with the littlest ones that God has entrusted to our care.

Why do churches fail our kids?    Continue at Deepak Reju

10 Ways that Satan Loves to Watch Marriages Fall Apart

According the Bible, Satan prowls around like a lion looking for someone to devour (1 Peter 5:8), but many times, he probably doesn’t have to do that much. I wonder if sometimes Satan sits back and laughs at us.

Marriage can be extremely messy. As sinners we can do dumb things in marriage—we hurt one another; we make false assumptions and then miscommunicate; we manipulate or say mean things to our spouse; we think less about serving and more about being served. We don’t always follow God’s Word or advice from godly leaders. We put our hopes in the world or each other more than we put hope in God.

We don’t need Satan to ruin our marriage. We do plenty of unhelpful things on our own to ruin our marriages. I’m sure Satan enjoys having a front row seat, watching our folly and foolishness.

What does he see?   Continue at BCC

Would I Officiate a Wedding for Two Unbelievers? Yes

Editors' Note: Even though they may have little connection to a church, many couples today still want a traditional wedding ceremony with a pastor officiating. If you were the pastor, how would you respond? In this article, Deepak Reju of Capitol Hill Baptist Church says "yes" with conditions. For a different take, see Russell Moore's answer.

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Suppose Debbie, who is not a Christian, asked me if I would officiate at her wedding. She is planning to get married to her boyfriend, who is also not a Christian. With a few important conditions, I would likely say, "Yes." Why would I marry two non-Christians?

Marriage is a creation ordinance. God created marriage (Gen 2:15-25). He made it as a fundamental part of how he designed the world we live in. God gave marriage as a gift to the first couple and also to all men and women who desire to partake (James 1:17).

Marriage is also a common grace institution; a grace given by God to both Christians and non-Christians alike (Isaiah 62:5; Ezek 44:22; Matt 19:10; Matt 22:24-28; Luke 17:27; Luke 20:34). Heterosexual marriage is legally recognized as a universal privilege for any man and woman who desires it. As Solomon declares to his son, "He who finds a wife finds a good thing and obtains favor from the Lord" (Prov 18:22).

A faithful husband and wife are an imperfect picture of God's committed love. Sin may hinder our ability to reflect what God is like, but even as sinners, we remain people made in the image of God. As such, two non-Christians who stay committed to one another remind us of God. Their marriage covenant reflects God's committed, covenantal love better than our fickle, noncommittal love.  Continue at Deepak Reju