We can know that God provides us the resources in order to resist temptation, and when we are tempted, it's critical that we follow the direction of the Holy Spirit. 2nd Peter 2 says this, and we pick up in verse 7, where we read that God...
(7) delivered righteous Lot, who was oppressed by the filthy conduct of the wicked8 (for that righteous man, dwelling among them, tormented his righteous soul from day to day by seeing and hearing their lawless deeds)--
9 then the Lord knows how to deliver the godly out of temptations and to reserve the unjust under punishment for the day of judgment...
1st Corinthians 10 tells us that God provides a way of escape for us when we are tempted. We recognize that His power is great and His presence is with us. We also know that the enemy will attempt to get us off course, so we have to be aware of what he is up to. We can also take preventative measures in order to stay out of potentially compromising situations. This calls for wisdom and flows from a desire to keep ourselves pure, to not give the devil an opportunity, and to keep from placing ourselves in a situation that could harm our spiritual walk and even our reputation.
There is a principle that I want to discuss today, and it's based on an aspect of a moral code embraced by evangelist Billy Graham. There is a Scriptural basis, and it's contained in this passage from 2nd
Timothy 2:
20 But in a great house there are not only vessels of gold and silver, but also of wood and clay, some for honor and some for dishonor.
21 Therefore if anyone cleanses himself from the latter, he will be a vessel for honor, sanctified and useful for the Master, prepared for every good work.
22 Flee also youthful lusts; but pursue righteousness, faith, love, peace with those who call on the Lord out of a pure heart.
So, what's it going to be today? There are news outlets that seem devoted to post or print the negative story of the day, undermining the credibility of the President of the United States. Recently on The Meeting House, a representative of an evangelical Christian publication described the "Def Con" position of one particular news outlet. Another is in the midst of a four-part series about the dishonesty of the President. I am by no means a Trump apologist, but can this guy get anything right? His Supreme Court nominee seemed to be a slam dunk - now a major party leader is calling for a more "moderate" candidate; where were the cries for a so-called "moderate" when the Senate confirmed liberal jurists like Elena Kagan and Sonia Sotomayor?
Well, the hue and cry is also directed at the Vice-President, in a story that has been making the rounds that has a distinctly Christian connection. The Washington Post ran a story on the Vice-President's wife, Karen, which, according to an analysis at The Atlantic website, included the admission by Pence to the publication The Hill in 2002: "Unless his wife is there, he never eats alone with another woman or attends an event where alcohol is being served." Writer Emma Green does point out that it is unclear whether or not this is still his practice.
I'd say, let's assume it is. Green writes:
And, some, like the so-called "Billy Graham rule" on male-female relationships, are not accepted by all believers - it falls in the "preference" category. The point for Graham, like Pence, is to build a "safe zone" around a marriage, to guard against temptation. I think we all can be inspired to fervently and passionately fight to preserve our marriages and not open them up to situations that could be detrimental.
Also, think about the way that rumors can spread. I heard a commentator the other day who described a scenario in which the Vice-President was dining in a DC restaurant with one other women - imagine what happens when a photographer snaps a picture. Or, perhaps the wave of gossip and even slander that could occur because, "Pence was out with another woman." You can't prevent rumors from spreading, but you should not provide fodder for them.
We can consider a key question: what are our standards? You may not be a fan of the "Billy Graham rule," but many are. But, in a world that is full of temptation, we have to consider actions that we can take to prevent temptation. The enemy wants to destroy our witness, and we recognize that he is at work to harm the people of God.
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There is a principle that I want to discuss today, and it's based on an aspect of a moral code embraced by evangelist Billy Graham. There is a Scriptural basis, and it's contained in this passage from 2nd
Timothy 2:
20 But in a great house there are not only vessels of gold and silver, but also of wood and clay, some for honor and some for dishonor.
21 Therefore if anyone cleanses himself from the latter, he will be a vessel for honor, sanctified and useful for the Master, prepared for every good work.
22 Flee also youthful lusts; but pursue righteousness, faith, love, peace with those who call on the Lord out of a pure heart.
So, what's it going to be today? There are news outlets that seem devoted to post or print the negative story of the day, undermining the credibility of the President of the United States. Recently on The Meeting House, a representative of an evangelical Christian publication described the "Def Con" position of one particular news outlet. Another is in the midst of a four-part series about the dishonesty of the President. I am by no means a Trump apologist, but can this guy get anything right? His Supreme Court nominee seemed to be a slam dunk - now a major party leader is calling for a more "moderate" candidate; where were the cries for a so-called "moderate" when the Senate confirmed liberal jurists like Elena Kagan and Sonia Sotomayor?
Well, the hue and cry is also directed at the Vice-President, in a story that has been making the rounds that has a distinctly Christian connection. The Washington Post ran a story on the Vice-President's wife, Karen, which, according to an analysis at The Atlantic website, included the admission by Pence to the publication The Hill in 2002: "Unless his wife is there, he never eats alone with another woman or attends an event where alcohol is being served." Writer Emma Green does point out that it is unclear whether or not this is still his practice.
I'd say, let's assume it is. Green writes:
Pence is not the first contemporary public figure to set these kinds of boundaries around his marriage. He seems to be following a version of the so-called Billy Graham rule, named for the famous evangelist who established similar guidelines for the pastors working in his ministry. In his autobiography, Graham notes that he and his colleagues worried about the temptations of sexual immorality that come from long days on the road and a lot of time away from family. They resolved to “avoid any situation that would even have the appearance of compromise or suspicion.” From that day on, Graham said, he “did not travel, meet, or eat alone with a woman other than my wife.” It was a way of following Paul’s advice to Timothy in the Bible, Graham wrote: to “flee … youthful lusts.”Now, this practice has its critics and quite a few showed up on Twitter over the past few days. The Atlantic writer states:
Some journalists on Twitter quickly pointed out that Pence’s rules may function, in practice, to perpetuate professional and political disadvantages against women. If men in power can meet alone with other men but not women, they’ll just keep doing the business of being powerful in an all-male world. And it parallels critiques of the Billy Graham Rule that’ve been leveled within the evangelical community, as well, where it’s also been blamed for subjecting professional relationships to the logic of a sexually permissive society.I like this quote that is cited in the Atlantic story from the 2002 article at The Hill site:
Pence told the paper he often refused dinner or cocktail invitations from male colleagues, too: “It’s about building a zone around your marriage,” he said. “I don’t think it’s a predatory town, but I think you can inadvertently send the wrong message by being in [certain] situations.”Consider these comments from the Family Research Council website:
With tweets too insulting to repeat, liberals accused the vice president of everything from misogyny to sexual compulsion. These days, I suppose the simplest morality is the most confounding for liberals. I've known Mike for 20 years, and I can tell you that his marriage and family have been a consistent priority before he was even a member of Congress. When he was elected to the U.S. House, he intentionally moved his family here to DC so they would be close -- a choice some politicians, Mollie Hemingway points out, probably regret not making. "Many folks on the Left," David French writes, "find this entire line of thinking absurd. They don't see men and women as ‘men and women' (what is gender anyway?) but as ‘people.' ...So [to them] it's thus strange and sexist to argue that men and women can't live and work side-by-side in any number of close and intense circumstances without causing sexual tension and drama."
That doesn't mean Christians never succumb to temptation, but it does mean they have a greater awareness of it. What the Pences have done -- out of respect not just for each other but for his female staffers -- is create an extra line of defense against the weaknesses of human nature. Not only is that admirable, it's advisable. "He sounds like he's a smart man who understands that infidelity is something that threatens every marriage and must be guarded against..." Hemingway writes. "Pence's smart tactics for avoiding the kind of marital failure that could destroy him, his wife, their family, and the lives of those around them [shouldn't be mocked -- they should be commended]!"There are so many implications of this story, and one of them is obvious - people who desire to live holy lives are not understood by those who do not possess spiritual understanding. However, it is true that many unbelievers live by a certain moral code - it's just a matter of whose making up the standards. As believers in Christ, we can go to the Scriptures and find principles to which we can adhere.
And, some, like the so-called "Billy Graham rule" on male-female relationships, are not accepted by all believers - it falls in the "preference" category. The point for Graham, like Pence, is to build a "safe zone" around a marriage, to guard against temptation. I think we all can be inspired to fervently and passionately fight to preserve our marriages and not open them up to situations that could be detrimental.
Also, think about the way that rumors can spread. I heard a commentator the other day who described a scenario in which the Vice-President was dining in a DC restaurant with one other women - imagine what happens when a photographer snaps a picture. Or, perhaps the wave of gossip and even slander that could occur because, "Pence was out with another woman." You can't prevent rumors from spreading, but you should not provide fodder for them.
We can consider a key question: what are our standards? You may not be a fan of the "Billy Graham rule," but many are. But, in a world that is full of temptation, we have to consider actions that we can take to prevent temptation. The enemy wants to destroy our witness, and we recognize that he is at work to harm the people of God.
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