It is likely that Christians will sin. That is not to say that Christians will have to sin, cannot help but to sin, or that sin is a necessary evil and part of the plan. However, we can admit that sin is still something that we can unfortunately expect. As ugly as sin is, this is not the worst thing that can happen. This is not even the most controversial thing I expect to say here.
The worst thing that could happen is that a Christian discovered in their sin refuses to be held accountable to the brothers and sisters around them trying to build each other up to obedient love and acts of righteousness. The most important thing for a Christian to desire is to remain in fellowship with the family into which Christ has adopted them. They should desire this more than they desire their sin and especially more than they desire to nurse the shame accompanying their exposed sin.
'But Michael, that's more controversial than that other thing you said. Christians should preeminently desire to remain in fellowship with God.'
I agree completely, but there is a very easy and very common mistake Christians make by imagining that they can get away with giving passive, internal well-wishing towards God without expressing a practical walk with Him, entailing anything other than a profession of faith. One of the reasons God has given us a salty and bright family is so that we can practice accountability with one another and fellowship together. These are natural, outward fruits that represent our accountability and fellowship with the living, but invisible God. This same principle applies in the fact that our love of God manifests itself in loving our neighbor.
It is important that we submit ourselves to like-minded believers, and the believers that we submit ourselves to represent our view of sin. For instance, if we regularly fellowship with believers who do not view abortion apathy as sin, even if we ourselves are not apathetic about abortion, then we do not view abortion apathy as sin. Either that, or we are hypocrites who are not taking our role in keeping Christians accountable very seriously, which is also sin.
Abolitionism is about personal holiness. This is what separates Abolitionism from Churchianity and Prolife-ism. Churchianity is dead religion professing faithful, internal well-wishing to God but neglecting justice, hating mercy, and having very little accountability found amongst its ranks. Prolife-ism is a house divided, fighting evil with evil, and compromising Biblical principle for the sake of confused relevance. Notice that, nine times out of ten, any rejection or abandonment of Abolitionism is out of conflict with the call to be personally holy. Whether the source of the conflict is a desire to skirt the injunction to love one's neighbor, as we see in most of Churchianity, or whether we see an intentional disregard for Immediatism, in favor of maintaining unjust laws, as we see in Prolife-ism.
Abolitionism requires that you have Society with other abolitionists who want for you conviction of sin leading you to repentance, leading you to sanctification, leading you to personal holiness. Even if that is hard, and your pride swells against it, and you are overcome with shame that tempts you to deflection, leading to you projection, leading you to dis-fellowship from them, leading you to poison wells against those who love you.
Brothers and sisters, do not reject correction or spurn discipline. Learn to be comfortable with the idea of being on the receiving end of the Ministry of Reconciliation. Do not let sin keep you from assembling together, but rather let assembling together keep you from sin. Love those people that God has granted to you in addition to your salvation, and love them more than you hate your potential shame. Let them sharpen you in order to increase your own worth and effectiveness in this fight.
I write this because I love you all. I love you all because God loves me. Anyway, here's Wonderwall.
-Stoicjackal
The worst thing that could happen is that a Christian discovered in their sin refuses to be held accountable to the brothers and sisters around them trying to build each other up to obedient love and acts of righteousness. The most important thing for a Christian to desire is to remain in fellowship with the family into which Christ has adopted them. They should desire this more than they desire their sin and especially more than they desire to nurse the shame accompanying their exposed sin.
'But Michael, that's more controversial than that other thing you said. Christians should preeminently desire to remain in fellowship with God.'
I agree completely, but there is a very easy and very common mistake Christians make by imagining that they can get away with giving passive, internal well-wishing towards God without expressing a practical walk with Him, entailing anything other than a profession of faith. One of the reasons God has given us a salty and bright family is so that we can practice accountability with one another and fellowship together. These are natural, outward fruits that represent our accountability and fellowship with the living, but invisible God. This same principle applies in the fact that our love of God manifests itself in loving our neighbor.
It is important that we submit ourselves to like-minded believers, and the believers that we submit ourselves to represent our view of sin. For instance, if we regularly fellowship with believers who do not view abortion apathy as sin, even if we ourselves are not apathetic about abortion, then we do not view abortion apathy as sin. Either that, or we are hypocrites who are not taking our role in keeping Christians accountable very seriously, which is also sin.
Abolitionism is about personal holiness. This is what separates Abolitionism from Churchianity and Prolife-ism. Churchianity is dead religion professing faithful, internal well-wishing to God but neglecting justice, hating mercy, and having very little accountability found amongst its ranks. Prolife-ism is a house divided, fighting evil with evil, and compromising Biblical principle for the sake of confused relevance. Notice that, nine times out of ten, any rejection or abandonment of Abolitionism is out of conflict with the call to be personally holy. Whether the source of the conflict is a desire to skirt the injunction to love one's neighbor, as we see in most of Churchianity, or whether we see an intentional disregard for Immediatism, in favor of maintaining unjust laws, as we see in Prolife-ism.
Abolitionism requires that you have Society with other abolitionists who want for you conviction of sin leading you to repentance, leading you to sanctification, leading you to personal holiness. Even if that is hard, and your pride swells against it, and you are overcome with shame that tempts you to deflection, leading to you projection, leading you to dis-fellowship from them, leading you to poison wells against those who love you.
Brothers and sisters, do not reject correction or spurn discipline. Learn to be comfortable with the idea of being on the receiving end of the Ministry of Reconciliation. Do not let sin keep you from assembling together, but rather let assembling together keep you from sin. Love those people that God has granted to you in addition to your salvation, and love them more than you hate your potential shame. Let them sharpen you in order to increase your own worth and effectiveness in this fight.
I write this because I love you all. I love you all because God loves me. Anyway, here's Wonderwall.
-Stoicjackal
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