Posted on 05/25/2015 10:05:12 AM PDT by Kaslin
I have no desire to pile on with more comments about Josh Duggar, who appears to be a very serious and committed Christian who has made no excuses for the sins of his youth and who deeply desires to make a positive impact for the Lord in the years ahead. I simply want to share some redemptive thoughts, supplementing some of the excellent statements made by others, including former governor Mike Huckabee and Southern Baptist leader Russell Moore.
1. Jesus really does change people. While critics of the Duggar family want to indict them (along with other, evangelical Christians, especially those with large families) for Josh’s actions, and while many seem ready to throw Josh under the bus, the fact is that while he did sin grievously, through repentance, faith and counseling, he became a new man. Jesus really does transform sinners.
How many of us did wicked things as teenagers? I was shooting heroin at the age of 15 and broke into some houses and even stole money from my own father before being radically converted at the age of 16. I was profane, filled with pride, anger, and lust, yet the Lord had mercy on me and totally turned my life around.
Some of us continued to live like this into our adult years, only to find mercy and new life then, meaning that the transformation was even more dramatic.
For me, the first lesson from this story is this: Whoever you, whatever you’ve done, there is hope in the Lord. As Mike Huckabee said, “‘inexcusable’ . . . doesn’t mean ‘unforgivable.’”
As Paul wrote to the Corinthians, “Or do you not know that the unrighteous will not inherit the kingdom of God? Do not be deceived: neither the sexually immoral, nor idolaters, nor adulterers, nor men who practice homosexuality, nor thieves, nor the greedy, nor drunkards, nor revilers, nor swindlers will inherit the kingdom of God. And such were some of you. But you were washed, you were sanctified, you were justified in the name of the Lord Jesus Christ and by the Spirit of our God” (1 Corinthians 6:9-11).
2. There’s no excuse for sin, so own up to it. In today’s culture, almost no one is guilty of anything. It’s someone else’s fault, someone else’s responsibility, not our own. We’re all victims, and the reason we do bad things is because someone else wronged us. Isn’t that how we think today?
I’ve even heard athletes apologize for some really heinous actions by saying, “I’m not happy with the way things happened,” rather than saying, “What I did was wrong and I have no excuses. Please forgive me. I’m seeking to get to the root of my problems and address them.”
What a vast difference between the two attitudes.
As Proverbs states, “Whoever conceals his transgressions will not prosper, but he who confesses and forsakes them will obtain mercy” (Proverbs 28:13).
According to the accounts we’ve all heard, Josh confessed his sin to his parents as well as to the proper authorities, and as a family, they worked through the issues. Now, half a lifetime later (he’s 27 and is married with four children), when confronted with a police report about his past, he did not minimize his sin nor did he excuse it. He also resigned from the fine Christian organization for whom he worked, not wanting to bring any negative attention to their work.
When I see someone respond like this, I am filled with hope. In fact, over the years, I’ve seen that people who committed uglier sins but took full responsibility and repented did far better than those who committed less serious sins and tried to sweep them under the rug.
3. Even godly families have kids who mess up badly. Nancy and I only had two kids, and we sought to be godly parents and set godly examples. Yet our older daughter went through a real period of rebellion in her teen years.
As parents, we felt miserable, and I would wonder what I was doing wrong.
Of course, we dealt with her rebellion head on and prayed like crazy for her to really encounter the Lord, but while it was happening, it was terribly deflating spiritually. What kind of father am I? How can I be so ineffective?
Today, we all laugh about those years, and our daughter, who is now 37 and is a devoted wife and mother, is so grateful for the way she was raised. (She and Nancy are the best of friends and are in constant contact.)
The fact that the Duggars, who successfully raised 19 children in the Lord (who can imagine that?), had to deal with one of their kids committing serious sexual sin at 14 should actually encourage other parents rather than discourage them. And perhaps, they can teach us today how this tragic incident helped them come together as a family and draw closer to the Lord.
4. Josh can be an ambassador on behalf of the abused, even helping the abusers as well. While it can feel like your life is over when your past, largely private sins become public (how many of us would like for that to happen?), the fact is that Josh’s future can be bright in the Lord.
He can call on others who are sinning to come clean and get help, using his own example redemptively. And he can encourage those who have been abused to realize that they are not guilty and should not feel shame, also encouraging churches to embrace those who come for help rather than making them feel as if there is something wrong with them.
Why should those who have suffered abuse be stigmatized? They should be our priority for healing and restoration.
5. We need to be careful how we judge. There are many fans of the Duggars who are upset with what they feel is a witch hunt against a godly family, representing one more attempt to remove them from reality TV. (Let me say without qualification that there is life after reality TV, and if the Duggars never do another broadcast, their lives can still be overwhelmingly blessed.)
But would we have had this same attitude of mercy and forgiveness if this was the child of a gay couple? Would we have said, “This proves that gay parents are no good!”?
I certainly believe that kids deserve a mom and a dad and that, optimally, they will do best with a mom and dad, but I don’t indict all gay couples because of the failings of one of their kids
So, if you want to show mercy, be consistent. We can all fall into the trap of selective compassion.
6. There are consequences to our actions, but with God, our worst mistakes can become stepping stones to spiritual growth.
Most of us have done things we wish we could take back, and in some cases, the consequences of our bad choices and sinful actions last for decades. Yet with the Lord, no matter how great the stigma of our sin, if we will humble ourselves before Him, He can take those stumbling blocks and turn them into stepping stones, to the point that the worst things that ever happened to us become the best things that ever happened to us.
To the core of His being, God is a redeemer, and I’m personally praying and believing that for Josh Duggar and his entire family, God will turn this painful situation around for greater good.
Let’s watch and see.
“1. Jesus really does change people. While critics of the Duggar family want to indict them (along with other, evangelical Christians, especially those with large families) for Josh’s actions, and while many seem ready to throw Josh under the bus, the fact is that while he did sin grievously, through repentance, faith and counseling, he became a new man. Jesus really does transform sinners.”
This may be true, but how do we know? The only evidence that he “became a new man” is the word of the Duggar family, and they are the ones who covered this up for over a decade while making millions off of their image as a wholesome, Christian family. So, pardon my skepticism.
Well said.
Anyone following this story has seen how euphoric the liberals and homosexual activists have been about this story. They are so excited to see the fall of the Duggar family, and the possible loss of their TV show.
I have always heard “once a child molester, always a child molester”. I don’t know if it is true, especially in this case, but I would never let him babysit my grandchildren.
If only he had robbed a liquor store or something.
“4. Josh can be an ambassador on behalf of the abused, even helping the abusers as well.”
WTF? This guy is off his rocker.
I was a big Duggar fan. I overlooked their religious views because I was under the impression that their parenting was yielding good fruit. Obviously I was wrong and now I no longer overlook their religious views. I do not hold them up any longer as examples of good parenting.
You have GOT to be kidding me.
He should have been prosecuted and should be if the SOL hasn’t run. Also, those that covered it up should be prosecuted.
Committed Christian my a**. He’s a guy who got caught and is hiding behind God.
I have no sympathy or empathy. Prosecute.
According to the accounts we’ve all heard, Josh confessed his sin to his parents as well as to the proper authorities, and as a family, they worked through the issues.
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This makes it sound like Josh brought it up when it is my understanding the girl he molested that was not a family member was the one to come to the parents first, which didn’t leave much choice about going to law enforcement — and then lying about the punishment from that point.
Amazing the double standard from the left....
Anybody remember that shank Leni Durham (sp) when she admitted to molesting her younger sister...
Selective outrage...
Equally disgusting to me is the fawning evangelical crowd giving this perv a pass. This guy should never again hold any position of trust in any Christian organization, especially a family values organization, not should he ever be around children. The Duggars creeped me out years before this ever came to light.
Except the Duggars are not “evangelical Christians.” They’re members of the Gothard cult, which seems to be plagued with sexual abusers, including the namesake founder, Bill Gothard.
The Duggars knew exactly what their son was. They covered up the whole thing, accepted the offer of a show from TLC, and proceeded to set themselves-—and Josh-—up as moral arbiters.
Josh accepted the blame and apologized only when the issue became public.
“Josh accepted the blame and apologized only when the issue became public.”
And the threat of criminal charges had expired.
This family is disgusting.
What was it about the Duggars that creeped you out?
They all have that glazed-eye look on their faces, the women all wearing the same clothes, frankly I think anyone who has 19 kids is crazy. I can’t say I saw much of their show, but only because I would quickly turn the channel.
Exactly.
The Gothard cult material used to counsel sex abusers is all over the web. It places heavy responsibility on the abuse victim for not being modest enough.
I wonder what modesty failings the five year-old had to cop to after they caught Josh Duggar with his hand under her skirt as he was reading her a book?
It smacks to me of the good ole boy “I got a problem with Junior. help me fix it” solution. Gothard gets him out of the house for a while so daddy can get the girls in line. Then, later, they go to the Gothard approved LEO for “reporting”, but only after they make sure it will be reported as 4th degree sexual assault and the SoL has expired.
Pure, unadulterated evil. Those defending them mystify me.
Child molestation is a serious crime. Its disturbing reading people rush to embrace the child molester who never faced justice or got mental health treatment for his behavior.
It really disgusts me when people say don’t judge...josh duggars parents didn’t judge and as a result their daughters were molested.
the Duggars deserve the condemnation. They failed to protect their daughters from a child molester because that molester was family. Sick.
Those defending them mystify me.
Same here.
These people are contemptible. This sicko blamed his sisters for being “immodest” and the parents cover it up. I would shoot my son (if I had one) if he were to molest anyone...let alone my daughters. Then their weird treatment program, hard labor, somehow was supposed to help him? These people are nuts!! It’s not okay for their daughters to hold hands and kiss their boyfriends, but their son feeling up their daughters is just dandy!
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