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I have to say, too, that quite often many in the church lord over their “social inferiors,” like prostitutes, homeless people, and the low-income. — including in ministries where they serve them.

It’s as though many church people recognize themselves as sinful creatures inferior to their Creator when considering God, and give thanks to and worship Him, but then feel so superior to the groups mentioned that they regard themselves as God over them by comparison and expect to be regarded that way. And I have to say, too, that I don’t say that lightly. As I’ve said, I’ve been both low-income and homeless, and I’ve experienced and witnessed that happening a great many times, including that “superior church people” are entitled to make snap judgments, with carte blanche freedom, against people in those groups. It’s like, such spiritually drunken power trips and playing God, with whatever amount of respect for the truth one feels like having, are actually okay when dealing with such people. Perhaps because it can be like a nice break from reality to be able to so comfortably sit in judgment on at least some people. There’s a spirit, too, of “these people are so unrighteous and so unimportant that getting any facts right about them and giving them the due consideration that you’d give any human being isn’t worth my time.”

When homeless, I’ve often told Christians in churches and ministries in real life that I have a strong relationship with the Lord and that the Lord has had me low-income and sometimes homeless to have me accomplish some things and minister to others, and these things can’t be done otherwise. For the most part, church people have refused to even consider that could be true. Just as the Creator-creature relationship is absolute, unquestionable, so they seem to be confident that they have to absolutely be spiritually far superior to me. Some I’ve sometimes gotten to know, and we’ll seem to have fellowship until out of the blue they try to pin some unrighteousness on me.

God knows how hard I’ve worked in my life, including working very hard at menial jobs despite being a gifted from Him with a lot of intelligence and having a bachelor’s degree. Given so many circumstances and experiences in my life, starting with my childhood, I could have simply gone for disability for psychological reasons decades ago. But as a Christian, if I could work, even if out of place at a menial job, that would be the right thing to do. And that’s what I did until I developed as a middle-aged woman physical problems that interfered with my ability to work, and I had no human support system, no natural family or church family.

While homeless, I met a couple young women who went around ministering. I got to know them some. They liked talking to me about spiritual things.

Yet despite me telling them of my physical problems and situation, more than once they tried to accuse me of “not working.” “If you don’t work, you shouldn’t eat.” “Just go and get a job at a restaurant downtown. There’s a lot of them.”

These two young women, in their twenties, came from solidly upper middle class families. They felt quite comfortable saying that to me despite all I’d told them about my life and medical problems. Does the truth matter?

God knows how devoted I am to Him and to His work. His passion is to save souls. Like some people are consumed with a sports team, always thinking about how they have to do this or that in order to win, I’m always thinking about how every little thing I do can best serve His cause. When I worked at menial jobs, I spent my free time serving Him in any way I could, and at my jobs worked as if He were my boss.

The First Great Commandment is basically to love and serve Him with everything we have, and that’s how I want to live. And anyone near me who is genuinely, through Christ, seeking truth can and would easily, before too long, find that out.

Once, I mentioned to these two women something like that I needed to stop at my storage unit for extra clothes since I was sleeping outside at that time, and it felt cold at night. One replied, “It’s not cold right now. It’s 60 degrees at night.” They’d often try to find fault, pick at and pounce on things I said. Sixty degrees is cold if a thermostat is set at that, and even in July when it’s 95 during the daytime,most people sleeping outside that I knew of used some type of cover. I ended up giving my winter coat in July to a man who had lost his blanket. But that woman was so haughty with me, I felt like telling her these things would make no difference to her.

One day I also met a Christian man who said he went around evangelizing to homeless people. I told him that I was a Christian myself and had a close relationship to the Lord. He told me he thought homeless people were cursed. I started to tell him how the ungodly culture made it more difficult for less able people to be godly. “You’re making my case for me,” he said. Then I asked him if he thought more well off and successful people in our Era were truly blessed since prosperity was causing people to abandon faith in God and the church to mostly be overcome by worldliness. He didn’t have an answer for that.

But he did want me to prove to him I was a genuine Christian. “Oh, so did you read the Bible today?” “Yes.” “Which chapters?” I told him the four I’d read. “That’s pretty good.”Like I said, it’s taken as an absolute that, spiritually, he’s a superior judge over me. And I could mention so many other similar examples with other Christians.

“It’s as though MacArthur conducted a brief, one-sided trial here, with really no evidence, and found this woman guilty.”

I disagree. It seems to me that you are judging MacArthur for what you believe to be him judging someone else.

I believe he did what was very appropriate by allowing her to demonstrate her faith. If she had followed through, it would have been an excellent testimony and God would have blessed her.

I’ve been to multiple recovery groups. In many of them when someone shows they are really serious about making changes people will step up and help. This woman probably missed out on the help other believers would have given such as food and a place to stay if she needed them. She would have probably had job opportunities.

The young lady I mentioned earlier who was using heroin, stripping, and prostituting was like this woman. I’ve met many homeless and addicted who just aren’t ready. Sometimes going through more hardship is necessary. Sometimes they never are willing to let go of the lifestyle that is destroying them.

Perhaps sometimes it’s not their fault. But you need to consider the possibility that sometimes it is. Sometimes people simply are too stubborn. Sometimes no one, no matter how perfectly they handle the situation, will ever be able to reach them. And sometimes it’s because THEY choose to be unreachable.

There were many that Jesus Himself could not reach. He did everything perfectly, but many still rejected Him. Some later repented. But many never did.

“It’s as though many church people recognize themselves as sinful creatures inferior to their Creator when considering God, and give thanks to and worship Him, but then feel so superior to the groups mentioned that they regard themselves as God over them by comparison and expect to be regarded that way.”

True. This was a major theme of some of Christ’s parables, such as the Prodigal Son. I’ve experienced the harshness and judgmental attitudes of many in the church. Sometimes it has been to the point I could not be around them or even part of their church. Nothing is so hurtful as seeking God in a church and having them push you away.

“When homeless, I’ve often told Christians in churches and ministries in real life that I have a strong relationship with the Lord and that the Lord has had me low-income and sometimes homeless to have me accomplish some things and minister to others, and these things can’t be done otherwise.”

I don’t doubt that for one second. It’s a mature observation to be able to realize that.

“Yet despite me telling them of my physical problems and situation, more than once they tried to accuse me of ‘not working.’ ‘If you don’t work, you shouldn’t eat.’ ‘Just go and get a job at a restaurant downtown. There’s a lot of them.’”

Oh, yeah. I know what you mean. That’s actually a misquote of the Bible and a misinterpretation.

2 Thessalonians 3:10 NKJV
For even when we were with you, we commanded you this: If anyone will not work, neither shall he eat.

What is being described is an unwillingness to work. It does not say, “If anyone does not work...” It’s “will not”. A person who cannot work is not unwilling.

See here:

2 Corinthians 8:12 NKJV
For if there is first a willing mind, it is accepted according to what one has, and not according to what he does not have.

“Then I asked him if he thought more well off and successful people in our Era were truly blessed since prosperity was causing people to abandon faith in God and the church to mostly be overcome by worldliness. He didn’t have an answer for that.”

I fully agree. While many people who are homeless are cursed because of their sins or the sins of their parents, it certainly isn’t true of every homeless person. Job went through much worse but was very godly. His so-called friends told him the same things those self-righteous people told you. But God was not too pleased with them. There are Christians who claim that they don’t follow or believe the Prosperity Gospel, but they do in practice. The apostles were godly but were beaten, imprisoned, and murdered.

“Like I said, it’s taken as an absolute that, spiritually, he’s a superior judge over me. And I could mention so many other similar examples with other Christians.”

Yeah. I’ve had similar experiences. I can see why you question the purpose of MacArthur’s suggestion to burn that book of clients. But I don’t think it is an arbitrary standard such as asking how much of the Bible you read. Maybe even that person meant well because he thought doing this or that would fix all of your problems, which is not realistic. But in MacArthur’s case, I see this request as a kind of obvious first step for the woman to take.

MacArthur is a godly man. He was very bold to tell the state of California that he refused to let them stop him from preaching due to COVID. They threatened to arrest him, and he said, “Go ahead.” I’m willing to give him the benefit of the doubt that he was being Spirit-led in his interaction with this woman. This woman really wasn’t ready, and she needed to be made aware of that so she did not end up with false assurance that she was saved. She wasn’t because she was not yet repentant. Nor was she ready to trust God. Hopefully, this realization led her to come back to God when she was finally ready to give Him control over her life. If she had left thinking it didn’t matter if she went back to prostituting she would be far less likely to ultimately give her life to Christ in saving faith and repentance.

Thanks for sharing your testimony. I hope that my postings don’t have the effect of making you feel judged or condemned. I don’t see myself as superior even if I’m pretty stubborn and vocal about my views. They are just my opinions, and I realize I can be wrong. I also enjoy the detailed feedback because it helps me to see where you are coming from.