The Subtle Power of Spiritual Abuse, Chapter 12: Straining Gnats, Swallowing Camels
We continue our Thursday series blogging through “The Subtle Power of Spiritual Abuse.” The first post in the series is here.
Jesus used an evocative word picture when he told the Pharisees that they strained out gnats even as they swallowed camels. Gnats and camels were both unclean. Straining all the gnats out would take great attention to detail while swallowing camels involves ignoring what is right in front of you. In abusive religious systems, mundane details become essential while vital needs are trivialized and neglected.
Gnats, Camels, and Updside-Down Spirituality
A modern illustration of straining at gnats and swallowing camels happened at a local (to one of our authors), conservative, fundamental church known for taking strong stands on issues. For instance, they took a strong stand on dress code in church; a communion steward would be prevented from serving communion if he failed to wear the required coat and tie. One day, a shocking revelation, followed by another and more after them: the pastor had been molesting children. It was dismaying to find that the church leadership was aware of a problem (though not the full extent) and had felt it best to sweep the problem under the rug and keep up appearances. Enforcing a coat-and-tie dress code while turning a blind eye to sexual abuse is straining at gnats and swallowing camels.
In Matthew 23:23–24, Jesus called out the blind guides for carefully counting out the tithes of their mint and dill and cumin while neglecting justice and mercy and faithfulness. Jesus compared this to the tragic comedy of straining out gnats but swallowing camels. Another way to say it is upside-down spirituality. What is truly significant is trivialized; what is insignificant becomes paramount.
A Contemporary List
The chapter presents two quick examples of gnats versus camels.
Music: a music professor at a Christian college denounced the evils of sensual music. Meanwhile, he was giving full body massages to some of his female students on his office floor. Similar to the image of gnats and camels, Jesus also drew a word picture of washing the outside of the cup meticulously while ignoring the inside. For the professor, we observe that the music itself was outside the cup but the lust was inside his heart.
Laws of the land: A Christian leader would never drive over 55 and complained that those who did were a poor testimony. Tragically, this leader was having an affair with a close friend’s wife.
Jesus said (in Luke 11): “You Pharisees are so careful to clean the outside of the cup and the dish, but inside you are filthy — full of greed and wickedness! Fools! Didn’t God make the inside as well as the outside? So clean the inside by giving gifts to the poor, and you will be clean all over. What sorrow awaits you Pharisees! For you are careful to tithe even the tiniest income from your herb gardens, but you ignore justice and the love of God. You should tithe, yes, but do not neglect the more important things.”
I suspect Jesus would say to this Christian leader, “Wake up, man! Yes, drive 55, but, for goodness’ sake, quit betraying your wife, friends, and followers! The outside of your cup looks shiny enough, but the inside is full of moldy coffee — and it really stinks!”
Real Christians Dance
Don’s story is touching and thought-provoking. I won’t give it all away. He always felt he had played second fiddle to his dad’s ministry. His experience with the Bible reminds me of the bronze snake that Moses put on the pole. God commanded him to do it and people looked at it and were saved. But do you remember what eventually became of it? It became an idol to the people and Hezekiah destroyed it (2 Kings 18:4).
Don’s friends knew something was different when he threw a square dance party for his birthday. It had finally connected for him that he was not a worthless interruption on life. He had a mental image of God himself dancing for joy when Don was born, therefore Don hosted a square dance to join in. “Don had learned, at last, that God is for people, not religious systems.” (p. 145)
Personal Interaction
I just know that this chapter is destined to stick with me. These word pictures from Jesus are so searching and so evocative. Counting out the tiniest herbs while neglecting the heart of a relationship with God and others, upside-down spirituality, straining at gnats and gulping down camels. It’s a good thing I would never do anything like that!
Seriously, though, I think we must remain open to seeing when we begin to have upside-down priorities. I also think it is very helpful in my own mind in correcting the errors of the system known as Gothardism. People were kicked out and sent home for small infractions. People were pushed aside and neglected because they did not look good. Others were given excessive attention — even celebrity status — based on outward appearance or what they might offer the Institute in return. It was more important to have matching uniforms and hair than it was to attend the funeral of a friend and comfort mourning loved ones.
I may have shared this already, but one Sunday in Moscow a group of us were invited to attend an underground church service. An experience of a lifetime! There was a strong “standard” in our group against consuming any alcohol whatsoever, so when the communion cup with real wine was passed, some students refused to partake. Back in our ship-board quarters, it was common to consume NyQuil for a wide range of maladies, partly just because it helped you get some sleep and we were all sleep-deprived. But NyQuil contains alcohol! I knew even at the time that this was an upside-down spirituality. I saw the surprised look on our Christian brothers’ and sisters’ faced as they wondered why these students refused the cup. Refusing communion in favor of a “commitment” not to ever touch alcohol (while drinking quarts of NyQuil) was straining out gnats, in my opinion.
Good Quotes
When all is said and done, abusive spirituality is more interested in supporting doctrines (spiritual mindsets, mentalities, ways of viewing God) than in supporting people.It is not interested in learning the true conditions in which God builds a living relationship with people – by grace, for free, to become a wellspring if inner spiritual resource. For God himself is interested in men and women finding the right way to connect with and draw life from Him. (p. 144)
Matthew 23:23-28
What sorrow awaits you teachers of religious law and you Pharisees. Hypocrites! For you are careful to tithe even the tiniest income from your herb gardens, but you ignore the more important aspects of the law—justice, mercy, and faith. You should tithe, yes, but do not neglect the more important things. Blind guides! You strain your water so you won’t accidentally swallow a gnat, but you swallow a camel!
What sorrow awaits you teachers of religious law and you Pharisees. Hypocrites! For you are so careful to clean the outside of the cup and the dish, but inside you are filthy—full of greed and self-indulgence! You blind Pharisee! First wash the inside of the cup and the dish, and then the outside will become clean, too.
What sorrow awaits you teachers of religious law and you Pharisees. Hypocrites! For you are like whitewashed tombs—beautiful on the outside but filled on the inside with dead people’s bones and all sorts of impurity. Outwardly you look like righteous people, but inwardly your hearts are filled with hypocrisy and lawlessness.
(from the NLT)
Questions for Discussion:
Do you have any stories to tell of upside-down spirituality --- in other words, of people straining at gnats while swallowing camels?
Do you think it is possible for good things, such as a tradition, a hymn book, or even the Bible itself, to become idols? How should we respond if we discover that we have slipped into this sort of idolatry?
How do you respond internally when you think about Jesus rebuking the Pharisees as blind guides who strained at gnats but swallowed camels, or as ones who washed the outside of the cup while the inside remained filthy?
It would be nice to think that only “they” could be guilty of these crimes, but alas, no one is immune. How would we know if we ourselves began to slip into straining out gnats but ignoring camels?
(Click here to go on to Chapter 13)
I have noticed how many times churches who uphold extremely high standards have rot and decay going on behind closed doors. You hear about it frequently on the news. What a blot to the name of Christ. I've noticed it on family levels as well. Religion (laws and rules) kills the spirit and is breeding ground for sin, because WE CAN'T DO IT on our own strength.
Your example of the church with the high dress code made me think of a former church of mine, where they hold to the same dress standard for communion bearers. I hope very much that there is no corruption in that church, some of my family still attend there. I would be horrified, but not very surprised if it someday came out that evil like that was lurking in that church.
It's heart-breaking every time it happens, isn't it?
To be fair, I don't believe that strict standards for dress code, etc. necessarily imply a church is more likely to have corruption. I think the human family is plagued with corruption and that rules like "touch not, taste not, handle not" (Col 2) or even "thou shalt wear a suit and tie" are simply useless for conquering our internal wrong desires. In any sufficient sample size of people, you can expect corruption, whether it's a liberal, conservative, Protestant, Catholic, Unitarian church or even the local Lions or Kiwanis club or local or federal government, we could go on to name other examples. But what is needed is heart-change, which happens in relationship with Jesus. He gives us a new life and calls us into a new reality.
Very true, very true. Again, great article.
I know a man who truly loves the Lord and people. He was one of the worship leaders in a church we sometimes visit. I always enjoyed his smile and enthusiasm. I was sorry to hear that when his pastor decided that every man who had any leadership role in the church must wear a tie to the service, he chose to quit the worship team.
I think establishing standards of appearances and focusing attention on them opens the door for "hypocritters" to invade the church. Anyone who desires a place of prominence in a church can put on the outward appearances of righteousness.
When the speed law of the land was 55 I tried to obey it while driving in Calif....EVERYONE was speeding around me, which by obeying that law could have caused an accident. My husband and parents were saying, speed up, and I argued "I MUST obey the LAW!" At that time I started to have serious "maybe mr.Bill isn't right on everything" thoughts. I finally gave in and sped up so the traffic flow would be more even.
I read your questions for discussion and I am going to combine them all into one answer--
I cannot strain at Mr. Bills's gnats and ignore the camel inside of me. I take too much pleasure reading about how he has failed but I have failed to look inside me for my shortcomings- they are myriad and many and I struggle with them everyday. I cannot stand at the judgement and point to Mr. Bill (or any other spiritual leader) for any of my problems, sins, failings, etc.
Wow...what an honest response. I mean, I'm saying I admire you for saying that... :)
And I'm happy to finally see a few comments after one of the chapter reviews for this book. People never seem to comment on them...
Really? I've seen heaps of responses
Sounds like the log and the splinter that Jesus talked about as well, doesn't it?
Thank you for this, Esbee. At the end of 2 Corinthians 5, Paul talks about being an ambassador, with a message of reconciliation to God. Even when Paul had the church kick a guy out in 1 Corinthians, he wanted them to receive the repentant man back in 2 Corinthians. Ephesians 4 talks about "truth in love". Sometimes we have to do the unpleasant task of telling people in clear terms that they are wrong and are hurting others, but we always have to keep an eye on ourselves as you are talking about here. Am I enjoying sitting in judgement or am I moving forward into relationship with Christ and doing what I can to be an ambassador to bring a message of reconciliation to others along the way?
To follow up on that, though - the issue of gnats and camels isn't describing other people's gnats versus our camels but rather our own gnats vs. our own camels. The Pharisees were tithing down to the tiniest seeds, yet were being unjust in exploiting needy people. In my own life, am I focused on driving exactly 55 while treating others around me with anger, bitterness, selfishness, lack of gratitude, pride, selfishness, sexual sin, or other sins of the flesh? The important issue, far more than whether I'm driving 55 or the speed of traffic, is if I'm growing in the fruit of the Spirit (Gal 5), and 'putting on' my new nature (Eph 4).
Brilliant
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