Church Hurt

For I am jealous for you with a godly jealousy, because I have promised you in marriage to one husband — to present a pure virgin to Christ. But I fear that, as the serpent deceived Eve by his cunning, your minds may be seduced from a sincere and pure devotion to Christ.”

2 Corinthians 11:2-3 CSB

I recently had a conversation with a friend who was offended by a particular leadership decision in her church. She had volunteered and worked diligently for months behind the scenes on a special project. In the end, the church leadership chose to go in a different direction.

“They don’t value what I have done.”

My friend rushed to other people to validate her hurt feelings.  Those individuals had left the church because of similar situations and encouraged her to do the same.

My friend’s situation struck a familiar chord with me.

Hear me, God does not desire for His people to mistreat one another. God does not give a pass to leadership to take advantage of volunteers nor does He give a pass to volunteers to slander the church.

In Corinthians, Paul expresses a deep concern for the church of Corinth, fearing that they might be led astray from their devotion to Christ. He compares the church to a bride betrothed to one husband—Jesus. This imagery reminds us of the sacredness of the Church and the importance of remaining faithful to Christ.  As believers, we are part of this union, we are called to purity, devotion, and steadfast love for our Bridegroom.

If your husband upsets you, could you expect to continue a thriving, healthy relationship with him if your retaliation was to defame and mock him? Similarly, when we disrespect parts of the church body, we dishonor the very relationship Christ established with His people. The enemy constantly seeks to deceive and divide, just as he did in the Garden of Eden. We must guard our hearts and minds, keeping our faith anchored in Christ alone.

I’m glad to say my friend has not left her beloved church and through practicing Matthew 18:15 she came to realize there was some misunderstanding. I go back to her statement, “They don’t value what I have done.” Do we truly value what Jesus has done—his journeys, teachings, and ultimately sacrificing his life for us? Are His commands considered when we are hurting or seeking out our own preferences?

Taylor Newton