GEMINI
FLIRTING
WITH TEMPTATION
“...sin entered into
the world, and death through sin, and so death passed to all
men, for that all sinned—“(Romans 5:12 KJV).
“… SIN, when it is
finished, BRINGETH FORTH DEATH…” (James
1:13-15 NLT).
*
In
2007 Gemini’s sat in her car after leaving the doctor’s office. Her life had
just turned into a nightmare, because she was pregnant with another man’s
child. Her husband, of 12 years, Bradley Patterson, had gotten a vasectomy a
few months ago and he would know what she had done. Abortion was against her
Christian principles, but adultery was too and she had broken that rule BIG
TIME.
It had only been one
time, but one time was all it took to destroy your whole life. She could use
the excuse that Brad was working too much, they weren’t spending as much time
together, or that he wasn’t giving her enough attention, but she couldn’t.
Gemini slept with Martin because she wanted to and that’s the bottom line.
Yes, she and Brad were
having a moment, in their married life, but it didn’t justify her sleeping with
Martin. Martin had been flirting with her for months and she’d encouraged it.
Gemini had her own
counseling practice and she had hired Martin’s company to do the remodeling of
their new location. Gemini saw him almost every day, for months and when he
flirted with her; she flirted back
Gemini knew it was
wrong and that she was sending the wrong message, but she did it anyway. It
excited her and made her feel young, worldly, and alive again. She started
dressing different, she got a new hairstyle, and she got a fitness trainer. If
she was honest with herself, she was planning to sleep with him as soon as the
opportunity presented itself.
Brad was a good looking
man, a wonderful provider, an awesome father, a man who truly lived his faith,
and their sexual life was on point. Martin was good looking too. He was milk
chocolate, oozing with youthful muscles, was purposefully bald, had a sexy
Barry White voice, and a smile that made her knees buckle.
His flirtations pulled
at her flesh, tempting her to indulge and she was answering the call. Her mind
became consumed with temptation and doing what, she knew, was wrong, even
though she knew what was right.
Gemini knew what was
right, because she went to church every, single Sunday. She’d been raised in
the church, just like Brad. They were raising their three children, Bradley,
Jr, Judy, and Randy, in church too!
Brad was one of the
associate Pastors in one of the largest non-denominational churches in
Baltimore and she was president of the Women’s Mission. Brad and Gemini were
heavily involved in their church activities and programs. They were icons of
spiritual leadership. Gemini felt she loved God and that she was a very
religious person. She also felt a “little” flirtation with Martin wasn’t sinful,
but she had no idea she was flirting with the devil.
As she sat in her car
she wondered should she tell Brad what she done or should she get an abortion.
She wasn’t supposed to believe in abortion, because it didn’t line up with the Christian
faith, but she was willing to consider it anyway.
Gemini had too much to
lose. She liked her life and the religious reputation or imagine they had spent
years building. Gemini was well respected in the Christian community and Brad
made a fortune speaking at other churches around the world. They had become
small time millionaires through the church. There is no way she was giving up
her life for THIS!
She had ONLY done it
once. It’s not like she was having an affair or was involved with a long-term
relationship with Martin. She had to make a decision. She knew abortion was
wrong and that God might frown on it, but she was going to do it anyway. God
would understand and it wouldn’t hurt her salvation. She was still planning to
stay a Christian and she didn’t plan on having anymore one-night stands.
However, she couldn’t
get “that” one night stand out of her mind. It’s almost like becoming “one
flesh” with Martin opened a door in her flesh. Now she felt tempted to do it
again and she wanted to do right, but her flesh didn’t.
Martin was a few years
younger than her and he was one of those 21st century lovers with
sexual moves that opened a Pandora Box filled with carnality. Her flesh wanted
to discover what else was in “that” box.
Gemini got her abortion
in 2007 and after Martin, she had had several lovers. She was always discreet
and had never been caught. Now here it was 2017 and she was pregnant again.
Her doctor, who was in
another town, was the brother of her current lover. He knew her and knew she’d
been with his brother. Gemini was scared this time, because what if he told his
brother? What if the brother made a big deal out of it? What if he wanted the
baby? What if Brad found out? What if her children found out? What if the
church found out?
Gemini’s sins were
finally catching up with her, but she never thought they would. She was so good
at keeping them hidden. She was a two-faced Christian that was about to reap
what she had sown.
She had flirted with
temptation, became a slave to her temptation, and NOW she would be exposed for
the hypocrite she really was!
DR. PENSACOLA H.
JEFFERSON
PASTORAL
COUNSELOR
YADA COUNSELING
MINISTRY
GEMINI: THE
TWO-FACED CHRISTIAN
GEMINI
“…a little leaven leavens the whole lump...”
(Galatians 5:o KJV).
*
Gemini decided she was going to have
another abortion. It was easier this time, because she already done it once.
She was, however, concerned about the doctor and his brother.
The doctor saw the wedding band on her
finger and asked “...Gemmy, are you
married?...” All her lovers called her Gemmy, because that’s the name she
gave them. She replied, “...No, I just
wear it sometimes. Its sentimental to me. It was my mother’s before she passed
away...”
When she left the doctor’s office she saw
Deacon Gilbert sitting in the lobby and she tilted the hat on her head so he wouldn’t
recognize her.
She hated hiding from Christian folk, but
she was worried about how, what she was doing, LOOKED. She was in a whole other
town.
She counseled church folk all the time and
she knew she wasn’t the only one who was HIDING. She was one of many who were
two-faced Christians.
She didn’t know she was two-faced until
she’d met with a new client named, Susan, a few months ago. Susan Taylor talked
about a fake Christian friend that had hurt her really bad. She said, “...I am so sick of these two-faced Christians...”
Susan said the two-faced Christian was
really nice at first, but she never had her best interest at heart She was
gossiping behind Susan’s back and didn’t accept some of the biblical principles
Susan adhered to.
Susan said she received a $30,000 bill
from her credit card company saying she was over her limit. Her two-faced
Christian friend had stolen it, months before and knew Susan was struggle to
pay it until they found the thief.
Susan said the woman went to church every
Sunday and even taught a bible study class. Susan said, “....people like this give Christianity a bad name. The ones who are
really trying to live righteous are never highlighted or in the news. This
woman looked me in the eye almost every day, KNOWING, she had betrayed me. She
is not a “real” Christian. She is a
TWO-FACED Christian, which is the same thing as a hypocrite, but worst, because
they will go out of their way to LOOK righteous, when they know they are of
full of unrighteousness...”
Gemini said: “...People are basically good people, Susan, maybe she’s not as bad as you
think. Do you think you are being a
little harsh? “
“...
No, I don’t. Without God, people are NOT basically good; they are basically a
sinful nature. I don’t think I’m being harsh at all, Dr. Patterson. I am trying
to see it for what it is. She was practicing deceit with me for months and she
would have kept doing it if she had not been caught...”
“...But
you said she went to church and taught Bible Study...”
“...So,
what. It is obvious that just because she was doing a lot of righteous things,
didn’t make her righteous on the inside. She was definitely NOT being righteous
toward me. See what I mean? Two-faced...”
“...do
you think you are judging her, Susan?...”
“...Absolutely
NOT. The bible says we will SEE spiritual fruit. Where was her spiritual
fruit?...”
“...Everyone
makes mistakes, Susan...”
“...She
wasn’t making “a” mistake, she was being purposefully and intentionally
deceitful....”
“...do
you think that makes her a unrighteous person?...”
“...yes,
it does...”
“....can
you honestly say you know what was in her heart...”
“...yes
I can, because what was “in” her heart, Dr. Patterson, is what made her do what
she did...”
“....that
doesn’t mean she is unrighteous...”
“....what
does it mean then, Dr. Patterson? That’s why the church is messed up today and
full of two-faced Christians, because the rest of us act like we can’t
recognize unrighteousness when we SEE it! Did she make a mistake or was she
willfully practicing to deceive me?...”
Gemini couldn’t answer her and Susan
continued. “...She didn’t make a mistake,
but she did choose to deceive me for months and months, knowing and watching me
agonize over my stolen credit card. When does it stop being a mistake, Dr.
Patterson, and become a willful practice of sin. Where was the spiritual fruit
that the indwelling Holy Spirit produces in the life of HIS people? God distinctly
tells us, in the bible, HOW to KNOW who his people are. Tell me something, Doc,
was she being one of God’s people or was she being a two-faced Christian? Is
she a Christian at all? There are people in the church, including leadership,
who don’t bear spiritual fruit. They entertain and perform Christian antics,
but display NO fruit! They may be good at fooling people, but they are NOT
fooling God and at the end of the day, Doc, they will have to answer to him.
He’s the one with the heaven or hell to put them in....”
After Susan left, Gemini asked herself
this question: “...Am I a two-faced
Christian?...” She told everyone, that she was a woman of God who had
received Christ in her heart as her Lord and Savior years ago.
According to her “own” studies a person
who has accepted Christ will have the
indwelling Holy Spirit within their hearts. It is the indwelling Holy Spirit that makes you a Christian and a New
Creation. And the ones who DON’T have the
indwelling Holy Spirit is NOT a Christian.
Gemini decided there was NO such thing as
two-faced Christian. You are either a Christian or you are NOT a Christian. A
person either has the indwelling Holy
Spirit within them or they DON’T.
However, the idea of a two-faced Christian
is warranted, because of the widespread witness of non-Christian behaviors. And because of the
MANY people who THINK they are Christians and PROFESS to be Christians, but
THEY ARE NOT!
Gemini thought: “...Am I one of them?...” She’d
readily compromised her biblical principles multiply times over her
lifetime. She wasn’t just making mistakes, but she was willingly practicing a
lifestyle of adulterous sin.
When she grew up she went to Sunday
School, Church, BTU, evening service, and Wednesday Bible Study. The church she
attended now avoided such practices and it showed in the congregants. People were
not GETTING a healthy dose of the truth nor were they ADHEREING to SOUND
doctrine anymore. Neither was she.
She simply went to church faithfully each
Sunday, which she thought guaranteed she’d get into heaven. She prayed and went
down to altar call every single week. She said “amen” and “praise the Lord”
during Pastor’s sermons. She adhered to most of the normal religious
traditions.
She was almost certain, regardless of her adulterous
behavior, she was going to heaven. After all, she’d done many, many, many good
works too. Plus she’d accepted Christ, which meant she was going to heaven no
matter what. She was SEALED until the day of redemption and there was nothing
she could do about it.
Gemini knew she had some non-Christians
practices, but she was sure she was still, in good standing, with God. Why
did she feel so comfortable with her sin, then?
Gemini wasn’t perfect, but nobody was and
she was doing ALL the things she was supposed to do. Certainly, all was well
with her salvation. She was SURROUNDED with Christianity and righteousness!
She’d been a Christian her entire life.
She’d done the work and followed the rules, but now Susan Taylor had her
wondering: “...Am I a two-faced Christian...”
“...Am I a Christian at all?”
She’d heard Pastor say that some people
who thought getting into heaven was a shoe-in will get there and God will say:
“...I never knew you... Away from me you
...[evildoer]...”
Gemini had been a Christian for years and
years, but she had NOT changed much. She’d grown up, gotten older, gained
worldly wisdom, and she knew more ABOUT God, but she really didn’t KNOW God.
Gemini KNEW the Christian culture like the
back of her hand and she practiced or performed, her role, like a PRO. That was
her public profile, but privately she didn’t truly live a life that was
pleasing to God.
She kept people at a distance because she
couldn’t, through human effort, produce spiritual fruit. Deep inside she knew
it too.
She’d cheated on Brad for over ten years
and when she examined her heart about it she felt she wasn’t hurting anybody as
long as she remained discreet. Her discretion was for Brad and her family’s
sake.
Gemini didn’t follow Christian principles,
but she followed her OWN human reasonings and justifications.
She continued to be a Godly wife and the
helpmeet she was created to be. At least she thought she was. She stood up with
Brad professing her faith along with him, but she knew she had not truly made
any spiritual changes in years!
She KNEW no Christian was perfect, but
she’d used that excuse to practice an ongoing sinful and adulterous lifestyle.
She also advocated for hypocrites a lot and admonished others for judging them.
She was HARD on people who didn’t have the
same sins as she did, but she was lenient on those who did. Two-faced
Christians, LIKE HER, rallied for each other’s lifestyle of sin, because it made
them feel more comfortable about their own WRONG conduct.
When other Christian discovered their
fellow brother or sister was practicing sin they no longer cautioned them, but
turned a blind eye instead. It wasn’t
politically correct. As long as they
don’t give the “appearance of evil” and kept up the imagine of righteousness,
nobody said a word.
It was silent permission, that allowed
people to stay in positions of leadership, like her, or as role models, even
though they deliberately and habitually engaged in an ongoing, private and sinful
lifestyle.
When God’s people DO NOTHING, phony
Christians will continue and take over the church. Gemini thought: “...As long as I look righteous nobody cares
whether I am really righteous or not...”
Gemini didn’t really know the God of the
bible. She was hiding, in plain sight, under the umbrella of religious leadership
and nobody had said a word to her in over 20+ years!
Susan Taylor had inadvertently witnessed a
Word to her and it converted her life.
Susan was a “real” Christian. She showed
real love toward the lady she’d called a two-faced Christian. Though the woman
caused her all kinds of problems through the illegal use of her credit card,
she managed to continue to show love to her anyway.
Susan went on to help the woman straighten
up her life and eventually she repented and gave her life to Christ.
Susan had also witnessed to Gemini
unbeknowingly and it made her repent. She asked Jesus into her heart too and
for the first time in her life, she felt different. It made her wonder had she
ever really been saved.
Gemini went ahead with the second
abortion, but she no longer felt comfortable with her decision. She also felt
convicted almost every day about her affairs and thought about coming clean
with Brad.
She had been a counselor, for the church,
for years, but she wasn’t calling people’s wrongs sin, but she labeled them
with psychological terms, which did nothing to help them face their
transgressions against God.
She counseled so many people who were very
religious, but the gospel didn’t really influence their behavior in most parts
of their life. Yet, they LOOKED like a true believer.
Some two-faced Christians talk about how
God has blessed them and it truly looks as if they are really being blessed.
They can be extremely ethical, but not righteous. They often talk as if their
ethical behavior EARNED them the blessings too, mostly material. Some LOOK as if they actually DID
EARN the blessings from God.
But Susan Taylor was an authentic
Christian. It was so obvious she loved the Lord and she also had a heart of
love. The whole $30,000 debt was erased from Susan’s credit card and the bank
even returned the money she’d paid on the erroneous debt. To Gemini, that was a
true blessing!
Susan was also in the word every day and
in their sessions together, she talked openly about her covenant friendship,
fellowship, and relationship with God.
Gemini could clearly see that Susan chose
God’s way of righteousness over her own. She openly submitted to God’s Lordship.
Gemini could see the fruit of love, kindness, gentleness, meekness, and so
forth in Susan’s life.
Susan Taylor said the “deeds of the flesh”
were obvious or evident just like the spiritual fruit produced by the Holy
Spirit is obvious too.
Gemini had been an adulterer, deceiver,
cheater, liar, and fake for years. She was also a so-called Christian leader
for over 20+ years.
How
had she gotten away with it? How had she become so comfortable with a sinful
lifestyle while also attending a church for years and not feel convicted
until Susan Taylor walked into her office.
She KNEW how. Growing up, she SAW a lot of
two-faced Christians, whose “deeds of the
flesh” were obvious. She’d learned from “her” Christian leaders how to live
a hypocritical life. Many of the people
she’d grown up with lived the same kind of life she did in one way or another.
It was her client, Susan Taylor, who
witnessed the truth to her. She’d learned being a Christian was NOT simply
something you DO, but someone you BECOME.
Gemini thought: “...I learned how to be a two-faced Christian from other Christians.
Now she’d learned how to become a “real” Christian from Susan Taylor. I really
wasn’t a Christian at all. I was just a two-faced person and a hypocrite...” “…a little leaven leavens the whole lump...”
(Galatians 5:9 KJV).
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