It is a travesty that cheaters who have little to no use for Christian values suddenly throw them at you when they’re in a bind. They’ll talk about how “God wants you to forgive”, “be accepting” and “judge not”.
Although they’re factually correct, they’re often taking Scripture way out of context. They somehow ignore the passages dealing with how God hates divorce, how terrible it is to be treacherous to your spouse, and how you are to take care of your own family before you start trying to help others.
They somehow overlook the passages about God’s views on adultery and fornication. They want all the forgiving aspects and none of the righteous living requirements. They want the forgiveness and submission, but not the accountability.
They like the forgiveness passages, but downplay the call for loyalty and commitment. They gloss over issues like confessing wrongs, not lusting after others and their own lies.
The cheater forgets that when they violate the covenant, they’re no longer under its authority. By refusing to adhere to the authority of the covenant, they’re not entitled to the benefits of being under the covenant.
Somehow the plain logic of that escapes them. Instead of looking at how all the pieces fit together, they cherry pick the verses and passages that will ‘guilt trip’ you into letting them do what they want to do.
You can’t stand inside and outside the covenant at the same time. The cheater is either in or out. You are either operating under the rules of the covenant or some other law.
This is also seen in popular culture where people will talk about Christian values, without adhering to the Christian responsibilities. They only want the Christian values when it comes to forgiveness, or giving to help others, yet, they sing a different song when it comes to protecting life, not stealing, or protecting the sanctity of the family.
When a cheater is surrounded by cherry picking selected Christian values it is no surprise that they do the same thing as well.
Before you fall for their guilt trips or spiritual one-upmanship or Scriptural brinkmanship, examine if they are taking things out of context. Look at whether they are telling you the ‘rest of the story’.
Look at how they live in terms of whether they are abiding by the covenant. When they are not abiding by the covenant and their marriage vows, they are out of line expecting you to be ‘called on the carpet’ for it.
Best Regards,
Jeff
