Are You A Stumbling Block? by Ben Fronczek

http://granvillenychurchofchrist.org/?p=1918

Are You A Stumbling Block?

Open: What is the worst possible thing that someone could do to you, or the worst possible thing that you could do to another Christian? Financially destroy someone? Smash their car? Burn their home? Torture or even murder them or even their loved ones?

As bad as theses things are, there is something that I consider far worst in the eternal sense. Today I would like to briefly discuss this.
1st, because it is so very bad. And,
2nd because I’ve seen people doing this to one another, even in
the church; and I’m not so sure these people understand the effect
of their own influence.

So what is so bad is that Jesus Himself warned His disciples about it; and did so I believe with a threatening tone in His voice?

Starting in Luke 17:2, Jesus said to His disciples, “Things that cause people to sin are bound to come, but woe to that person through whom they come. It would be better for Him to be thrown into the sea with a millstone tied around his neck than for him to cause one of theses little ones to sin. So watch yourselves.”

It’s one thing to sin on your own, and that’s bad enough, but it’s quite another thing to entice or cause another to sin.

The word Jesus used for “causes someone to sin”, is the Greek word, ‘skandalon’, which we get our word scandal from. It was a word meaning to bait a trap, to entice an animal to. Later the word came to mean, “stumbling block’.

If you entice someone else to sin, or put a barrier in someone’s life that causes them to trip up, and maybe cause them to loose their faith, in Christ, or the church, it’s a terrible scandal in God’s eyes.

The Apostle Paul as he writes to the Christians in Rome in Rom. 14:13, writes,

“Therefore let us stop passing judgment on one another. Instead, make up your minds not to put any stumbling block or obstacle in your brother’s way.”

This verse is part of a text Paul shares with on the topic. See, there are many ways that we can cause one another to stumble in our faith. In this context of chapter 14, Paul writes about those who are stronger and weaker in their faith and what they could or could not eat with good conscious.
Read Romans 14:13-23 “Therefore let us stop passing judgment on one another. Instead, make up your mind not to put any stumbling block or obstacle in the way of a brother or sister. 14 I am convinced, being fully persuaded in the Lord Jesus, that nothing is unclean in itself. But if anyone regards something as unclean, then for that person it is unclean. 15 If your brother or sister is distressed because of what you eat, you are no longer acting in love. Do not by your eating destroy someone for whom Christ died. 16 Therefore do not let what you know is good be spoken of as evil. 17 For the kingdom of God is not a matter of eating and drinking, but of righteousness, peace and joy in the Holy Spirit, 18 because anyone who serves Christ in this way is pleasing to God and receives human approval.
19 Let us therefore make every effort to do what leads to peace and to mutual edification. 20 Do not destroy the work of God for the sake of food. All food is clean, but it is wrong for a person to eat anything that causes someone else to stumble. 21 It is better not to eat meat or drink wine or to do anything else that will cause your brother or sister to fall.
22 So whatever you believe about these things keep between yourself and God. Blessed is the one who does not condemn himself by what he approves. 23 But whoever has doubts is condemned if they eat, because their eating is not from faith; and everything that does not come from faith is sin.”

There are other things that we can say or do to cause others to stumble:
If another believer sees you doing something, or if they hear you say something that does not fit the Christian way of life, it may shock them, or worst yet they may think that if it’s alright for you to do, then it’s probably alright for them to do as well. They may step into sin because of your example. This is especially true in our households, like if dad does something (even if it is wrong to do) the kids think is probably ok to do as well.

Every word, every action we take has the potential to have a positive or a negative impact on another whether we want it to, or whether we recognize it or not. You WILL influence others!

So, if we are going to influence others, what kind of influence should we
have on others? Hopefully a positive, holy, loving, God glorifying influence.

In the Sermon on the Mt, Jesus said that His disciples should be like salt
and light. Salt preserves, seasons and has healing properties. Light illuminates and dispels darkness.

In Colossians 5:6, the Apostle Paul said that we are to teach and admonish
one another.

In Thessalonians letter, he told the Christians to encourage one another and build one another up. (We’d always ask our kids are building up or tearing down by what they were saying or doing.)

In the Hebrew letter, the writer basically said the same thing. He wanted his readers to to encourage one another. But he also added that we are to spur one another on to good works. These are indeed positive influences!

But unfortunately, there are people, even in the church, who for whatever reason do more harm than good in the lives of others. They say things that hurt, criticize, belittle, and make people angry if not worst; like walking away from the church and sometime Christianity all together.

Over the past couple of years in the denominational world, we’ve all heard about the scandal of how priests sexually molested children. And because of that many have left that denomination.

Some have heard of preachers and Elders having affairs with women in the church. (How does that effect the faith of the victim? What about the family of the victims, or even the church family?)

These stumbling blocks happen anytime one Christian sees or hears of, or even follows the poor example of a Christian that should know better.

We can even hurt your non-Christian friend’s potential faith, potential relationship with Jesus and His church. They shake their head and say, “What a hypocrite.” And they are right. Simply showing up on Sunday at church is not enough. We should be talking the talk and walking the walk every day.

Anytime we mislead, tempt, unduly anger, or entice a fellow believer to sin or go against God’s commands, we are putting that person’s faith and eternal destiny in jeopardy. Sad to say I have seen preachers and members of the church insult, belittle, embitter, fellow members of the church.

Anytime others see us, or anytime any time we entice a friend to do something unethical or wrong we become a stumbling block in that person’s life.

Anytime we entice another to break the law, or do something illegal, we become a stumbling block in that person’s life.

Anytime we provoke another to anger, if we embitter, if we promote gossip, or encourage them to seek revenge, or if we entice another to become unforgiving, you become a stumbling block in that person’s life.

Remember what Paul wrote in Romans, even what we eat or drink in another’s presence can hurt a weaker brother. If that is true (which is it) what will these other negative behaviors do to their faith?

Are you going to be the kind of person that builds up another’s faith, or one that tears it down? You will probably do one or the other. Yet there are so called Christians doing these kind of things despite Jesus warnings here.

If a person is not a Christian is that person going to shake their head and mock all Christians and the church because of your example, or how you talk and act? Will they forever turn their back on God’s wonderful gift because of your example and your influence? Scary thought isn’t it.

True Story. I’ll never forget when my daughter Leah was flying to Rome, she was sitting next to someone who was becoming a priest. She said that she had some good discussions with him. But as she saw him rummage through his carry on bag a pack of cigarettes fell out and he admitted that he smoked and drank regularly. Why, because everyone else did it. And so Leah very bluntly came out and asked him, “Don’t you think that you should be a better example?”

In my opinion, destroying one’s faith is far worst than destroying one financially, or hurting them physically. It has eternal consequences.

You may be the direct cause of dooming someone to an eternity in Hell!

Jesus said, if you are that kind of person who does these kind of things, you’d be better of taking a rope and tying it to a millstone and drowning yourself with it in the middle of the ocean.

And what if today you realize that you are this kind of person. What should you do? Kill yourself? Of course not rather 1st of all you need to seek forgiveness, from God for such behaviors and if possible seek forgiveness of those you have been hurting. Humble yourself before the Lord and He will lift you up.

2nd Seek help if you can’t change on your own. Seek someone out who you trust to help, critique, even mentor and pray for you. Remember Jesus words about the millstone and the swim He suggests you should take with it if you don’t change.

Conclusion:
On one occasion, after sitting through a sermon someone asked Abe Lincoln what he though of the message. Ol’ Abe said that he thought that it was well thought out and delivered in an eloquent manner.

The other man said, ‘So you thought that it was good?’
Abe responded in a negative manner saying, ‘No’.
When asked why, Abe responded by saying something like, ‘Because he never challenged us to do anything, He never challenged us to change’

I wanted to share this lesson with you today because if you are the kind of person that tears others down or causes other to stumble, I am pleading with you to change. Jesus want you to change.

Jesus does not look favorably on anyone who causes others to stumble in their faith, I believe that we are going to feel really bad if we ourselves make it to heaven and others we influence or even hurt don’t.

I believe that why the Bible says in Revelations that God will have to wipe away every tear. It will take divine intervention to remove the tears & grief from our hearts.

So I plead with you to be very careful about what you say, what you do, or even what you don’t do when you know that you should be doing something.

I believe that the best was to act is to always act and speak out of loving heart. If you can’t say or do something constructive or positive, you are better not saying or doing something at all.

Yes, it is hard to do sometimes, but we need to remember what kind of damage we can do if we are not careful and how our negative actions will displease Jesus. I guess that’s why Jesus said that we need to watch ourselves.