(ThyBlackMan.com) The recent allegations of sexual abuse against Bishop Eddie Long have reopened a sore on the corporate body of believers in Christ. The only difference is that such shocking charges aren’t stemming from Catholic priests.
Stereotypically, lewd sexual acts that make their way to the surface of Black Churches involve scandalous affairs between deacons and pastors and the women of the congregation they so willingly serve. But as the dust settles from such generalizations swept under the rug, traditional Protestant and non-Protestant Churches are being unified by a common threat. Two dissimilar denominations, one symptom, one like enemy: lust.
Whether it’s lust for material goods or sexual immorality, both are different sides of the same coin. Lust is a plague that has always been an equal 
opportunity employer. Or in the context of the battle between flesh and spirit, an evil opportunity destroyer.
Do you know the most effective way to stop an entire movement of people?: aim for the leaders. But the enemy has moved beyond creating martyrs whose crusade grows stronger in the wake of their death (ever heard of Christ?!!). Instead, if you can bring the integrity of a leader into question – whatever beliefs s/he stood for have a stronger chance of being compromised and undermined. History has given us some great examples.
Rumors of extramarital affairs and his children’s infighting over his estate have besmirched Dr. King’s memory. John F. Kennedy’s open philandering tarnished his family name. In more recent history, Rev. Jesse Jackson and his son have risked their community endeavors in favor of going into the family business of private affairs.
At one point or another, each of these men stood for something larger than themselves. Yet for all their efforts, such indiscretions have potentially damaged the impact. Bishop Long is no different. Two common links exist among all of these men: lust and “religion”. While each of these men were known for their great devotion to the bride of Christ, each has been disconnected from their wives by a spirit of infidelity.
Yet and still, ask not what these men have done to your belief system. Ask what your belief system has done to these men. Why put faith in a man whose fallibility is his most reliable trait? Bishop Long is only the most recent, albeit painful, reminder of that. Where there is opportunity for lust to be fleshed out through human frailty, it will try to take advantage. This is the strategy of an unclean spirit amongst the people of God. As such, we must learn to focus on the spiritual root of the matter as opposed to its physical/sexual manifestation.
Long may have made some wrong moves but those who built him up to be an infallible man of God are the ones in error. After I moved to Chicago, I heard the following phrase used for the first time to write off a person: “I ain’t studyin’ you!” This is the outlook we need to adopt as we continue to encounter imperfect men – Christians and non-Christians alike.
As long as we’re studying the behavior of a man, we’re ignoring the unclean spiritual source of the problem. That is why we fail.
Study Long, study wrong.
Staff Writer; Reggie Legend
Can find more about this writer over at; http://www.steelwaterspoetry.com
Also available as a Keynote Speaker – Book him Today; Speakerwiki – Reggie Legend
