Earlier this month Jerry Falwell, Jr. stepped down indefinitely as the Chancellor of my Alma Mater. Today, Jerry Falwell, Jr. stepped down permanently from his position due to a scandal. (It was later reported he was not stepping down.) Many fellow graduates were shocked, but others were not shocked at all. In fact, one lady said "I am glad this happened." The fact remains that Chancellor Falwell is a man. As a female graduate of Liberty, I can say that I didn't have it easy in the seminary, namely because I wasn't at the school to meet a husband, I was genuinely intrigued by the scriptures.
Falwell did release a statement to the Washington Examiner. From the way the release was written it sounds like a feeble attempt to clear his name, but not that of his wife.
Despite all of this, I would encourage my fellow Christians to not rejoice in the human failures of Jerry Falwell. Instead, I would encourage you to pray for him, his family and the school. 1 Corinthians 13:6 it [love] does not rejoice in wrongdoing but rejoices in truth. Proverbs 24:17 states Do not rejoice when your enemy falls, and let not your heart be glad when he stumbles. We shouldn't be rejoicing at the failures, we shouldn't be gloating in the moral failures of a person, rather we need to be rejoicing that Chancellor Falwell will now have time to work on getting his life back in order and work on his marriage, if the marriage survives this.
Obidiah 1:12 states But do not gloat over the day of your brother in the day of his misfortune; do not rejoice over the people of Judah, in the day of their ruin; do not boast in the day of distress.
At this time, all I can do is think "Thank God my life isn't lived out loud, that my sins are not broadcast for the world to hear." The reason I think it's easy for us to judge Mr. Falwell is because at this time, we are just glad it isn't us; we are holding him to a higher standard than we hold even ourselves.
When was the last time that you were wronged? Or that your sins were found out by someone else? When was the last time that we watched with glee someone else "get what they deserve?" While most of the people I know are not gloating in the fall of Jerry Falwell, they are relieved at the fact that he resigned, hoping that the school can get back on track.
To be a student at Liberty, you have to agree to "The Liberty Way." I had to agree to uphold the standards of the honor code, which covers every thing from the history of Liberty all the way down to the Family Educational Rights and Privacy Act of 1974. The Liberty Way/Student Honor Code prohibits Sexual relations outside of marriage, and only between natural born men and natural born women. Sexual relations outside of a biblically-ordained marriage between a natural-born man and a natural-born woman are not permissible at Liberty University. In personal relationships, students are encouraged to know and abide by common-sense guidelines to avoid the appearance of impropriety. Activities inconsistent with these standards and guidelines are violations of the Student Honor Code.
At this time, it is my desire that Liberty's new leadership be charged with upholding The Liberty Way in all ways, fashion and form. I am also asking my followers/readers to not rejoice in the fall of Chancellor Falwell, instead take the time to pray for him. To pray that God will show him the way, to which he will need to follow. Pray for his family, and the Liberty Family...because of the next few months and possibly the entire next year, they are going to be needing our prayers, as they change leadership (pending tomorrow's announcement).
Until we know more, we should become humble. Humbleness is not a sign of weakness. It’s a sign of a right heart with God.
Are you bitter over something wrong that was done to you and are finding it hard to let go? Have you rejoiced over another’s misfortune after they have wronged you? This is the time to get with God and repent and ask God to fix what needs fixing. When we turn the matter over to the Lord, He will take care of it. Our job is to forgive and move on.
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