Willing to Share Struggles with Sin

[Thoughtful Monk]

My friend says that the pastor talks about sin and repentance as a sermon topic, but he does not share the specific sins that he personally struggles with.

I realize I have on occassion, heard pastors preaching on their struggles. I would not characterize what they are struggling with as sins; rather struggles with leading a faithful life (time management issues, God prioritized over other demands, understanding a particular Bible verse, etc.) I think this is ok for a pastor to use in either a sermon or other occassion.

[Rushing Jaws]

One of my friends has been attending a church for several months. He noticed that no one in the church talks openly about their struggles with sin. He talks to people before and after the service. He has been attending different social events and Bible studies at the church. Moreover, the pastor does not talk about his personal struggles with sin from the pulpit. He said that when people don't talk about their struggles with sin, they are putting up a barrier between themselves and other people. They are not having fellowship to the degree that they could have it. Moreover, some people might get the wrong impression that they are trying to hide something.

What do you think about this? Should a pastor to share openly his struggles with sin from the pulpit? Should everyone else be open to sharing their struggles?

I agree that people should be open to talking about their struggles with sin. People should have nothing to hide.

Just because you don't hear someone talking about their struggles with sin, does not mean that they never do. Some people only share their struggles with a close friend or with family members. Others share about the intimate details of their lives in certain situations.

I am totally

[Ana Dragule]

My/Hubby's pastor spoke of knocking over someone's fancy coffee and then messing up trying to save it as though it was something that needed repentance. The next week he brought a Starbucks gift card to replace it. That was an effective example for the sermon, and I won't forget how he replaced it any time soon.

[One Bad Pig]

That sounds about right to me. I know pastors are human and have their own set of struggles. However when he is leading the worship service or otherwise acting in official capacity, he shouldn't be sharing those struggles. I hope all pastors have a place to share these things.

It's a tough balancing act for a church. As pointed out, sharing your sins with others can just make you the center of gossip. On the other hand, if the church presents that everyone is living a perfect life with no struggles (sin or otherwise), you discourage those who are struggling. They will either hide their struggles or stop coming. As it is said, the church is (in part) a hospital for the wounded.

To go to the third hand, I don't join a church for free therapy. Unfortunately some of the small groups I've joined, basically are therapy or self-help groups. Therapy has it's place buts not the whole of the church's purpose.

I'm not sure what the exact answer is. I know that haven't seen it done in over 10 years.

It seems like that would be pretty much covered by private confession of sins in front of a priest (who can offer advice), and exhortation to regularly do that. It's helped me a lot.

[KingsGambit]

One principle I have read and think I more or less agree with is the number of people you disclose your sin to should depend on how many people were affected/sinned against. So if somebody stole some money from a church offering, it might be appropriate to tell the entire church. Generally speaking, sexual sins aren't usually going to be covered here. I could think of exceptions, though. If an elder/pastor/etc. was caught in a prostitution sting that resulted in their picture being all over the news, it would be appropriate to confess before the entire church (and for them to step aside indefinitely) This would still be consistent with my principle because a sin that became this public would bring shame upon the entire congregation.

[Cow Poke]

It can quite often become a pissing contest for who either struggles the most or has sinned the "biggest". Many see talking about their sin as glorifying their sin. It's a rather difficult thing to adequately discuss without keeping it in the proper frame of mind.

Yeah, I often point out that, when I was younger, it seemed we would hear testimonies of people who had lived a life of crime, including imprisonment for same, and they would tend to go on and on about how bad they were --- then they got saved. It was like - the badder they were, the better their salvation was. I live it when somebody is gloriously saved, but let's hear about what Christ has done in your life AFTER Salvation, not just your wickedness before!

[Cow Poke]

I think a more appropriate setting might be something like a men's Bible study.

The confession / repentance needs to be in the same circle where the offense was committed. If I sinned against the congregation - that's where I need to confess. If I sinned against a brother, it's between me and him. A men's Bible study would be a good place to confess general failings and seek encouragement.

[Thoughtful Monk]

Yeah, I often point out that, when I was younger, it seemed we would hear testimonies of people who had lived a life of crime, including imprisonment for same, and they would tend to go on and on about how bad they were --- then they got saved. It was like - the badder they were, the better their salvation was. I live it when somebody is gloriously saved, but let's hear about what Christ has done in your life AFTER Salvation, not just your wickedness before!

My favorite story about testimony time is this: "It was testamony time at Bible Church, and little Mary Ann, aged 11, showed she had been listening. She started out, "Long I have wondered in the valley of sin." (Not original to me; I read it somewhere that I can't remember.)

I agree we need more emphasis of after salvation stories and less before salvation. (Could we actually call these before salvation stories that get excessively bad and detailed, "Christian porn?")

[Hornet]

One principle I have read and think I more or less agree with is the number of people you disclose your sin to should depend on how many people were affected/sinned against. So if somebody stole some money from a church offering, it might be appropriate to tell the entire church. Generally speaking, sexual sins aren't usually going to be covered here. I could think of exceptions, though. If an elder/pastor/etc. was caught in a prostitution sting that resulted in their picture being all over the news, it would be appropriate to confess before the entire church (and for them to step aside indefinitely) This would still be consistent with my principle because a sin that became this public would bring shame upon the entire congregation.

I agree with that. If I sinned against someone, I should repent, confess it to him and God, and ask him for forgiveness. One needs to ask for God's forgiveness as well. If the pastor sinned against the entire congregation, then he should confess it to the entire congregation. I don't think that a pastor should confess every single sin he did in his life to the entire congregation. One does not need to confess to everyone all of the sins that he or she has ever committed in life in order to avoid a holier-than-thou attitude.