Can people cause others to sin...?

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pathfinder7

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i was dealing with someone some time ago who was playing mind games with me, saying one thing/doing another, etc. and (long stoyr short) I ended up having a terrible day because of this person’s evil. I prayed about it, gave it to Jesus (and St. Jude) but the person literally messed up my whole day because the person did something that prevented me from doing things i felt God wanted me to do.

Anyway, at some point in a conversation with the person, i said a word i don’t usually say (not the F word) because i was so angry & tired of the games, which i could not figure out why the person was playing.

Anyway, i felt this person (I’ll call the person M) was, in a sense, causing me to swear because M knew anyone would be angry if treated the way M was treating me.

I blurted 2 M that s/he was causing me to sin (swear). I kinda couldn’t believe i said that because, in my head i know that, (theoretically) no one can cause another to sin. But the Bible does say something about causing "these (followers of Christ’s?) to sin and it would be better if a millstone was hung around the person’s neck & the person be thrown into the river or something like that (i don’t have my Bible handy).

Anyway, it was a learning experience for me because, for the first time in a long, long time, i actually got the feeling that i could not control my anger (use of that word). I guess i can say what the word was: BS (not abbreviated).

I am wondering if you have been through this kidn of thing and if you could give me some insights into how to deal with it (other than prayer, which i have done and am still doing)?
 
I certainly believe Satan uses other people to cause us to sin.
 
No. You choose your own path. You make the decision to do wrong all on your own.

I have been to parties where people drank…I chose not to drink. When I was younger, I was around people who smoked marijuana. I didn’t. I chose not to participate. It’s something I never was really interested in doing. I also stayed out of trouble that way. 😉

As a mother, I did my best to model good behavior for my children.

I don’t blame others when I make a mistake. I did it all on my own. No one makes you do anything. You choose one way or the other.

I have also learned. You can’t change other people you can only change yourself.
 
i don’t think other people cause us to sin. it’s ultimately our own doing, but some people can influence us to think of things we ordinarily wouldn’t do. so if you think this person is too strong of an influence, you should spend less time with them.
 
IrishAm said:
I certainly believe Satan uses other people to cause us to sin.
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i am not all that sorry for waht i said either… except taht apologized one time for “putting other things over Jesus”. I was putting my work for Christ over Christ himself (when i got so upset at this person). The person claimed to be Christian, but I’m sure you know how THAT goes… :rolleyes:

Anyway, i guess it goes back to that thing about how "not everyone who says Lord, Lord, will enter the Kingdom of Heaven. I am not saying I’m going to make it myself. Today, i got angry at God. I felt he had abandoned me entired, that he hated me as much as all the un-=Christian people in my life seem to. I felt he was on their side.

Frankly, i feel God has taken his Holy
Spirit from the world.

The only time i feel close to God is when i am away from everything… or at Mass.

But gee… ican’t be at Mass 24/7.

Anyway, maybe you could tell me one of your similar stories - so i can feel not so ALONE in this. 😦

thanks. :coffeeread:
 
elliejanba said:
i don’t think other people cause us to sin. it’s ultimately our own doing, but some people can influence us to think of things we ordinarily wouldn’t do. so if you think this person is too strong of an influence, you should spend less time with them.
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it was a “business” dealing. I didn’t even know the person (on the pone) but the person had momentary control over my day (long story why). suffice it to say that If i hadn’t taken care of the business i had to deal with with this person, i could have ended up in dire straits.

Anyway, i don’t feel that saying BS is that big a deal, i am not so sure i even call it a sin. It is just not a word Jesus would probably use. But you know, now that i think about: If he was living in this &^^%%$ world right now (and he IS through his followers), maybe he would at least be tempted to! He did call people hypocrites and “brood of vipers”…

I thikn i would rather here BS than be called that 😃

Now that i think about it, I wouldn’t mind him calling me a hypocrite because i often call myself that… :hypno: :doh2: :ouch:

🙂
 
elliejanba said:
i don’t think other people cause us to sin. it’s ultimately our own doing, but some people can influence us to think of things we ordinarily wouldn’t do. so if you think this person is too strong of an influence, you should spend less time with them.
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I think they can. I remember reading self examination statements in a Catholic prayer book that said, “Have I…” … “…caused another to sin”.
 
I think they can. I remember reading self examination statements in a Catholic prayer book that said, “Have I…” … “…caused another to sin”.
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I remember that from somewhere as well. You probably can In some way, I wouldnt completely rule it out. God Bless,
Jacob :signofcross:
 
pathfinder7 said:
i was dealing with someone some time ago who was playing mind games with me, saying one thing/doing another, etc. and (long stoyr short) I ended up having a terrible day because of this person’s evil. I prayed about it, gave it to Jesus (and St. Jude) but the person literally messed up my whole day because the person did something that prevented me from doing things i felt God wanted me to do.

Anyway, at some point in a conversation with the person, i said a word i don’t usually say (not the F word) because i was so angry & tired of the games, which i could not figure out why the person was playing.

Anyway, i felt this person (I’ll call the person M) was, in a sense, causing me to swear because M knew anyone would be angry if treated the way M was treating me.

I blurted 2 M that s/he was causing me to sin (swear). I kinda couldn’t believe i said that because, in my head i know that, (theoretically) no one can cause another to sin. But the Bible does say something about causing "these (followers of Christ’s?) to sin and it would be better if a millstone was hung around the person’s neck & the person be thrown into the river or something like that (i don’t have my Bible handy).

Anyway, it was a learning experience for me because, for the first time in a long, long time, i actually got the feeling that i could not control my anger (use of that word). I guess i can say what the word was: BS (not abbreviated).

I am wondering if you have been through this kidn of thing and if you could give me some insights into how to deal with it (other than prayer, which i have done and am still doing)?
Click to expand...
Don’t feel bad. You did your best to do the right thing. Hopefully, this is someone you can stay away from. If not, lay down some ground-rules.
 
Jennifer_G said:
I think they can. I remember reading self examination statements in a Catholic prayer book that said, “Have I…” … “…caused another to sin”.
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I do remember that too. But I think that we should follow Jesus’ example. Jesus was in the desert for 40 days and nights being tempted by the devil and he resisted. I think we should be able to follow his example, no matter what temptation is thrown at us, we should be able to refuse.
 
A person can create a situation for others to sin, but it is up to the others how to act upon this situation. That person commits sins, and if the others follow, the others commit sins themselves.

In your case, you could’ve shown your frustration by different way and not by cursing.

Eve lured Adam to eat the forbidden fruit. He could’ve said No, but he did. God asked him why, and he blamed on Eve; in turn Eve blamed on the Snake. God didn’t care much about that, they got purnished.

When you are anger, besides praying, trying to count from 1 to 10, or going away from that person. Another help is to get some book on how to manage your temper. 🙂 Some books are pretty good in explaining how anger related to pride, etc …
 
Just remember that we really are or can be in control of our own emotions including anger.

One of the wisest things I ever heard is that we have to ALLOW ourselves to get angry. IF you refuse to LET someone make you angry you won’t get angry. No one can make you angry IF you do not allow them to.

It’s how you are willing to react that lets the anger in.

When confronted by a real jerk, you just have to remember that they can’t make you angry IF you refuse to allow them to.

I used to get really upset at other drivers, but once I convinced myself that I would NOT allow others actions to affect my demeanor, I was able to control my temper a whole lot better. Every once in a while I forget, but most times it is pretty rare now.

As far as other people being able to cause us to sin, yes, I believe other folks can cause us to sin. They may tempt us in ways that we may be more vulnerable, or catch us when we are more likely to fail… It’s true that we are always responsible for our own sins (we can’t blame anyone else for our errors) but sometimes others can tempt us and cause us to fail. It is still no excuse though, we are ultimately responsible for our own failings.
 
We can lead others astray. In one of his letters, Paul wrote that we are to watch how we act around “weaker brothers.” Or something to that effect. We can cause them to fall by our words and actions. We are told to not be a “stumbling block.” If we couldn’t be one, why are we warned about it?

In the end, everyone will be judged by their actions. But they will also be judged by their contrition.
 
KingAlfred said:
Don’t feel bad. You did your best to do the right thing. Hopefully, this is someone you can stay away from. If not, lay down some ground-rules.
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yes, thank God, it is someone i can stay away from. I only (hopefully) had to deal with that person that one particular day by phone. I am doing everything in my power NOT to have to deal with M again (but God knows how that will work out).

I have laid down some ground rules as far as my dealings with humans in the future. If the person is not a Christian (puts Jesus first) i am not going to deal with that person except to pray for him/her and (if i have to) “preach” to him /her…

Actually, whne 'preaching" i try to not so much preach but just let God speak through me (seeing as how i do not always [or ever? 😃 ] know the best thing to say…).

God bless…
 
Christy_Beth said:
We can lead others astray. In one of his letters, Paul wrote that we are to watch how we act around “weaker brothers.” Or something to that effect. We can cause them to fall by our words and actions. We are told to not be a “stumbling block.” If we couldn’t be one, why are we warned about it?

In the end, everyone will be judged by their actions. But they will also be judged by their contrition.
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Thank you so much for this.

It (your post) makes me feel contrite (all over again) about some of the things i have said to others in my life, sometimes on this forum. sometimes something sounds so right when we say it… sounds like the perfect response when it really isn’t. Sometimes we humans are SO blind to our own deficiencies… (sins)… :eek: 😦

thank God for Jesus, who removes the scales from our eyes (if we let Him). 🙂
 
Think of it this way: you’re on a diet. Someone in your office, knowing you’re on a diet, and wanting out of jealousy to sabotage you, brings a plate of your absolute FAVORITE food to your desk and says, “Here - this is for you!”

Now, if you eat it, it’s your choice and you’ll suffer the consequences; however, that other person has made it very difficult for you to exercise your choice in complete freedom.
 
water said:
A person can create a situation for others to sin, but it is up to the others how to act upon this situation. That person commits sins, and if the others follow, the others commit sins themselves.

In your case, you could’ve shown your frustration by different way and not by cursing.

Eve lured Adam to eat the forbidden fruit. He could’ve said No, but he did. God asked him why, and he blamed on Eve; in turn Eve blamed on the Snake. God didn’t care much about that, they got purnished.

When you are anger, besides praying, trying to count from 1 to 10, or going away from that person. Another help is to get some book on how to manage your temper. 🙂 Some books are pretty good in explaining how anger related to pride, etc …
Click to expand...
another good thing is to analyze (if possible in the heat of the moment) why it is you are angry. I see now that i was angry because I had thought my day was going to be thus and so and it was NOT. As stated, i thought God wanted me to do this and that and this person was thwarting that. I see that there was this panic inside of me. But whne i prayed about it later, i could see very clearly that i was, without realizing it, putting God’s work over God himself. I mean, the work i wanted to do became GOD to me for a moment or two. We don’t always see this kind of thing until we take it to God in prayer. When things throw us off track, happen unexpectedly, sometimes we are too stunned (etc) to think about what the right course of action is. I did get a chance to share some of the gospel iwth this person, mentioned how there is no OSAS, etc, that people don’t get away with their evil. At least i was able to see an opportunity to share the truth with someone, albeit NOT in the best way possible. After the ordeal ended, i felt ashamed of myself for the way i acted. And then, i also remembered that saying by Chesteron: Whatever is worth doing is worth doing badly.

I got a small amount of comfort from that. … better “badly” than not at all… because maybe i planted a seed… In fact, i know i did by what the person was saying.

Anyway, thnaks for all you have said. It helps a lot. 🙂
 
theistgal said:
Think of it this way: you’re on a diet. Someone in your office, knowing you’re on a diet, and wanting out of jealousy to sabotage you, brings a plate of your absolute FAVORITE food to your desk and says, “Here - this is for you!”

Now, if you eat it, it’s your choice and you’ll suffer the consequences; however, that other person has made it very difficult for you to exercise your choice in complete freedom.
Click to expand...
that’s a good analogy (except that I myse don’t believe in diets - per se - (unless a person is seriously overweight) and so, probably wouldn’t think the food presented much of a problem for me. I’d probably just say Gee THANKs!!! and pig out:D -

unless it was Lasagna or something. Hmmm… That WOULD be a temptation :hmmm: )

OK… never mind… :hypno:😃
 
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