On the most recent Pure Path series, 13th floor, we were able to work with Pastor Justin Holcomb.  Justin Holcomb is a pastor at Mars Hill Church and Director of the Resurgence. He is also an adjunct professor of theology at Reformed Theological Seminary. He holds two master’s degrees from Reformed Theological Seminary and a PhD from Emory University.

Justin and his wife, Lindsey, wrote Rid of My Disgrace, a book on gospel hope and healing for sexual assault victims.  Through his work with Docent Research Group, Justin provides a wide range of customized research for individuals and organizations including assisting pastors with sermon research.

We want to first thank God for the opportunity to work with such a knowledgeable and anointed man, and we want to thank you, Justin, for your heart for His kingdom and the hurting, wounded, and abused.  We also want to thank you for the 3 amazing sermon outlines that you put together for this project and would encourage our readers to download those sermons and to buy a copy of your book to get a broader understanding on this sensitive subject.

We wanted to take a few minutes to ask Justin  a couple questions….

Pure Path :  As a pastor how did you get involved with writing a book about sexual abuse?

Justin :  Our experience in the area of abuse, both personally, professionally, and pastorally, led my wife Lindsey and I to write this book. When I (Justin) was 12 I was assaulted by a member of my extended family. So, I know personally what victims are experiencing.
Lindsey has served for years both counseling victims of sexual assault and training leaders to care for victims. Before coming to Mars Hill Church, she worked at a sexual assault crisis center where she provided crisis intervention to victims of assault and conducted a variety of training seminars to service providers. Lindsey also worked at a domestic violence shelter. Many of the women she served were also victims of sexual assault. Her graduate research was on sexual violence and public health responses. Also, Lindsey is currently a student at Reformed Theological Seminary working on a MA in Theological Studies.
I (Justin) have served in ministry for almost twenty years and have counseled numerous victims of sexual assault. I’ve taught theology at Reformed Theological Seminary since 2001. Before coming to Mars Hill Church, I also taught courses on sexual violence in the Sociology and Religious Studies departments as well as in the Studies of Women and Gender program at the University of Virginia.
In writing this book, we combined our experience of counseling victims with biblical and theological studies, and up-to-date academic research.

Pure Path:  What is the biggest lie that those who are abused believe and how does the truth of the Gospel free them from that?

Justin:   The disgrace that results from sexual assault has a way of grinding people down and heaping huge burdens on them.  Because of it people feel lonely, filthy, worthless, repulsive, hopeless, and unwanted.  Our hope is that God will use the clear Gospel message of the book to eliminate that disgrace and its effects.  What victims need is for God to be strong when they are weak and to be close to the brokenhearted.  We want people to experience God fulfilling his promises to them.  We pray that God uses the book to apply the grace from Jesus deeper than the wounds people have experienced.
In Rid of My Disgrace, we address the effects of sexual assault with the biblical message of grace and redemption. Jesus responds to your pain and past.  Your story does not end with the assault.  Your life was intended for more than shame, guilt, despair, pain, and denial.  The assault does not define you or have the last word on your identity.  Yes, it is part of your story, but not the end of your story.
The gospel of Jesus offers new emotions to victims and how they relate to the current emotions victims experience. Grace offers to victims the gift of refuting distortions and replacing their condemning, counterfactual beliefs with more accurate ones that reflect the truths about God, themselves, and God’s grace-filled response to their disgrace. God’s grace dismantles the beliefs that give disgrace life.
The message of the Gospel redeems what has been destroyed and applies grace to disgrace.

Pure Path: In the 13th floor we made a video from a powerful poet named Janette…icks.  In the middle of the poem she yells “What kind of God would let an innocent child be molested?” I know she answers what God spoke to her, but can you take a minute and answer that from a theological and pastoral perspective?

 Justin: First, we have no idea why God let it happen. Any attempt to answer why usually ends up in spiritual platitudes or bad theology.
Second, we learn from the Bible and Jesus that God understands the pain you experienced, that he mourns and grieves for the sins done against you, and that he is angrier than you are for the sins done against you.
Third, I can tell you from personal experience in this issue that God is so creative and sovereign that he bends the evil intended for your destruction and uses it for your good (Genesis 50:20 and Romans 8:28).
Fourth, God can handle your emotions. Don’t run from him in anger but toward him. The intent of the evil done against you is to create distance between you and God, the only one who can bring real healing to you.  Please realize this and bring your emotions and thoughts to God. The psalms are filled with a wide spectrum of emotions related to God: shame, fear, sadness, reverence, anger, love, joy, and doubt.  The psalms provide release, rationality, and relief for our emotions. You won’t find yourself blamed, laughed at, mocked, or punished. You’ll find yourself embraced by the love of a God who meets you in your pain.

 Pure Path: How important do you think it is for the local church to talk about and have some form of help for those who have been sexually abused?

Justin: The number of occurrences of sexual assaults is staggering. It is much more common than most people know. At least one in four women and one in six men are or will be victims of sexual assault in their lifetime. And these statistics are probably underestimates.
According to the most recent statistics, every two minutes someone in the United States is sexually assaulted, and approximately 80 percent of them are assaulted by someone they know (a relative, spouse, dating partner, friend, pastor, teacher, boss, coach, therapist, doctor, etc.). Researchers have estimated that sexual assault occurs in 10 to 14 percent of all marriages. Studies estimate that incest is experienced by 10 to 20 percent of children.
Tragically, many churches and Christians are woefully unprepared to help those who have been assaulted. Worse still, many Christian leaders (including parents) are ignorant of this epidemic because ashamed victims are reluctant to admit what has been done to them, and untrained leaders do not recognize the signs of sexual assault or know how to lovingly ask questions.
So many parents, spouses, ministers, and friends are looking for solid, Gospel-based information that would be helpful in serving victims. Informed supporters are very important for the healing process for victims. Much of the literature on sexual assault employs self-help approaches that do not offer the full-orbed good-news of the Gospel—that it is God’s one-way love replacing self-love that is the true path to healing.

Pure Path: How can pastors best use Rid of My Disgrace in their local church to help the victims of sexual abuse?

Justin: One of the reasons we wrote this book is to help equip pastors and ministry staff as well as family members and friends of victims. As they read what we are saying to victims, we hope they learn to respond and care for victims in ways that are compassionate, practical, and informed. Here are a few practical ways pastors can use this book in their church:

-       Learn about sexual assault in order to lead by example in caring for victims.

-       Speak openly about the reality of this issue in your preaching  so your people are aware of it.

-       Learn and teach your people what to say and what not to say to victims.

-       Challenge the myths and misconceptions about sexual assault.

-       Fight against the lies for victims. Explain how the gospel applies and brings healing and freedom.