It has been said that the only army that shoots its wounded is the Christian Army. Sadly, this has often been proven true. Christians, both from my personal experience as well as from confirmed experiences of other believers, often listen to a story presented to them from another person and are swift to lay judgement.
Sadly, the trial and execution take place in the absence of the accused Believer, with him/her having absolutely no opportunity to present his/her side of the story. The Book of Proverbs states in Proverbs 18:17 - "The first to plead his case seems right, Until another comes and examines him."
Christians must resist rushing to the judgement of other Believers! Certainly, the Word of God advises that we not judge our brother in the first place. We cannot count the vast number of stories that are told about Believers which are "spun" to make the Believer seem bad and evil. These "convincing" stories can damage reputations, create ungodly barriers, and provide real hurt to the unsuspecting Believer.
God's Word addresses these situations. Whether Stephen, who was martyred, who said, "Lord, do not hold this sin against them," or other situations where the real truth was not revealed to exonerate the Believer, God desires him/her not to even try to disprove guilt beyond stating that "What you have heard is not correct."
Remember what happened to Stephen? Even as he received the first stones and spoke of Christ being on the right hand of His Heavenly Father, that statement angered the men even more as they grit their teeth. As the Believer seeks to explain his/her innocence, the accuser will become even more angry because of his/her already dysfunctional state.
Just as Christ suffered injustice, the Believer is challenged to work out his/her own salvation. As Believers, we are to demonstrate the qualities as presented in the beatitudes (Matthew.5:1-12).
Join me for my next blog as we take a look at the verses of Matthew.5:1-12.
Sadly, the trial and execution take place in the absence of the accused Believer, with him/her having absolutely no opportunity to present his/her side of the story. The Book of Proverbs states in Proverbs 18:17 - "The first to plead his case seems right, Until another comes and examines him."
Christians must resist rushing to the judgement of other Believers! Certainly, the Word of God advises that we not judge our brother in the first place. We cannot count the vast number of stories that are told about Believers which are "spun" to make the Believer seem bad and evil. These "convincing" stories can damage reputations, create ungodly barriers, and provide real hurt to the unsuspecting Believer.
God's Word addresses these situations. Whether Stephen, who was martyred, who said, "Lord, do not hold this sin against them," or other situations where the real truth was not revealed to exonerate the Believer, God desires him/her not to even try to disprove guilt beyond stating that "What you have heard is not correct."
Remember what happened to Stephen? Even as he received the first stones and spoke of Christ being on the right hand of His Heavenly Father, that statement angered the men even more as they grit their teeth. As the Believer seeks to explain his/her innocence, the accuser will become even more angry because of his/her already dysfunctional state.
Just as Christ suffered injustice, the Believer is challenged to work out his/her own salvation. As Believers, we are to demonstrate the qualities as presented in the beatitudes (Matthew.5:1-12).
Join me for my next blog as we take a look at the verses of Matthew.5:1-12.
Posts
No comments:
Post a Comment