Challenging Others
We may not be in a situation where a whole nation turns against us but there may be times when we are criticized for our faith, particularly if we are challenging others in their faith.
Jeremiah 11:1-23
Reference: v.19a I had been like a gentle lamb led to the slaughter; I did not realize that they had plotted against me… (NIV Bible)
Explore: The Heavenly Man is the autobiography of Brother Yun, an amazing house church leader in China. For his faith, Brother Yun endured great persecution, imprisonment, torture and abuse. And yet, despite his youth and the oppression of his country he did remarkable things for the kingdom of God. His constant perseverance and commitment to Christ is outstanding. There are few like him.
Application: Some thousand years earlier, the prophet Jeremiah was feeling just as persecuted. He had been obedient to the Lord and been sharing His words with the people of Judah. And yet, these were not the words they wanted to hear. So the easiest solution was to remove Jeremiah from their presence so they would no longer feel guilty for being disobedient to the Lord.
We may not be in a situation where a whole nation turns against us but there may be times when we are criticized for our faith, particularly if we are challenging others in their faith. No one likes to be challenged or proven wrong and yet the reality is that we all make mistakes. If someone is challenging us about an area in our life we need to prayerfully consider what they are saying and search wise and mature people for confirmation and assistance. If we are the person challenging someone else we need to be firm but talk to people in love, always asking the Spirit to guide our words.
Prayer: Lord, we are fallen people. You know that we make mistakes and can be stubborn when confronted by our wrong actions. May we, in all things, seek to do Your will, so that we may be open to correction and have the conviction to help others to follow You. Amen.
When has someone confronted you about your actions? How did you react?
This article was written by Linda Bailey
Linda started theological studies in 1999 in Australia. After working for ten years in various church ministries, she now works as the breakfast producer at 89.9 LightFM - the Christian radio station in Melbourne, Australia. She writes blogs every day about passages she is currently reading in the Bible. Follow her on Google Plus +Linda Bailey or Facebook by clicking the like button on the right of this page.