In business there are always issues. In business, people
that don’t confront problems early, often lose their customers. In my business career,
my unique ability to confront issues, and resolve them positively, separates me
from other business people. HaShem knows that I’m a confrontational person;
however, do I have the right to confront someone about their sins, when I’m a
sinner too?
Let me be the first to assert that I am an
exceptional sinner. I fight the same battles that everyone else fights. While
confrontation makes my business career soar, personal confrontation sucks the
air out of one’s sails.
What does the Bible tell us about confronting
Christians? Here is a valid biblical commentary.
NO More SPINELESS CHRISTIANITY!! by J. Lee Grady
http://www.charismamag.com/blogs/fire-in-my-bones/17871
The apostle Paul not only confronted sin but named
specific sins when he preached. Why can´t we?
People often complain about angry preachers. I don´t
like them either, and I agree that if a person mixes a sermon with hateful language
(or if he believes God has called him to picket other churches), he´s in the
wrong profession. Yet today we´ve jumped to the opposite extreme. Now we are
afraid to confront sin.
We can´t preach about materialism because we might
offend rich people in the audience-as well as the poor people who buy Lotto tickets
every week. We can´t preach about fornication because there are people in the
church who are living together. We can´t preach about domestic violence because
there are deacons who sometimes hit their wives. We can´t preach about
homosexuality because our culture says it´s hateful to call that a sin.
And the list goes on. In fact, some preachers are
avoiding the word sin altogether because it´s too negative. And we all know that
the latest polls show people want a positive message.
This temptation to dilute the gospel has produced a
new recipe for a trendy sermon. We start with some great motivational speaking
("Your past does not define your future!"), add a few quarts of cheap
grace ("Don´t focus on your sin!"), pour in some prosperity gospel
("Run to this altar and grab your financial breakthrough!"), flavor
it with some trendy pop psychology ("It´s all about you!") and
voila!-you end up with a goopy mess of pabulum that not even a baby Christian
could survive on.
I´ve often wondered how the apostle Paul would view
our "positive" American gospel. Just before he was martyred, Paul
gave his spiritual son Timothy clear instructions on how to keep his message on
track. He said, "Preach the word; be ready in season and out of season;
reprove, rebuke, exhort, with great patience and instruction" (2 Tim. 4:2,
NASB).
We´ve rewritten Paul´s words today. Our rule is,
"Preach what the people want to hear! Avoid controversy! Stroke, soothe
and pacify the people so they will come back next week!" Is it any wonder that
this low-protein spiritual diet has produced an anemic church?
Paul´s preaching in the first century was
unquestionably confrontational. He didn´t hold back from addressing sin, nor
was he afraid to call sin what it is. Paul knew that a spineless Christianity
would produce spineless Christians. He told Timothy that biblical preaching
would require three brave verbs:
Reprove. The Greek word here, elegcho, means
"to convict, admonish or expose" or "to show one his
fault." The word can also mean "to scold" or "to reprimand."
Anyone who has ever beenon the receiving end of a mother´s discipline knows
that reproof can be the purest form of love.
Rebuke. The word epitimao means "to admonish
strongly" or "to charge strictly." The English definition means
"to express sharp, stern disapproval." And the origin of the word
means "to beat orstrike." I´m not talking here about a preacher who
beats people with the Bible. Screaming at people is not biblical rebuke. But when
was the last time you felt the Holy Spirit strike you in your conscience during
a sermon?
Exhort. This is the gentlest of the three words.
Parakaleo can be used to mean "to comfort" or "to call
alongside." It´s the same root word used to describe the Holy Spirit, who
is our Comforter. True biblical preaching not only exposes sin and warns us of
its consequences, but it calls us to reach out to God for help to overcome our
weakness. When we challenge sin we must provide a means of grace for
deliverance and healing.
Paul was also not afraid to name sins. I recently
did a survey of all of Paul´s epistles to see how he addressed sexual
immorality. I discovered that he confronted sexual sin head-on in 10 of his 13 epistles.
He boldly called out adultery, fornication, sensuality and homosexuality in a
culture that was saturated in hedonism.
After exhorting the Thessalonians to practice
abstinence, he rebuked them sternly by saying that anyone who opposes God´s laws
about sex "is not rejecting man but the God who gives His Holy Spirit to
you" (1 Thess. 4:8). Those are strong words. They need to be repeated in
our pulpits today.
Paul wasn´t trying to win any popularity contests,
and his comments about sex would get him blacklisted today if he tried to buy
airtime. Yet when he penned those tough words, he was speaking from God´s
heart-with love-under the inspiration of the Holy Spirit to all of us.
It´s time for us to grow a backbone. Let´s get rid
of weak Christianity, spineless preachers and jellyfish morals. Let´s preach the
message of the Bible instead of a neutered version. Let´s not only point out sin
but also point people to the only hope they have of overcoming it-our strong
Savior, whose death on the cross was the ultimate confrontation of sin.
My opinion: Pray over everything, and confront someone
when HaShem gives you a clear mandate. As the times become increasingly wicked,
you will need to confront something or someone. Let HaSham pick your battles.
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