Do you like confronting people? I do not. Do you like being confronted by others? Sometimes I do and other times I do not. What makes the difference? When was the last time someone confronted you? Was it justified? When was the last time you confronted someone? Were you reasonable? Did you do it in a loving way or in a harsh way? How did it go? Why is it sometimes necessary to confront others? Let us find out what I have learned.
Paul talks about the need to confront those who are sinning. 2 Corinthians 13:1-4 he says,“This is the third time I am coming to you. Every charge must be established by the evidence of two or three witnesses. I warned those who sinned before and all the others, and I warn them now while absent, as I did when present on my second visit, that if I come again I will not spare them— since you seek proof that Christ is speaking in me. He is not weak in dealing with you, but is powerful among you. For he was crucified in weakness, but lives by the power of God. For we also are weak in him, but in dealing with you we will live with him by the power of God.” (ESV) I see Paul laying out requirements for confronting someone who is sinning. He requires first multiple sources. One is not enough. He says that he will not spare his rebuke of them when he comes again. He will do it with the power of Christ who is in him. Pastor Troy Dobbs does a more thorough job explaining this in this sermon.
I know when I feel the need to confront someone, I am often times afraid. I see though that I should not be afraid because I am not doing it alone but I am rather doing it in the power of Christ. This goes back to last week’s blog about weakness. I know that when I am weak Jesus makes me strong.
I also have relied on 1 Corinthians 13:6, which tells me of the importance of confronting sin because it is the loving thing to do. It says, “it (love) does not rejoice at wrongdoing, but rejoices with the truth.”(ESV) I have found that when I look at confronting sin as a loving act it is helpful and what is this kind of love. Love as talked about in the Bible can best be defined as “The steadfast sacrificial zeal that seeks the true good of another.” Dr. Del Tackett (The Engagement Project) So when I am confronting others my motive must be out of the steadfast zeal that seeks true good for them. It cannot be because I will get something out of it.
I have also learned that when I am confronting someone I must do it gently not harshly. As 2 Timothy 2:24-26 says, “And the Lord’s servant must not be quarrelsome but kind to everyone, able to teach, patiently enduring evil, correcting his opponents with gentleness. God may perhaps grant them repentance leading to a knowledge of the truth, and they may come to their senses and escape from the snare of the devil, after being captured by him to do his will.” (ESV)
So, you may ask, how does confrontation bring about hope? Hope is always found when I do what God wants me to do. In contrast I have found there is always despair when I go against God’s perfect plan for me. Since I find this to be true for me, I assume that it will be true for others as well. After all my hope is built on nothing less than Jesus’ blood and righteousness.
Join me in confronting sinful behavior and beliefs in the world around us. Knowing with confidence that it truly is the loving thing to do. Understanding the greatest thing we have to offer is knowledge that Jesus Christ is the only way to eternal life, “And this is eternal life, that they know you, the only true God, and Jesus Christ whom you have sent.” John 17:3 (ESV) However, if you do not know Jesus you must first accept Jesus as your personal Savior and Lord then you need to ask the Holy Spirit to tame our tongue. This will allow us to bring hope as opposed to destroying hope. At the same time understanding that you will live eternally knowing the only true God and Jesus Christ and this what brings the greatest hope all because of the death of Jesus Christ on the cross satisfying the penalty for sins. His payment satisfies all my sins from the past, in the present and in the future. My penalty and yours was satisfied on the cross by the death of Jesus, God’s greatest act of love and wrath, who became sin for me and you. It was also God’s greatest act of faithfulness because “God shows his love for us in that while we were still sinners, Christ died for us.” Romans 5:8 (ESV) Because holiness shows us, we need to believe in Jesus. I hope that you join me in helping others to choose Jesus.
If you have not read my previous blogs, you can find them here.
You can find my book, Hope Amid Hopelessness: Our Abba Father Provides a Way Through Mental Illness here.
eBook or Audiobook versions can be found at Westbow Press or Christianbook.com at Amazon or Google
