Morning By Morning #334

Do not go about spreading slander among your people…Rebuke your neighbor frankly so you will not share in his guilt.

Leviticus 19:16 – 17

From the pen of Charles Spurgeon:

Malicious gossip emits a threefold poison, for it injures the speaker, the hearer, and the person who is the subject of the accusation. Whether the report is true or not, God’s Word forbids us to spread it. The reputations of the Lord’s people should be very precious in our sight, and we should consider it shameful to help the Devil dishonor the church and the name of the Lord. Some tongues need a bridle, not a spur, for a number of people take pride in pulling down their brothers as though it lifts themselves higher.

Noah’s sons Shem and Japheth wisely “took a garment…and covered their father’s nakedness” (Gen. 9:23), but Ham spoke of his father’s nakedness and earned a horrible curse as a result. We too may have a dark day ahead, one in which we would appreciate self-restraint and silence from our family in Christ. Thus, let us cheerfully offer the same courtesy to those who need it now. May this be our family rule and personal pledge: “Slander no one” (Titus 3:2)!

The Holy Spirit, however, permits us to criticize sin but prescribes exactly how we are to do so. We are to rebuke our brother to his face rather than complain behind his back. This useful method carries God’s blessing and is therefore brotherly, Christlike, and powerful. Our flesh will shrink from this approach, but we should consider the greater stress upon our conscience if we refuse to do the right thing. By ignoring the problem we allow our friend to continue in sin, and then we ourselves actually become participants in it.

Many people have been saved from shameful sinfulness through the timely, wise, and affectionate warnings of faithful ministers and friends. And our Lord Jesus Himself has set a gracious example for us in dealing with erring friends. We see His warning to Peter regarding his boastful statement of support being preceded by prayer and delivered with gentleness.

From the pen of Jim Reimann:

At the Last Supper, Jesus’ disciples “began to question…who would [betray Him]. Also a dispute arose among them as to which of them was considered to be greatest” (Luke 22:23 – 24). Peter even boasted, “Lord, I am ready to go with you to prison and to death” (v. 33). This type of prideful speech and boasting was something Jesus would not tolerate in His followers.

Yet even before Peter’s boast, Jesus had told him, “Satan has asked to sift you as wheat. But I have prayed for you” (vv. 31 – 32). Especially notice the words, “But I have prayed for you,” and the fact that Jesus’ prayer preceded this rebuke: “Peter, before the rooster crows today, you will deny three times that you know me” (v. 34). This is the example Jesus gave us, for a rebuke of another believer first must be bathed in prayer and must be gentle. “If someone is caught in a sin, you who are spiritual should restore him gently” (Gal. 6:1).

Ultimately Peter learned the importance of controlling his tongue, for he later wrote,

Do not repay evil with evil or insult with insult, but with blessing, because to this you were called so that you may inherit a blessing. For, “Whoever would love life and see good days must keep his tongue from evil and his lips from deceitful speech.”

1 Peter 3:9 – 10