Articles
Guilty As Charged!
“But if anyone suffers as a Christian, he is not to be ashamed, but is to glorify God in this name.”
(1 Pet. 4:16)
“Sticks and stones will break my bones, but words will never hurt me.” Sound familiar? Children may still be taught this rhyme for their protection against those that would say harsh things. However, as little ones grow up, it is unavoidable that there will be cruel people. One of the most destructive weapons a person has is their tongue. Probably it would be safe to say that every person in their life has come into its crossfire at least once. There was a song that said, “Words as weapons, sharper than knives, makes you wonder, how the other half die?” Words are powerful! For a Christian, how do they respond to those painful daggers?
We can learn a great deal of wisdom from Proverbs. Solomon confirms the power of our words in that they can build up someone or tear a person down. “Death and life are in the power of the tongue, and those who love it will eat its fruit” (Prov. 18:21). There are instances when the saying, “If you don’t have anything nice to say, then don’t say anything at all,” is appropriate. A person who speaks impulsively against another can fail to see their errors (Prov. 10:19; 29:20). Solomon also expresses the significance that one must be judicious when bringing matters before the throne of God (cf. Ecc. 5:2). If at all possible, we should seek to sharpen one another (cf. Prov. 27:17) and offer words that will be sweet as the honeycomb to the soul (Prov. 16:24).
Even though we can learn much from Solomon’s wisdom, there is none greater than what Christ has taught. From the “Sermon on the Mount” Jesus said, “Blessed are you when people insult you and persecute you, and falsely say all kinds of evil against you because of Me” (Matt. 5:11). An initial overreaction, when faced with opposition, is contrary to what Jesus taught. Many feel that the proper response is to attack back. However, Jesus tells us to be the bigger person and show love to those that do not love us back (cf. Matt. 5:38ff). Christ declares that people are blessed when they face hardships from those that are enemies of the kingdom of God. Furthermore, He spoke repeatedly to those who would follow after Him that hate and suffering were inevitable (cf. Matt. 13: 20f; Jn. 15:18ff).
Paul says that the faithful believer of Christ WILL be persecuted (cf. 2 Tim. 3:12)! If a person identifies as a Christian; but has never experienced any persecution (i.e., name-calling, rejection, and other forms of psychological or physical harm), they need to evaluate their walk with Christ. Peter, too, encouraged the early Christians when they came upon fiery trials (cf. 1 Pet. 4:12ff). He knew that these experiences would not only help make them stronger Christians but most importantly—glorify God and Christ.
One thing needs to be made clear, and that is—we CANNOT be afraid to tell others that we are Christian! Remember the words of Christ, “Therefore everyone who confesses Me before men, I will also confess him before My Father who is in heaven. But whoever denies Me before men, I will also deny him before My Father who is in heaven” (Matt. 10:32f). Jesus further says that His mission wasn’t to bring peace on the earth (v. 34). The writer of Hebrews describes the word of God, which are Christ’s words too, are sharper than any two-edged sword (cf. Heb. 4:12). It cuts people’s hearts to the quick (cf. Acts 2:37; 5:33; 7:54). Regrettably, few will react positively to God’s word (cf. Matt. 7:14; 22:14).
Living the Christian life is hard. We have to keep our emotions in check (cf. Eph. 4:26) and watch how we speak (cf. Jas. 3:5ff). The Christian is not to go looking for trouble but not be oblivious to the fact that their life is not their own (cf. 1 Cor. 6:19f). We have a wonderful promise that if we withstand the trials of life, then we have an imperishable crown waiting for us (cf. Jas. 1:12)!
