“If another believer sins against you, go privately and point out the offense. If the other person listens and confesses it, you have won that person back. But if you are unsuccessful, take one or two others with you...” Matthew 18:15-17
“Wow, I heard
about what happened with Eric,” Kym said. “I guess he’s pretty mad.” Luke gave her
a puzzled look. “What? He’s never said anything to me.” Kym raised a brow.
“It’s all over Facebook and at church. Can’t believe you haven’t heard. I was surprised
you were like that. Guess you never know about people.” She shrugged as she
walked away. Luke gripped the desk as the room spun. Why hadn’t Eric come to
him if he was mad? What had he done? What was all over church? And Facebook?
What did people think of him? He’d just started at that church, but he would
never step foot in their building again.
We find it easier to talk ABOUT people than to talk TO
them. When we’re offended, we seek out people who weren’t in on the
conversation, so they only hear our version of it. Lately, people have been
taking their issues to social media, as though gaining enough “likes” makes
them right. We scroll past veiled jabs, sarcastic memes, and snarky comments that
target mutual “friends.” That’s not God’s way. Jesus said that if someone has
sinned against us, we need to have the courage to talk it out, face to face. If
they refuse to listen, we ask a godly person to go with us. The goal is not to
bash the offender, but to help him or her overcome a fault. Honest
confrontation restores relationships; gossip—and social media jabs—destroy
them.
What is your first response when someone sins against you?
Do you talk TO them or ABOUT them?
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