3 Ways to Speak the Truth in Love and Confront Sin
Dear friends, the recent events, while they may anger us, must ultimately break our hearts. Is God angry? Yes, sin—whether committed by sinners or saints—always angers Him. But it is a perfect anger.
If anger is our motivation to speak we have begun to sin in our anger. Perfect anger should lead to brokenness of heart because of what it does to people, even the people who commit the sin; because of where it leads people, because of how it enslaves people. When we begin to look at sin within that context, we should be driven to our knees in tears, anguish and intercession for their deliverance.
And when our heart breaks in love for them and a passion to see them set free and walk in wholeness and liberty, then we can speak truth in love because our words now flow from a fountain of love.
2. We should earn the right to speak first. I think that there is a misconception on both sides of this argument that we should confront anyone we encounter who is living in sin. This is neither right nor is it productive. I think if we sit and think about it for a moment, we realize how ludicrous this idea really is. Naturally, to speak the truth in love in an effective way, we need to earn the right to speak.
3. Bring it back to the Bible. We can argue politics, science, medicine, culture, or any other side topic, but at the end of the day these all must bow the knee to God’s Word. God’s Word does not and will not submit to the institutions of man.
While some may argue that unbelievers won’t listen to God’s Word so we should back up our argument with additional facts, I insist that if God’s Word cannot stand alone, it simply isn’t powerful enough. And if God isn’t a big enough God to provide us with a Word powerful enough to confront sin on its own, then He must not be a very big God.
But since we know that He is, in fact, Almighty, and since we have evidence in Scripture and history to prove the powerful nature of the Word of God alone to stand against the most vilest of sins, then we can and should conclude that when confronting someone about their sin, we can and should always bring every argument back to Scripture.
I know it can be intimidating to speak out, especially in today’s society where evangelical Christians are among the least tolerated in the world.
Even in our own ranks we’re not very tolerated. The stakes are high, when you choose to stand on God’s Word, as it is written in black and white.
But let us remember that it is better to be loved by God and hated by man! There is a reward for those who choose to stand on the Word in the face of persecution.
And mark my words, what we see now is only a small taste of what is to come.
Rosilind Jukic, a Pacific Northwest native, is a missionary living in Croatia and married to her Bosnian hero. Together they live in the country with their two active boys where she enjoys fruity candles, good coffee and a hot cup of herbal tea on a blustery fall evening. Her passion for writing led her to author her best-selling book The Missional Handbook. At A Little R & R she encourages women to find contentment in what God created them to be. You can also find her at Missional Call where she shares her passion for local and global missions. She can also be found at these other places on a regular basis. You can follow her on Facebook, Twitter, Pinterest and Google +.
