Acts 15:6-11 (NKJV): Now the apostles and elders came together to consider this matter. 7 And when there had been much dispute, Peter rose up and said to them: “Men and brethren, you know that a good while ago God chose among us, that by my mouth the Gentiles should hear the word of the gospel and believe. 8 So God, who knows the heart, acknowledged them by giving them the Holy Spirit, just as He did to us, 9 and made no distinction between us and them, purifying their hearts by faith. 10 Now therefore, why do you test God by putting a yoke on the neck of the disciples which neither our fathers nor we were able to bear? 11 But we believe that through the grace of the Lord Jesus Christ we shall be saved in the same manner as they.”
We all know them. They are the ones who come and tell you that if you are not exactly aligned with God’s Word, they are going to tell you about it. They are the ones that come to you and tell you about the Commandments and how you are breaking them. They are the ones who make sure they come and keep you “accountable” even if you didn’t ask for it.
They are usually the same ones who are struggling themselves. It maybe that they are not keeping the commandments at 100% either.
Now, don’t get me wrong, there is much in Scripture that talks about keeping each other accountable.
Ecclesiastes 4:9-12 (NKJV): Two are better than one, Because they have a good reward for their labor. 10 For if they fall, one will lift up his companion. But woe to him who is alone when he falls, For he has no one to help him up. 11 Again, if two lie down together, they will keep warm; But how can one be warm alone? 12 Though one may be overpowered by another, two can withstand him. And a threefold cord is not quickly broken.
Matthew 18:15-17 (NKJV): “Moreover if your brother sins against you, go and tell him his fault between you and him alone. If he hears you, you have gained your brother. 16 But if he will not hear, take with you one or two more, that ‘by the mouth of two or three witnesses every word may be established. 17 And if he refuses to hear them, tell it to the church. But if he refuses even to hear the church, let him be to you like a heathen and a tax collector.
There are more but I will not exhaust you with all of them. The point here is that we do walk together in Faith, and we do need to help each other to grow. We do need to help each other if we fall off course.
Here’s what is the concern, there are many who have taken it upon themselves to be “Holy Spirit, Jr.” What does that mean? It means that they have taken it upon themselves to go and correct everyone they find in error. They are the first to jump in your “camp” if you are struggling in an area. They may disguise this as correction.
However, What if you didn’t invite them to do this and they continuously do it? What if they are the ones who have appointed themselves as the one who is going to correct you all the time?
Matthew 7:1-5 (NKJV): “Judge not, that you be not judged. 2 For with what judgment you judge, you will be judged; and with the measure you use, it will be measured back to you. 3 And why do you look at the speck in your brother’s eye, but do not consider the plank in your own eye? 4 Or how can you say to your brother, ‘Let me remove the speck from your eye’; and look, a plank is in your own eye? 5 Hypocrite! First remove the plank from your own eye, and then you will see clearly to remove the speck from your brother’s eye.
Let’s take a look at ourselves. When we look at this passage in Matthew 7, many would use it and justify it to say, “You can’t ‘judge’ me”, or basically, “You can’t tell me what is wrong in my life”. Again, there is much talk in Scripture about keeping each other accountable.
One of the things we can see here in this passage is this, if we feel led to correct someone, we need to make sure our ducks are in a row. We need to make sure that there is not a glaring sin, that would take that ability away to do so. We also need to remember that we may not be the ones who are necessarily called to correct someone. We need to be sure we have permission to speak into that person’s life. Before we do bring correction, if we have that right to do so, make sure it is covered in prayer.
What if there are people who feel the need to continue to correct you? Maybe it’s time to remove them from your life. There will be those who feel they need to be the ones who correct you all the time.
There maybe room for correction. Don’t just send someone packing if they are bringing correction of sorts. Do, look at the spirit it is brought in. Is it brought in a loving manner? Or is it brought in a way that the “messenger” of sorts is just delivering that particular message because they feel they are right, no matter what.
A good way to decipher a person’s intent on correction, is to bring it in prayer and read through scripture. It is said that the best filter is The Bible. Another way to decipher their intent, see the spirit they are bringing it in. You will be able to see it right away. Again, don’t be sensitive to every correction, it may be the right thing at the right time.
And if you are the one who feels you need to bring correction, be sure to check your heart. Make sure your doing it in the right manner. Otherwise what can happen is you could cause someone to always look for your approval instead of His.
It starts with Our Relationship with Jesus. If you don’t have a Relationship with Him or you need to rekindle that Relationship, do it now. Call out to Him and seek his Love and Forgiveness. It really is as hard or easy as you make it.
We should look to Him daily to seek a relationship with Him. I want to encourage you to seek Him today, if you haven’t already. If you need help, have questions or need direction in this regard, please, feel free to let me know.
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Any scripture referenced here is taken from New King James Version (NKJV) unless otherwise noted
