Defending with Meekness
This lesson comes from one too many times sticking my foot in my mouth.
I am very thankful for what God has taught me through His Word, godly men and personal experiences. When I began college, I realized that I could not defend many Biblical doctrines and began to study deeper and find out what the Bible truly says. Although I am continually learning, I praise the Lord that I now have my own convictions based on God’s Word.
It is important that a missionary, or any Christian worker, knows what he believes and why he believes it. It is important to take a firm stand and have convictions. But I am learning a very big lesson in my little experience as a servant in the Lord’s work … I must not only teach and defend what the Bible says, but I must do it with meekness.
I Peter 3:15 says: “be ready always to give an answer to every man that asketh you a reason of the hope that is in you with meekness and fear”
I praise the Lord that I have the privilege to teach and preach the Word of God – but I believe the Word of God must be presented correctly. If I speak pridefully, boastfully, harshly or looking down on those I am speaking to, I am doing a great harm to the cause of Christ. In other words, a great Bible truth can be ignored by the hearers if I incorrectly present the great truth.
Meekness, which is quiet, gentle and submissive, is exactly the opposite of what I many times do when I want to present or defend the great truth of God’s Word. It hurts me to admit this, but I have offended people more than once because I did not control the situation with meekness. Of course I don’t want to “water down” the Gospel or “coward” away from what the Bible says, but standing for the truth is no excuse for boastfully offending people.
May God give us all a love in our heart and attitudes that when we present or defend a great truth, we will do so with meekness. May we love people like our Father loves people. May we learn to be patient with people as our Father is patient with us. May we learn to respond to doubts or accept criticism as our Father teaches us to. Our Savior did not coward away from the soldiers when they came to arrest Him, rather He showed meekness. He did not get scared when He was falsely accused, rather He sat in silence saying nothing and showing meekness. He did not lose His temper when His disciples did not learn the lessons He so clearly and consistently taught them, rather He manifested meekness.
Here to Serve,
Jeff Bush
Argentina