Today’s devotional tells of a pastor so zealous for God that his family played second fiddle to his ministry. His daughter and wife eventually died because he neglected their needs. How sad. On the other hand, a person can use family needs as an excuse to not follow Jesus.
To another (Jesus) said, “Follow me.” But he said, “Lord, let me first go and bury my father.” And Jesus said to him, “Leave the dead to bury their own dead. But as for you, go and proclaim the kingdom of God.” Yet another said, “I will follow you, Lord, but let me first say farewell to those at my home.” Jesus said to him, “No one who puts his hand to the plow and looks back is fit for the kingdom of God.” (Luke 9:59–62)
In my years of being a Christian, I’ve had more trouble making excuses than with being over-zealous. I’m not a risk-taker. With an unbelieving family, I’d rather err on the side of silence than make the mistake of driving them away by preaching at them. There are times to share the Gospel and share God’s blessings and faithfulness, yet I’ve learned the hard way not to shove it down anyone’s throat.
Even so, God commands me to: “Put off my old self, which belongs to my former manner of life and is corrupt through deceitful desires, and to be renewed in the spirit of your minds, and to put on the new self, created after the likeness of God in true righteousness and holiness. Therefore, having put away falsehood, let each one of you speak the truth with his neighbor, for we are members one of another.” (Ephesians 4:22–25)
He also says this is part of growing to be like Jesus:
And he gave the apostles, the prophets, the evangelists, the shepherds and teachers, to equip the saints for the work of ministry, for building up the body of Christ, until we all attain to the unity of the faith and of the knowledge of the Son of God, to mature manhood, to the measure of the stature of the fullness of Christ, so that we may no longer be children, tossed to and fro by the waves and carried about by every wind of doctrine, by human cunning, by craftiness in deceitful schemes. Rather, speaking the truth in love, we are to grow up in every way into him who is the head, into Christ, from whom the whole body, joined and held together by every joint with which it is equipped, when each part is working properly, makes the body grow so that it builds itself up in love. (Ephesians 4:11–16)
These verses say much, but in them is that phrase “speaking the truth in love” associated with being like Jesus and being part of His Body so it is working properly. That is, if the church of Jesus Christ is to function like it should, then each Christian, including me, needs to do whatever God is leading us to do. It might be to speak up, to share Christ with others. The NT says very little about silence. Even when it does, it is not usually about Christians:
They (false teachers) must be silenced, since they are upsetting whole families by teaching for shameful gain what they ought not to teach. (Titus 1:11)
For this is the will of God, that by doing good you should put to silence the ignorance of foolish people. (1 Peter 2:15)
Jesus would not permit demons to speak. Mute people were given the ability to speak. Jesus spoke in parables. Christians spoke in tongues, but told to be silent if no one could interpret their speech. What is in our hearts comes out in our speaking, and we are to speak what we know and have seen (and cannot help but speak), but if we speak on our own authority, we are seeking our own glory. 1 Corinthians 13 is clear; if our speech is without love, it is just noise.
In other words, if God moves me to speak, I must. If not, then shut up. “Know this . . . let every person be quick to hear, slow to speak, slow to anger; for the anger of man does not produce the righteousness of God.” (James 1:19-20) Zeal can be angry and not from God at all. God guides our speaking and like the Sunday School song, He teaches me: ‘Be careful little lips what you say . . . .’ and “Let no corrupting talk come out of my mouth, but only such as is good for building up, as fits the occasion, that it may give grace to those who hear.” (Ephesians 4:29)
PRAY: Jesus, I’m realizing that my zeal for truth can override other commands and motivate me to speak when I need to back off. If my words are in anger or frustration with another rather than out of love for You and for others, the old advice about counting to ten is good advice. Blasting off is not the same as declaring truth boldly. I need Your Spirit to fill me and guide me so others are built up not torn down.
TODAY: Usually I’m not with many people, but today a church full and then family plans, so I feel a great need for the grace of God regarding my zeal and what comes out of my mouth. I need the Lord’s guidance to speak the truth in love when needed and to otherwise be quiet.
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