always, always, always makes us stumble (if not worse)! Then again, perhaps we should first look at who the best intentions are aimed at and why we think our determination is for their best! Tad presumptuous on our part… isn’t it? Who are we to determine what the best is for someone else? Unless they are facing a speeding vehicle bearing down on them and we need to help them see this – what gives us a right to say/act as if they don’t know or understand? And yes, our hearts may be in the right place, but that doesn’t always guarantee that our intentions are.
There is a ‘condition’ though that is legitimate for us to speak out… in correction when a brother or sister is in the wrong. We even have the scriptural steps we should take. The scripture that speaks to this is Matthew 18: 15-17, AMP
“If your brother sins, go and show him his fault in private; if he listens and pays attention to you, you have won back your brother. But if he does not listen, take along with you one or two others, so that every word may be confirmed by the testimony of two or three witnesses. If he pays no attention to them [refusing to listen and obey], tell it to the church; and if he refuses to listen even to the church, let him be to you as a Gentile (unbeliever) and a tax collector.”
In this case, there are sufficient intermediary steps that if you are in error regarding your brother, this will be discovered in the ensuing steps. Let’s face it – we can misunderstand and this avoids error.
But… does this always apply to how we go about our ‘correcting’? If we don’t start with our motivations then we’ll never know – even when we may be right. (Is it possible to do the right thing for the wrong reason?… ummm, don’t think so.) Equally important is to remember how the Lord goes about correcting us. He always begins from love. He loves us and wants only the best for us, to help us be our best. Does our correction stem from this position of care?
“My brothers and sisters, if anyone among you strays from the truth and falls into error and [another] one turns him back [to God], let the [latter] one know that the one who has turned a sinner from the error of his way will save that one’s soul from death and cover a multitude of sins [that is, obtain the pardon of the many sins committed by the one who has been restored]. [James 2: 19-20, AMP]
Correction is inevitable since we all do/say things we shouldn’t – regardless of intention. The ‘how’ of our correcting, however, must stem from love and care. Jesus always tells us to act in love – John 15:12 – actually, it’s His command.
