You hear a lot of people in Christian circles quoting Ephesians 4:15 ... well, actually part of it. The part that is quoted is usually the words that tell Christians to "speak the truth in love." This is interpreted to mean that we who are followers of Jesus Christ must always speak out of an attitude of love toward others, never raising our voices or expressing frustration or anger.
II Timothy 2:24-26 seems to go along with this idea: "The Lord's servant must not be quarrelsome but kind to everyone, able to teach, patiently enduring evil, correcting his opponents with gentleness. God may perhaps grant them repentance leading to a knowledge of the truth, and they may come to their senses and escape from the snare of the devil, after being captured by him to do his will."
So what do we do with Matthew 23??? I can't quote the whole chapter here, but Jesus is talking to the crowds that followed Him, among whom were some of the scribes and Pharisees, the religious leaders of the Jews. Among other things He says, "Woe to you, blind guides ... You blind fools!! ... You blind men! ... Woe to you, scribes and Pharisees, hypocrites! ... You serpents, you brood of vipers, how are you to escape being sentenced to hell?"
How do we bring these passages together to give us guidance in our lives today as we seek to speak truth and to honor God in doing so? The answer is not that difficult. Ephesians 4 is a passage that is speaking to those who are united in Christ and in whom the Spirit of God is at work. To these Paul writes, "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 4:15-16).
Within the Church, like-minded brothers and sisters in Christ are to encourage and build up one another by teaching true DOCTRINE. He is warning against the danger of receiving false teaching and being "carried about by every wind of doctrine." RATHER, "speaking the truth in love" will build up the Body and help others to mature in their faith.
Secondly, the passage in II Timothy 2 is addressed to a young pastor who is being confronted by those who oppose the teaching of the true Gospel. God tells him through his mentor, Paul, to be kind and gentle, even enduring evil, praying that God will use his words to lead others to Christ, knowing that if they do not repent and believe they will perish under the just wrath of God. Whenever we have the opportunity to speak and to share God's truth in the Gospel we must do so with an attitude of humility and gentleness, thinking about the spiritual welfare of those who hear.
As to Jesus' words to the scribes and Pharisees, they were not the only ones who were on the receiving end of Jesus' criticism. He told Pilate that he had no authority over Him except that it had been given to him from above. When warned that Herod, the governor of Judea, wanted to kill Him, Jesus told the messengers to "go tell that fox" what they were seeing and hearing. Jesus was radically honest as He pointed out the sinful actions of those who were opposed to His kingdom and to the truth concerning His kingdom. We who are His disciples must likewise be committed to exposing the darkness of those around us who oppose the truth we have been sent into the world to proclaim.
That doesn't mean we should go off on rants and rage on about everything that is going on in our nation and in the world today, but it DOES mean that we must point people to the truth about CHRIST's kingdom and His reign, without hesitation, and with confidence and boldness, pointing out what is evil, what is contrary to righteousness and truth, and declaring that evil will not win in the end, though it may appear to be having victories in many places around us.
Let me close for today with some verses from Psalm 2: "Why do the nations rage and the peoples plot in vain? The kings of the earth set themselves and the rulers take counsel together, against the LORD and against His Anointed, saying, 'Let us burst their bonds apart and cast away their cords from us.' He who sits in the heavens laughs; the Lord holds them in derision. Then He will speak to them in His wrath, and terrify them in His fury, saying, 'As for me, I have set MY KING on Zion, my holy hill.' ... Now therefore, O kings, be wise; be warned, O rulers of the earth. Serve the LORD with fear, and rejoice with trembling. Kiss the Son, lest He be angry, and you perish in the way, for His wrath is quickly kindled. Blessed are all who take refuge in Him."
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