Honesty is the Best Policy-Usually
You and I know that you can get severely burned by speaking the truth. You can even say it in love but if the person you are speaking to is not ready to face truth for their life you are better to keep your words to yourself. In my experience, they will villainize you in order to not have to deal with themselves.
On the other side of the fence, their are those who are growing people and they want to hear the truth and grow, but even they come in two batches. There are those that hear the truth and immediately gracefully receive it and those who angrily reject it immediately but later calm down and deal with themselves.
So which one are you. If you fall into the first group that can't handle the truth, you definitely think you can handle the truth. So what is your indication that you are in the first "Can't handle the truth" group. You tend to say, "I can handle the truth but I don't really have that fault I was confronted with. They were wrong." You transfer blame or you set up such defensive barriers that no one in their right mind would dare tell you the truth about you.
You've got to deal with your denial and ask God to do anything he can to humble you and break you until you can finally grow again. You're stuck in relational and spiritual infancy until you do.
Discipleship requires honesty. But to disciplers Jesus said, "Don't throw your pearls before swine." I know that sounds harsh but it's what Jesus said. They will be victims in their eyes and you will be the villain. So when do you tell the truth to someone? Tune into God's Spirit and talk when he says to and be silent when he says to.
Disciples, James 4:9-10 says "Grieve, mourn and wail. Change your laughter to mourning and your joy to gloom. Humble yourselves before the Lord, and he will lift you up." God will probably have to break you for you to begin growing again. You can willingly submit to his correction and breaking or resist it for a life time but now that your his child the correction will never stop until you change or die. Sounds fun!
A truthful life invites truth and dishonest heart invites flattery.
On the other side of the fence, their are those who are growing people and they want to hear the truth and grow, but even they come in two batches. There are those that hear the truth and immediately gracefully receive it and those who angrily reject it immediately but later calm down and deal with themselves.
So which one are you. If you fall into the first group that can't handle the truth, you definitely think you can handle the truth. So what is your indication that you are in the first "Can't handle the truth" group. You tend to say, "I can handle the truth but I don't really have that fault I was confronted with. They were wrong." You transfer blame or you set up such defensive barriers that no one in their right mind would dare tell you the truth about you.
You've got to deal with your denial and ask God to do anything he can to humble you and break you until you can finally grow again. You're stuck in relational and spiritual infancy until you do.
Discipleship requires honesty. But to disciplers Jesus said, "Don't throw your pearls before swine." I know that sounds harsh but it's what Jesus said. They will be victims in their eyes and you will be the villain. So when do you tell the truth to someone? Tune into God's Spirit and talk when he says to and be silent when he says to.
Disciples, James 4:9-10 says "Grieve, mourn and wail. Change your laughter to mourning and your joy to gloom. Humble yourselves before the Lord, and he will lift you up." God will probably have to break you for you to begin growing again. You can willingly submit to his correction and breaking or resist it for a life time but now that your his child the correction will never stop until you change or die. Sounds fun!
A truthful life invites truth and dishonest heart invites flattery.
Labels: discipleship
posted by Matt Harris at
8:34 AM
1 Comments:
Matt, when I read your blog posts, I always want there to be a "like" button... I love the last line. Spot on. Thanks for sharing. ~Trish
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