In recent times, we have seen many things show up on the social media about Pastors and church leaders and there have been many reactions ranging from the good ones to the very terrible ones. In all of this, the bible admonishes us that wisdom is the principal thing. As believers, we must have a reaction that is aligned with the scriptures as our social media activities are part of the things we will give account for.
So, how should you react when you see an accusation against a believer on the internet? The bible calls us to stand only with the truth, however, when you are privileged to know the truth about the situation, how should you react to such things? Paul shares with his protégé and youthful pastor- Timothy on how to handle accusations among believers.
Firstly, he says that Timothy must not address an elderly person harshly. Take note that Timothy was the Pastor of the church, but he was still not supposed to address an elderly man harshly. For him to have a reason to want to address an elderly man harshly, that means that the man must have done something wrong. Look at how Amplified version puts it: DO NOT sharply censure or rebuke an older man, but entreat and plead with him as [you would with] a father.
Next, the apostle admonishes Pastor Timothy to never receive an accusation against an elder except there are at least 2 witnesses as stipulated by the law of Moses. So, you need 2 witnesses before you can believe an accusation against a church leader. It is very important that we are not led by any other except the Holy Spirit through His word. We stick to the word irrespective!
As youths with a very vital prophetic destiny, we need to learn to have the heart like that of David who would not slay the anointed of the Lord even when it was glaring that Saul has gone so far from the will of God. Many times, the Lord checks the reactions of our heart to issues and he measures statures to us based on our reaction. David did not become a man after God’s heart as a result of God’s love, he won that position in God because of his heart actions.
The church is a body that has a common enemy- the devil. In the body, the people who serve in the leadership are the biggest targets as they as the ones that seem to bring the biggest onslaught to the devil. As the devil targets them, we must know that their downfall affects the entire body. Sadly, some members of the body have unknowingly been helping the devil by participating in the ministry of condemnation
That work doesn't belong to us. What we have is the ministry of reconciliation. To restore, rebuild, energize. That's our job. Social media accusations may be true or not. We mostly don't know who is lying, bit one thing can be sure, praying for the body helps everyone to stay straight. That should be our reaction. You are either condemning or reconciling. Focus on the job. Reconcile. Always.
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