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Reprove
not a scorner, lest he hate you; reprove a wise man, and he will love
you. Give instruction to a wise man and he will be yet wiser; teach a
righteous man...and he will increase in learning.
– Proverbs 9:8-9, The Amplified Bible
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There is one thing you can do
that will accelerate your spiritual growth more than almost any other
thing: Learn to take correction—from the Spirit of God and from His
people.
So few believers seem to be able to do that. When their
preacher gets in the pulpit and preaches about something they already
know, about some aspect of life they’ve already submitted to the Lord,
they think he’s great. They like him because he makes them feel good.
But the moment he stands up and begins to preach about something they’re
doing wrong, they take offense.
God says that’s foolish. He says in Proverbs 1:7, only fools strike out at, or despise, correction.
So
don’t be like that. When your pastor or anyone else in the Body of
Christ has a word of correction for you, receive it gratefully.
Appreciate those who share the wisdom of God with you. When someone
points out somewhere that you’ve missed it, instead of reacting against
them, examine yourself and say, “Is that right? Does that agree with the
Word? Do I need to make a change there?”
If the answer to those questions is yes, then make the changes you need to make to get your life in line.
I
know that’s not easy. None of us likes to be corrected. But if you’ll
make up your mind you’re going to receive that correction anyway, that
you’re going to remain teachable, you’ll be able to go on and grow in
spiritual things much more quickly.
One man said, “If you think
you’ve already arrived, you aren’t going anywhere.” Remember that next
time someone corrects you. Love that person and thank him for speeding
along your spiritual progress. If you’ll do that, you’ll come out ahead
every time.
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