Have you ever heard the phrase that people in greenhouses shouldn’t throw stones? You may be more familiar with what Jesus said: let him who is without sin cast the first stone (John 8:7). Before you start attacking or finding fault with others, examine yourself first.
Imagine a family of people who keep their house dirty but tell all their neighbors to keep their house clean. That family lives in illusion because they haven’t taken care of business themselves and yet they point fingers at others. In many ways, the church has grown to be the hand that points its index finger only to discover three fingers pointing at us.
There is so much controversy among believers about how unbelievers speak harshly against the word of God. In many fellowship circles, the topic of discussion is what an artist, rapper, or politician has said against the Bible. The words of unbelievers should not surprise Christians because they honestly do not believe in God. Demanding from a non-believer the norm of respecting Jesus would be like demanding from a Christian the norm of speaking well about atheism.
Our first brothers and sisters lived and served God in pagan lands where many idols were worshiped but their focus was on the word of God. They presented the gospel of Jesus Christ and engaged in battle with others when necessary. Most of his day was not consumed with what the pagans were doing to disrespect Jesus, but the focus was on spreading the gospel and converting non-believers.
Jesus has called us all to be about our Father’s business and focus on building the kingdom of God. We need more focus on spreading the gospel to non-believers instead of debating non-believers about their beliefs. We were all once lost and it was the word of God that opened our eyes and we must use that same power to open the eyes of others. God’s love and grace saved my life and were more powerful than someone yelling at the top of my lungs that I was wrong for practicing atheism or dabbling in Islam and Buddhism.
The sad truth is that we focus so much on unbelievers that we neglect housekeeping first. There are many false churches and false pastors who lead entire congregations to destruction and blaspheme the name of Christ. We should focus on cleaning house and teaching the true gospel to those within our family because the hypocrites are giving us a bad reputation. Many preachers are teaching the doctrine of demons and preaching for lust and gain and at the end of the day the only thing many Christians say is did you hear that celebrity or politician say that about God. Let’s focus on teaching the word of God and let the Holy Spirit do his work to save the world through us.-Amen
Because it is time for the judgment to begin at the house of God; and if it begins with us first, what will be the end of those who do not obey the gospel of God? -1 Peter 4:17