Never Argue
II Timothy 2:23-26
Never argue as you witness. God says,
"The servant of the Lord must not strive" (v. 24). You may win an
argument but lose a soul. Almost all who witness have been caught in
this trap some time or other. Years ago when witnessing to a man I got
into a heated discussion with him. After apologizing and trying to
rectify the situation, I went away disturbed, for I knew I would never
reach him for Christ. I prayed for him and was thrilled later to hear
someone else had led him to Christ. How wonderful that God can
overrule our mistakes.
A good admonition is: "Foolish and unlearned questions avoid, knowing
they do gender strifes" (v. 23). Many are ensnared by trying to tell
where Cain got his wife or prove some particular denominational
belief. Keep to the essentials of "the gospel of Christ" (Rom. 1:16).
Christians are reminded to "be gentle unto all men" (v. 24). A good
hunter does not flush the birds and a good fisherman does not frighten
away the fish. The soul winner must be gracious with men, knowing that
he too was once without understanding and ensnared by Satan (v. 26).
He must be patient, or literally "holding up under evil" (v. 24). If
the gospel offends, that is the Spirit's conviction; but if I offend,
that is sin. If one senses the conversation becoming heated, he should
stop immediately and apologize for his part. Often this will break the
tension. The lost one will recognize that the Christian has done
something he is unable to do and will want this same enabling power in
his life. A non-Christian can be expected to become hot and bothered
under Satan's control and the Christian can be expected to apologize
under the Spirit's control.
Witnessing must be done "in meekness" (v. 25), never with a
holier-than-thou attitude. But for the grace of God, the shoe would be
on the other foot. Realizing God must "give them repentance to the
acknowledging of the truth" (v. 25) will take the strain from us and
put dependence on God. Christians need to put more stress on prayer
and less on persuasion. You can never talk a person into salvation! Be
sure to always leave the door open for further witnessing. |