“Those People: The Critic”
We all know that person…they make our blood boil! We know something’s not going to be right! It’s the Critic! We all know ‘em and sometimes we are them! Knowing that we all face criticism in our lives what do we do about it?
- Know When To DISMISS Criticism (Luke 13:10-14)
- There are 2 people about to face criticism here. Jesus (which is to be expected) and the woman who is about to be healed! The woman is seen by Jesus…from the outer court from where He was teaching! He called her out of the outer court to where He was teaching (something she would have known would not be approved by the leaders of the Synagogue). And Jesus is about to be criticized not just for calling the woman out of the court but for healing her on the Sabbath
- Here is the thing about criticism…to face it you have to understand you have been seen! Let that sink in! So many times we think criticism is because others want to cause us harm…but what if that criticism is what sets you up for something greater! Don’t let criticism stop you in your tracks…take what good can come from it & keep moving forward in obedience to what God is calling you to!
- Know When To RESPOND to Criticism (Luke 13:15-16)
- Jesus knew how/when to respond to criticism! He’s telling the Leaders in the Synagogue that it’s a matter of obedience not religion that we should follow! Religion said the woman should not have been healed or even in the same place with the men on the Sabbath
- In our life we have to know what criticism to respond to and what criticism to move on from! There will always be someone to tell us that we aren’t up to par and we have to know when to respond to it! For Jesus it was a response that was actually taking away from someone seeing God more clearly! If someone is tearing down Jesus working through you…let the Holy Spirit guide you when to stand up…because you weren’t made to be silent!
- OVERCOME My Own Critical Nature (Luke 13:17)
- Like the leaders in the Synagogue we can get stuck in our own critical nature and completely miss out on the miracles that we can be a part of. Think about this…the leaders of the Synagogue got to see the Son of God heal a woman who was broken for 18 years…and instead of Celebrating it, they tried to find a way to make it less significant. We have to keep ourselves in check when we see our criticism is affecting others seeing Jesus more clearly!
Take Away
Why do you think we so often put other people’s opinions of us ahead of God’s opinion of us?
We often criticize others to make ourselves feel better. What insecurities might be fueling your own critical nature of others?
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Tyler West 