Iron Sharpens Iron
Spiritual Truth by Chris Bunton
“Iron sharpens iron; so a man sharpens the
countenance of his friend.” –Proverbs 27:17
As
Christians we often hear or have this belief that we are to always be happy and
joyful. That we are to never have a complaint or conflict among brethren, and
some believe we should never argue with those who oppose us.
But, that
is really not the truth, nor is it reality. “In this world you will have
tribulation.” We will have trouble, we will have conflict, but ultimately we
are to realize that Jesus has overcome the world, and we overcome through Him.
He works in us and through us. That does not mean everything is always daisies,
as some try to maintain. We remind ourselves that He has overcome, and it works
to help us, but it does not always remove the tribulation.
Believers
often have disagreements about things in God’s Word. These disagreements can
get very heated and even hateful. It’s claimed that this stuff drives people
away from Christ. But let me ask you; does it drive people away from football
when folks disagree or hate on different teams? Humans argue about politics, we
argue about philosophy, we argue about academics, we argue about money, we
argue about everything. It’s part of communication and learning. Does it drive
us away? People are driven away from Christ, because they have listened to the
demons whispering in their ear. Satan will show you all kinds of things that
offend you, if it will keep you from getting saved, knowing Christ, growing in
faith and serving God.
Remember,
that iron sharpens iron. When this happens, heat is created as friction occurs.
Bits of iron fly off, but both pieces become sharper. There will be conflict as
God works to teach and improve us. There will be heat. There will be things
removed. If not, then are we being changed? How can we grow stronger if we do
not have more weight added to the bar we lift?
As we
grow and learn in our spiritual walk, we will encounter challenges. When we
express our view from God’s Word, we might encounter resistance. As we speak
what God is teaching us, we might face others who disagree. There are people
who have seen or gotten different views or who dwell in different stages of
growth. They won’t totally agree always.
As we
continue in discussing or arguing these points, we learn. We will get sharper
and improve our arguments, or we will finally see that we were flawed in our
reasoning, and let God change our minds. How you respond to this, is what
matters. Understand that God is working on us, and that we should try to show
love and forgiveness to those we disagree with. It’s hard to do this, to be
sure, but even that is part of our training.
Now some
people will quit, when they face resistance. When they quit, they cease to grow
and learn in that area. You have to have your beliefs and views challenged, or
else how do you know if you believe false things?
Some
people act like it’s a sin to argue or debate. It’s not; Jesus and Paul both
discussed and debated. Be angry but sin not. The sin comes in how we treat
others. It also comes by arguing for the sake of arguing, or never coming to a
conclusion. I have debated or discussed things with people and it has been a joy.
But, other times it has led to conflict.
Having
your views challenged, sharpens your arguments. This is how you learn to
organize your thoughts, and to become a more capable soldier for Christ. We
learn among our brethren, how to discuss the truth, and share our values and
beliefs. Then, when we face opposition, we can give a proper answer for why we
believe. We can lead people to Christ, and not sound like a buffoon. We gain
confidence in hearing the Spirit speaking into our hearts, as we serve Him.
We need
more debate and discussion of God’s Word in our churches, so we can grow and
learn how to engage the world around us for Christ. It’s not something to fear.
Its part of our growth and it is good. It is difficult to deal with growth, and
to keep a proper mind about these things. But, we must grow, and it’s better to
do it among brethren. That’s what the body of Christ is for.
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Bio: Chris Bunton is a writer, poet and blogger from Southern Illinois.
Photo by the author.
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