Love, Rebuke, and Help
None of us is every right 100% of the time. We sin and fall short (Romans 3:23) and at times need loving correction (Galatians 6:1). But, nobody likes to be told that they are wrong and our attitude toward sin and righteous living dictates how we accept righteous rebuke.
Can you accept rebuke lovingly?
King David asks for the righteous to smite him: “Let the righteous smite me; it shall be a kindness: and let him reprove me; it shall be an excellent oil, which shall not break my head: for yet my prayer also shall be in their calamities” (Psalm 141:5). Notice he called it a kindness and said their reproof was an excellent oil. The apostle Paul asked the Galatian brethren, “Am I therefore become your enemy, because I tell you the truth?” (Galatians 4:16).
A true friend will tell us when we are wrong and a righteous heart will receive the rebuke in love and do some-thing to make it right. Proverbs 27:6, “Faithful are the wounds of a friend; but the kisses of an enemy are deceitful.” Thankfully God is always near when we call on Him in truth for forgiveness and support. Let brotherly love continue and be faithful to the God of all creation.