The Benefits of Being Rebuked
Introduction
I never enjoy being rebuked by someone else, but over time I have come to see the faithful rebuke of a friend as something of great value. The Scriptures tell us that the right kind of rebuke is an important way in which God cares for us, and in which we can care for each other.
Psalm 141:1-10
Psalm 141
A psalm of David.
1 I call to you, Lord, come quickly to me;
hear me when I call to you.
2 May my prayer be set before you like incense;
may the lifting up of my hands be like the evening sacrifice.
3 Set a guard over my mouth, Lord;
keep watch over the door of my lips.
4 Do not let my heart be drawn to what is evil
so that I take part in wicked deeds
along with those who are evildoers;
do not let me eat their delicacies.
5 Let a righteous man strike me—that is a kindness;
let him rebuke me —that is oil on my head.
My head will not refuse it,
for my prayer will still be against the deeds of evildoers.
6 Their rulers will be thrown down from the cliffs,
and the wicked will learn that my words were well spoken.
7 They will say, “As one plows and breaks up the earth,
so our bones have been scattered at the mouth of the grave.”
8 But my eyes are fixed on you, Sovereign Lord;
in you I take refuge —do not give me over to death.
9 Keep me safe from the traps set by evildoers,
from the snares they have laid for me.
10 Let the wicked fall into their own nets,
while I pass by in safety.
Commentary
The kind rebuke
There have been times in my life when people have rebuked me out of kindness. It is never easy at the time. But, on reflection, I am so grateful to them. David regards the rebuke of the righteous person as kindness – like ‘oil on my head’ (v.5), because his desire is not only his head, but that every part of his body and his life, should honour God:
Lift your hands
‘May the lifting of my hands be like the evening sacrifice’ (v.2). The lifting of hands to God symbolises an opening of the whole body to God.
Guard your lips
‘Set a guard over my mouth, O Lord; keep watch over the door of my lips’ (v.3). I often pray this before I give a talk or go into a meeting – that God will protect me from saying anything unhelpful, and that my words will be an encouragement and a blessing.
Watch your heart
‘Let not my heart be drawn to what is evil’ (v.4a). Your thoughts become your actions. Your actions become your habits. Your habits become your character. Your character becomes your life. It all starts in your heart.
Fix your eyes
‘My eyes are fixed on you, O Sovereign Lord’ (v.8a). We are urged to ‘fix our eyes on Jesus’ (Hebrews 12:2).
Prayer
Revelation 3:7-22
To the Church in Philadelphia
7 “To the angel of the church in Philadelphia write:
These are the words of him who is holy and true, who holds the key of David. What he opens no one can shut, and what he shuts no one can open. 8 I know your deeds. See, I have placed before you an open door that no one can shut. I know that you have little strength, yet you have kept my word and have not denied my name. 9 I will make those who are of the synagogue of Satan, who claim to be Jews though they are not, but are liars—I will make them come and fall down at your feet and acknowledge that I have loved you. 10 Since you have kept my command to endure patiently, I will also keep you from the hour of trial that is going to come on the whole world to test the inhabitants of the earth.
11 I am coming soon. Hold on to what you have, so that no one will take your crown. 12 The one who is victorious I will make a pillar in the temple of my God. Never again will they leave it. I will write on them the name of my God and the name of the city of my God, the new Jerusalem, which is coming down out of heaven from my God; and I will also write on them my new name. 13 Whoever has ears, let them hear what the Spirit says to the churches.
To the Church in Laodicea
14 “To the angel of the church in Laodicea write:
These are the words of the Amen, the faithful and true witness, the ruler of God’s creation. 15 I know your deeds, that you are neither cold nor hot. I wish you were either one or the other! 16 So, because you are lukewarm—neither hot nor cold—I am about to spit you out of my mouth. 17 You say, ‘I am rich; I have acquired wealth and do not need a thing.’ But you do not realize that you are wretched, pitiful, poor, blind and naked. 18 I counsel you to buy from me gold refined in the fire, so you can become rich; and white clothes to wear, so you can cover your shameful nakedness; and salve to put on your eyes, so you can see.
19 Those whom I love I rebuke and discipline. So be earnest and repent. 20 Here I am! I stand at the door and knock. If anyone hears my voice and opens the door, I will come in and eat with that person, and they with me.
21 To the one who is victorious, I will give the right to sit with me on my throne, just as I was victorious and sat down with my Father on his throne. 22 Whoever has ears, let them hear what the Spirit says to the churches.”
Commentary
The loving rebuke
Jesus loves you. When he allows you to go through the fire of rebuke, testing or discipline, he does so out of love. He says to the church in Philadelphia: ‘it’s you that I’ve loved... I’ll keep you safe in the time of testing’ (vv.9–10, MSG). He says to the church in Laodicea: ‘Those whom I love I rebuke and discipline’ (v.19). How should you respond?
Make the most of every opportunity
Jesus is holy and true and he ‘holds the key… What he opens no one can shut, and what he shuts no one can open’ (v.7). If you are unsure about, for example, a job or relationship, ask God to shut the door if it is not right, or to open the door if it is.
On at least two occasions in my life God has closed the door on something that I very much wanted, and which I believed at the time was God’s will. Praying and struggling, I tried to force the doors open – but they remained shut. I was bitterly disappointed. But, years later, I am very grateful and now understand why he closed those doors. (However, I’m not sure I will ever know, this side of heaven, why God has closed other doors in my life).
The Spirit continues, ‘See, I have placed before you an open door that no one can shut’ (v.8). Sometimes God places before you a door of opportunity. If he opens the door, no human being can shut it. You may come under great attack but, if Jesus opens the door, you can be confident that he is in control.
This does not mean passively waiting for the doors to open. Often, we have to take the first steps in faith. It is rather like approaching automatic doors – you have to take a step forward before you see whether or not the doors open.
This church in Philadelphia has little strength, yet it has kept Jesus’ word and not denied his name (v.8). They have endured patiently, and Jesus promises to keep them from the hour of trial (v.10).
Humanly speaking, this church does not appear to have been particularly impressive. Yet Jesus has no words of criticism for it. His perspective can often be very different from ours, and faithfulness to him matters far more than outward signs of size or strength.
His message is simply: hold on to what you have. He promises that those who overcome will be made pillars in the temple of God. His name will be written on them (v.12). Your future is utterly secure.
Open your heart to Jesus
The harshest words of Jesus are reserved for the church at Laodicea (vv.15–17). The church in Laodicea was like so much of the church in the West. At one level, it was ‘successful’ – Laodicea was a place famous for its banks and industry. But spiritually they were proud, ‘lukewarm’, ‘wretched’, ‘pitiful’, spiritually ‘poor, blind and naked’ (v.17). I find these words deeply challenging.
Yet, there is hope here. We are still loved by the Lord (v.19). He urges us to acquire real treasure, refined in the fire, so that we may become spiritually rich (v.18a). The only way to cover our shameful nakedness is with his robes of righteousness (v.18b). We need his salve on our eyes to remove our spiritual blindness (v.18c).
As we go through the refiner’s fire it is a form of discipline (v.19). It has a purpose. He wants us to ‘be earnest, and repent’ (v.19).
It is in this context that this wonderful and famous verse is found: ‘Here I am! I stand at the door and knock. If anyone hears my voice and opens the door, I will come in and eat with them, and they with me’ (v.20). Eating together is a sign of the intimate friendship that Jesus offers to all those who open the door of their lives to him.
There is only one handle and it is on the inside of the door. In other words, you have to open the door to let Jesus into your heart. Jesus will never force his way in. He gives you the freedom to choose. It is up to you whether or not you open the door to him. If you do, he promises, ‘I will come in and eat with them and they with me.’
Prayer
Esther 2:19-5:14
Mordecai Uncovers a Conspiracy
19 When the virgins were assembled a second time, Mordecai was sitting at the king’s gate. 20 But Esther had kept secret her family background and nationality just as Mordecai had told her to do, for she continued to follow Mordecai’s instructions as she had done when he was bringing her up.
21 During the time Mordecai was sitting at the king’s gate, Bigthana and Teresh, two of the king’s officers who guarded the doorway, became angry and conspired to assassinate King Xerxes. 22 But Mordecai found out about the plot and told Queen Esther, who in turn reported it to the king, giving credit to Mordecai. 23 And when the report was investigated and found to be true, the two officials were impaled on poles. All this was recorded in the book of the annals in the presence of the king.
Haman’s Plot to Destroy the Jews
3 After these events, King Xerxes honoured Haman son of Hammedatha, the Agagite, elevating him and giving him a seat of honor higher than that of all the other nobles. 2 All the royal officials at the king’s gate knelt down and paid honour to Haman, for the king had commanded this concerning him. But Mordecai would not kneel down or pay him honour.
3 Then the royal officials at the king’s gate asked Mordecai, “Why do you disobey the king’s command?” 4 Day after day they spoke to him but he refused to comply. Therefore they told Haman about it to see whether Mordecai’s behaviour would be tolerated, for he had told them he was a Jew.
5 When Haman saw that Mordecai would not kneel down or pay him honor, he was enraged. 6 Yet having learned who Mordecai’s people were, he scorned the idea of killing only Mordecai. Instead Haman looked for a way to destroy all Mordecai’s people, the Jews, throughout the whole kingdom of Xerxes.
7 In the twelfth year of King Xerxes, in the first month, the month of Nisan, the pur (that is, the lot ) was cast in the presence of Haman to select a day and month. And the lot fell on the twelfth month, the month of Adar.
8 Then Haman said to King Xerxes, “There is a certain people dispersed among the peoples in all the provinces of your kingdom who keep themselves separate. Their customs are different from those of all other people, and they do not obey the king’s laws; it is not in the king’s best interest to tolerate them. 9 If it pleases the king, let a decree be issued to destroy them, and I will give ten thousand talents of silver to the king’s administrators for the royal treasury.”
10 So the king took his signet ring from his finger and gave it to Haman son of Hammedatha, the Agagite, the enemy of the Jews. 11 “Keep the money,” the king said to Haman, “and do with the people as you please.”
12 Then on the thirteenth day of the first month the royal secretaries were summoned. They wrote out in the script of each province and in the language of each people all Haman’s orders to the king’s satraps, the governors of the various provinces and the nobles of the various peoples. These were written in the name of King Xerxes himself and sealed with his own ring. 13 Dispatches were sent by couriers to all the king’s provinces with the order to destroy, kill and annihilate all the Jews —young and old, women and children—on a single day, the thirteenth day of the twelfth month, the month of Adar, and to plunder their goods. 14 A copy of the text of the edict was to be issued as law in every province and made known to the people of every nationality so they would be ready for that day.
15 The couriers went out, spurred on by the king’s command, and the edict was issued in the citadel of Susa. The king and Haman sat down to drink, but the city of Susa was bewildered.
Mordecai Persuades Esther to Help
4 When Mordecai learned of all that had been done, he tore his clothes, put on sackcloth and ashes, and went out into the city, wailing loudly and bitterly. 2 But he went only as far as the king’s gate, because no one clothed in sackcloth was allowed to enter it. 3 In every province to which the edict and order of the king came, there was great mourning among the Jews, with fasting, weeping and wailing. Many lay in sackcloth and ashes.
4 When Esther’s eunuchs and female attendants came and told her about Mordecai, she was in great distress. She sent clothes for him to put on instead of his sackcloth, but he would not accept them. 5 Then Esther summoned Hathak, one of the king’s eunuchs assigned to attend her, and ordered him to find out what was troubling Mordecai and why.
6 So Hathak went out to Mordecai in the open square of the city in front of the king’s gate. 7 Mordecai told him everything that had happened to him, including the exact amount of money Haman had promised to pay into the royal treasury for the destruction of the Jews. 8 He also gave him a copy of the text of the edict for their annihilation, which had been published in Susa, to show to Esther and explain it to her, and he told him to instruct her to go into the king’s presence to beg for mercy and plead with him for her people.
9 Hathak went back and reported to Esther what Mordecai had said. 10 Then she instructed him to say to Mordecai, 11 “All the king’s officials and the people of the royal provinces know that for any man or woman who approaches the king in the inner court without being summoned the king has but one law: that they be put to death unless the king extends the gold scepter to them and spares their lives. But thirty days have passed since I was called to go to the king.”
12 When Esther’s words were reported to Mordecai, 13 he sent back this answer: “Do not think that because you are in the king’s house you alone of all the Jews will escape. 14 For if you remain silent at this time, relief and deliverance for the Jews will arise from another place, but you and your father’s family will perish. And who knows but that you have come to your royal position for such a time as this?”
15 Then Esther sent this reply to Mordecai: 16 “Go, gather together all the Jews who are in Susa, and fast for me. Do not eat or drink for three days, night or day. I and my attendants will fast as you do. When this is done, I will go to the king, even though it is against the law. And if I perish, I perish.”
17 So Mordecai went away and carried out all of Esther’s instructions.
Esther’s Request to the King
5 On the third day Esther put on her royal robes and stood in the inner court of the palace, in front of the king’s hall. The king was sitting on his royal throne in the hall, facing the entrance. 2 When he saw Queen Esther standing in the court, he was pleased with her and held out to her the gold scepter that was in his hand. So Esther approached and touched the tip of the scepter.
3 Then the king asked, “What is it, Queen Esther? What is your request? Even up to half the kingdom, it will be given you.”
4 “If it pleases the king,” replied Esther, “let the king, together with Haman, come today to a banquet I have prepared for him.”
5 “Bring Haman at once,” the king said, “so that we may do what Esther asks.”
So the king and Haman went to the banquet Esther had prepared. 6 As they were drinking wine, the king again asked Esther, “Now what is your petition? It will be given you. And what is your request? Even up to half the kingdom, it will be granted.”
7 Esther replied, “My petition and my request is this: 8 If the king regards me with favour and if it pleases the king to grant my petition and fulfill my request, let the king and Haman come tomorrow to the banquet I will prepare for them. Then I will answer the king’s question.”
Haman’s Rage Against Mordecai
9 Haman went out that day happy and in high spirits. But when he saw Mordecai at the king’s gate and observed that he neither rose nor showed fear in his presence, he was filled with rage against Mordecai. 10 Nevertheless, Haman restrained himself and went home.
Calling together his friends and Zeresh, his wife, 11 Haman boasted to them about his vast wealth, his many sons, and all the ways the king had honoured him and how he had elevated him above the other nobles and officials. 12 “And that’s not all,” Haman added. “I’m the only person Queen Esther invited to accompany the king to the banquet she gave. And she has invited me along with the king tomorrow. 13 But all this gives me no satisfaction as long as I see that Jew Mordecai sitting at the king’s gate. ”
14 His wife Zeresh and all his friends said to him, “Have a pole set up, reaching to a height of fifty cubits, and ask the king in the morning to have Mordecai impaled on it. Then go with the king to the banquet and enjoy yourself.” This suggestion delighted Haman, and he had the pole set up.
Commentary
The wise rebuke
My father was Jewish and many of my Jewish family perished in the concentration camps during the holocaust.
But anti-Semitism is not a recent phenomenon. Here in the book of Esther, set in the fifth century BC, we read of appalling anti-Semitism. Esther had to keep her background a secret (2:20). Haman wanted to ‘annihilate all the Jews – young and old, women and little children – on a single day… and to plunder their goods’ (3:13).
Mordecai’s response was to tear his clothes, put on sackcloth and ashes, and wail loudly and bitterly (4:1). Effectively, he was calling on God for help.
Mordecai realised that Esther, his adopted daughter, was in a position to make a difference. Esther pointed out the problems of her situation, and how it would be very difficult for her to help (vv.9–11).
Mordecai’s response was in effect the wise rebuke of a parent: ‘Don’t think that just because you live in the king’s house you’re the one Jew who will get out of this alive. If you persist in staying silent… you and your family will be wiped out. Who knows? Maybe you were made queen for just such a time as this.’ (vv.13–14, MSG)
Esther realised that God had put her in that position for a purpose. You too have a purpose. Many people go through life without meaning or ultimate purpose, trying to pursue their own agenda – not realising that God’s purposes are so much better. You are alive today in order to fulfil God’s purposes for this generation. Whatever position you are in, believe that you are there ‘for such a time as this’.
Esther listened to Mordecai’s wise words. She asked the people to fast for her and said, ‘I will go to the king, even though it is against the law. And if I perish, I perish’ (v.16). There is risk involved. We only have one life. We have to go for it. If we perish, we perish. But better to take the risk than never to have tried. May we rather be like Esther – utterly dependent on God and willing to risk our lives to save the lives of others.
Prayer
Pippa adds
Esther 2:19-5:14
Esther was not just a pretty face. She was someone in the right place willing to make a daring stand against injustice. She didn’t do it alone and she didn’t rush in. She prayed, planned, and made it happen at the right moment. She used a brilliant mixture of bravery, faith and skill.
Are there any opportunities for you to make a stand against injustice?
Verse of the Day
Revelation 3:20
‘Here I am! I stand at the door and knock. If anyone hears my voice and opens the door, I will come in and eat with that person, and they with me.’
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References
*The pre-Raphaelite artist Holman Hunt (1827-1910) inspired by this verse, painted ‘Light of the World’. He painted three versions in all – the most famous still hangs in St Paul’s Cathedral. Jesus, the Light of the World, stands at a door which is overgrown with ivy and weeds. The door clearly represents the door of someone’s life. This person has never invited Jesus to come into his or her life. Jesus is standing at the door and knocking. He is awaiting a response. He wants to come in and be part of that person’s life. Apparently, someone said to Holman Hunt that he had made a mistake. They told him, ‘You have forgotten to paint a handle on the door.’ ‘Oh no,’ replied Hunt, ‘that is deliberate. There is only one handle and that is on the inside.’
Unless otherwise stated, Scripture quotations taken from the Holy Bible, New International Version Anglicised, Copyright © 1979, 1984, 2011 Biblica, formerly International Bible Society. Used by permission of Hodder & Stoughton Publishers, an Hachette UK company. All rights reserved. ‘NIV’ is a registered trademark of Biblica. UK trademark number 1448790.
Scripture marked (MSG) taken from The Message. Copyright © 1993, 1994, 1995, 1996, 2000, 2001, 2002. Used by permission of NavPress Publishing Group. Unless otherwise stated.