Correcting others correctly.

Scriptural Reference:

• “When Priscilla and Aquila heard [Apollos] preaching boldly in the synagogue, they took him aside and explained the way of God even more accurately.”Acts 18:26 (NLT)
• “But when Peter came to Antioch, I had to oppose him to his face, for what he did was very wrong.” Galatians 2:11

Application:
Receiving and giving correction is a necessary thing. But we must give correction diplomatically. The Bible has great examples to learn from.
When the eloquent speaker Apollos failed to mention some crucial aspects of Christianity, Priscilla and Aquila made sure that the way they corrected him wouldn’t damper Apollos’ spirit. Instead of confronting him in the synagogue, they took him aside to offer suggestions.  But when Peter acted publicly hypocritical against Gentile new believers, Paul took a more public stance. Because there was danger that other Jews would isolate the new Gentile Christians, Paul called Peter out right there in public.
Two greatly differing corrections done in vastly differing ways.
We have to pray to God that when we correct others, we don’t do so in ways that make the situation worse. We must search our hearts for our true motives, consider the least embarrassing way of offering correction, and weigh the consequences of correcting or not correcting.


Prayer:
Dear God, I pray that I give and receive correction the right way. Please help me remember to use love and advancing Your kingdom as my motive, not my own vanity. Thank You for people who care enough about me to help me be better at what I do. Amen.