CORRECTION IS PART OF BIBLICAL RELATIONSHIP 01OCT26

<p>CORRECTION IS PART OF BIBLICAL RELATIONSHIP 01OCT26:</p><p><br></p><p>There is a difference between biblical ministry and authoritarian religion.</p><p><br></p><p>Biblical authority does not mean, “You can’t question me.”</p><p><br></p><p>It means we are all submitted to the Word of God—including leaders.</p><p><br></p><p>Respect Does Not Mean Silence</p><p><br></p><p>Scripture gives us different ways to correct different people.</p><p><br></p><p>Paul told Timothy:</p><p><br></p><p>“Do not rebuke an older man, but exhort him as a father, younger men as brothers, older women as mothers, younger women as sisters, with all purity.”</p><p>— 1 Timothy 5:1–2 NKJV</p><p><br></p><p>Notice the balance.</p><p><br></p><p>You can correct someone without dishonoring them.</p><p><br></p><p>An elder deserves respect. A parent deserves respect. A peer deserves respect. A child deserves appropriate care.</p><p><br></p><p>But respect does not mean that someone becomes untouchable.</p><p><br></p><p>If a spiritual leader tells me to do something that contradicts Scripture, I should be able to say:</p><p><br></p><p>“Sir, with all due respect, I don’t see that in the Word. Can we open our Bibles and look at it together?”</p><p><br></p><p>That’s not rebellion.</p><p><br></p><p>That’s biblical accountability.</p><p><br></p><p>Let’s Open the Bible</p><p><br></p><p>Healthy spiritual relationships should be able to handle honest questions.</p><p><br></p><p>Sometimes a subordinate may say:</p><p><br></p><p>“Pastor, I thought Scripture said this.”</p><p><br></p><p>The right response doesn’t have to be anger.</p><p><br></p><p>It can be:</p><p><br></p><p>“Let’s open the Bible and study it together.”</p><p><br></p><p>We have the technology to put the Scriptures on the screen, compare passages, examine the context, and work through the question together.</p><p><br></p><p>And when we’re finished?</p><p><br></p><p>We can still hug each other.</p><p><br></p><p>That’s a healthy relationship.</p><p><br></p><p>Jesus Allowed Questions</p><p><br></p><p>Look at Nicodemus.</p><p><br></p><p>He came to Jesus with questions. Jesus didn’t shut him down. He taught him.</p><p><br></p><p>Peter also had moments when Jesus had to correct him.</p><p><br></p><p>Jesus even told Peter:</p><p><br></p><p>“Get behind Me, Satan!”</p><p>— Matthew 16:23 NKJV</p><p><br></p><p>That was a severe correction—but it wasn’t the end of Peter’s relationship with Jesus.</p><p><br></p><p>After Peter denied Jesus three times,