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Teaching, Learning: Two Sides of a Coin Whose Metal is Humility


 I myself am convinced, my brothers, that you yourselves are full of goodness, complete in knowledge and competent to instruct one another. (Romans 15:14) 

            There are two sides to every coin. Today's passage makes it clear that imperfect members of an imperfect church can and should instruct one another. The first side of the coin is the instructors. People can be unthinkingly cruel. They can be arrogant and bigoted. Members of the Church should learn to deal with one another according to Biblical principles (including Matthew 18:15-18,) making sure that there is no plank in their own eyes as they deal with specks in their brothers'  but the point is that members in the Church are supposed to instruct on another. If we do not, we are disobeying God's design for the Church.
            The other side of the coin is the person receiving the instruction.  Too often today, the response to instruction is "Don't judge me  until you've lived my life," and "Let me live my life!" Such an unwillingness to learn is pride and pride is sin It's also foolishness.
         One key in instructing and being instructed is to lovingly keep the focus of the criticism on the problem, not on the people. I heard it said once that Jesus never met a prostitute. That means He never met an adulteress. However, He did meet women who were guilty of adultery and He told one that while He did not condemn her, that she should  "go and sin no more."  He is our example.

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