{"id":59755,"date":"2006-03-07T20:13:00","date_gmt":"2006-03-08T02:13:00","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/www.lavistachurchofchrist.org\/cms\/?p=59755"},"modified":"2023-03-07T20:14:21","modified_gmt":"2023-03-08T02:14:21","slug":"some-thoughts-about-offering-criticism","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/www.lavistachurchofchrist.org\/cms\/some-thoughts-about-offering-criticism\/","title":{"rendered":"Some Thoughts About Offering Criticism"},"content":{"rendered":"\n\n\tby William Barclay\n

“I know thy works, and charity, and service, and faith, and thy patience, and thy works; and the last to be more than the first<\/em>” (Revelation 2:19).<\/p><\/blockquote>\n

There is something very interesting about this verse. The letter to the church at Thyatira is to be a letter of warning and of criticism, and yet it begins with a verse of undiluted praise. Here is something which every preacher and teacher, indeed every Christian, must learn. Real criticism must always encourage and never discourage. When we have reason to rebuke or to criticize anyone, we must make it clear that we are doing so, not because we dislike him, but because we like him; not because we hate him, but because love him; not because we think that he is useless, but because we think that he has it in him to be useful; not because we wish to hurt him, but because we wish to help him. That is why criticism will often be most effective when it begins with praise. It is wise to point out that which is good before we begin to seek to eradicate that which is evil.<\/p>\n\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"

by William Barclay “I know thy works, and charity, and service, and faith, and thy patience, and thy works; and the last to be more than the first” (Revelation 2:19). There is something very interesting about this verse. The letter to the church at Thyatira is to be a letter of warning and of criticism,…<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":1,"featured_media":0,"comment_status":"closed","ping_status":"closed","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"advanced_seo_description":"","jetpack_seo_html_title":"","jetpack_seo_noindex":false,"jetpack_seo_schema_type":"","footnotes":"","jetpack_post_was_ever_published":false},"categories":[27],"tags":[794,357],"class_list":["post-59755","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","hentry","category-article","tag-criticism","tag-encouragement"],"jetpack_featured_media_url":"","jetpack_sharing_enabled":true,"jetpack_likes_enabled":true,"jetpack-related-posts":[{"id":5350,"url":"https:\/\/www.lavistachurchofchrist.org\/cms\/how-do-you-handle-criticism\/","url_meta":{"origin":59755,"position":0},"title":"How do you handle criticism?","author":"Jeffrey Hamilton","date":"May 18, 2006","format":false,"excerpt":"Question: What are the biblical teachings concerning criticism, forgiveness, and how to deal with criticism? Criticism has many faces, but I'm inquiring about the kind that can mar a person's self-esteem and his good reputation. Answer: How you handle criticism depends on why you are being criticized. \"For this is\u2026","rel":"","context":"In "Answer"","block_context":{"text":"Answer","link":"https:\/\/www.lavistachurchofchrist.org\/cms\/category\/answer\/"},"img":{"alt_text":"","src":"","width":0,"height":0},"classes":[]},{"id":41858,"url":"https:\/\/www.lavistachurchofchrist.org\/cms\/dealing-with-criticism\/","url_meta":{"origin":59755,"position":1},"title":"Dealing with Criticism (Thomas)","author":"Jeffrey Hamilton","date":"January 12, 2012","format":false,"excerpt":"by Michael Thomas We've all been told unpleasant things. \"You're not doing this right.\" \"You could've done this better.\" You're not as good at this as he is.\" Criticism justified or not, is a part of life, so how can we benefit from it? Listen to It As painful as\u2026","rel":"","context":"In "Article"","block_context":{"text":"Article","link":"https:\/\/www.lavistachurchofchrist.org\/cms\/category\/article\/"},"img":{"alt_text":"","src":"","width":0,"height":0},"classes":[]},{"id":59556,"url":"https:\/\/www.lavistachurchofchrist.org\/cms\/should-we-criticize-others\/","url_meta":{"origin":59755,"position":2},"title":"Should We Criticize Others?","author":"Jeffrey Hamilton","date":"February 24, 2006","format":false,"excerpt":"by Kent Heaton The nature of truth is that it exposes error. In a world fueled by a politically correct presentation of non-offensive language, criticism is not accepted. This is especially true when this criticism speaks of religion. Challenging the teachings and beliefs of others is perceived as a personal\u2026","rel":"","context":"In "Article"","block_context":{"text":"Article","link":"https:\/\/www.lavistachurchofchrist.org\/cms\/category\/article\/"},"img":{"alt_text":"","src":"","width":0,"height":0},"classes":[]},{"id":14950,"url":"https:\/\/www.lavistachurchofchrist.org\/cms\/does-a-christian-have-the-right-to-privately-criticize-an-elder\/","url_meta":{"origin":59755,"position":3},"title":"Does a Christian have the right to privately criticize an elder?","author":"Jeffrey Hamilton","date":"May 24, 2008","format":false,"excerpt":"Question: Does a church member have the right to privately confront or send a message to an elder, for the purpose of disagreement or criticism? If this not acceptable, what consequences should follow a disagreement? Answer: \"Obey those who rule over you, and be submissive, for they watch out for\u2026","rel":"","context":"In "Answer"","block_context":{"text":"Answer","link":"https:\/\/www.lavistachurchofchrist.org\/cms\/category\/answer\/"},"img":{"alt_text":"","src":"","width":0,"height":0},"classes":[]},{"id":62355,"url":"https:\/\/www.lavistachurchofchrist.org\/cms\/everyones-a-critic\/","url_meta":{"origin":59755,"position":4},"title":"Everyone’s a Critic","author":"Jeffrey Hamilton","date":"August 29, 2010","format":false,"excerpt":"by Jeffrey W. Hamilton Text: Proverbs 9:7-12 \u00a0 I.\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0Everyone faces days when it feels as if nothing is going right. \u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0A.\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0People find fault with what you do and you think that nothing can please them. \u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0B.\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0Criticism, justified or not, isn\u2019t pleasant to receive \u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a01.\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u201cYou\u2019re not doing that right.\u201d \u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a02.\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u201cYou should\u2026","rel":"","context":"In "Audio"","block_context":{"text":"Audio","link":"https:\/\/www.lavistachurchofchrist.org\/cms\/category\/audio\/"},"img":{"alt_text":"","src":"","width":0,"height":0},"classes":[]},{"id":53624,"url":"https:\/\/www.lavistachurchofchrist.org\/cms\/criticism-of-other-churches-has-no-place-in-christianity\/","url_meta":{"origin":59755,"position":5},"title":"Criticism of other churches has no place in Christianity","author":"Jeffrey Hamilton","date":"July 7, 2018","format":false,"excerpt":"Question: To whom it may concern, I just read\u00a0a response to a question regarding Mark 9:38-40, and I was disappointed that the last paragraph contained the following: \"This passage also shows that the concept of succession, where a denomination claims to be the \"real\" church because it can trace its\u2026","rel":"","context":"In "Answer"","block_context":{"text":"Answer","link":"https:\/\/www.lavistachurchofchrist.org\/cms\/category\/answer\/"},"img":{"alt_text":"","src":"","width":0,"height":0},"classes":[]}],"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.lavistachurchofchrist.org\/cms\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/59755","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.lavistachurchofchrist.org\/cms\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.lavistachurchofchrist.org\/cms\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.lavistachurchofchrist.org\/cms\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/users\/1"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.lavistachurchofchrist.org\/cms\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/comments?post=59755"}],"version-history":[{"count":0,"href":"https:\/\/www.lavistachurchofchrist.org\/cms\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/59755\/revisions"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.lavistachurchofchrist.org\/cms\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=59755"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.lavistachurchofchrist.org\/cms\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/categories?post=59755"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.lavistachurchofchrist.org\/cms\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/tags?post=59755"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}