Criticism breeds a lifestyle of disobedience.
Korah, Dathan and Abiram were vocal critics of Moses and his style of leadership. (Num 16:3). They complained long enough and loud enough that they soon gathered a crowd of followers.
Their actions incited rebellion against the authority of Moses.
But God hates rebellion!
Rebellion was a cardinal sin of Lucifer. Rebellion against the authority of God in heaven. When God sees rebels, He sees mini-Lucifer’s.
This probably explain the severity of God’s judgement against rebels: Korah and company were buried alive. (Numbers 16:28-33).
We all criticize every now and then but a critic tends to criticize routinely.
Repeated criticisms of other people can drive away folks who need your help. Those folks will lose out but you will also lose the opportunity to be a blessing.
The disciples of Jesus were a critical lot.
They criticized parents for bringing children to Jesus. (Matthew 19:13)
They criticized those who lavished expensive gifts on Jesus. Mark 14:4-5 (NLT)
Criticism is a trap that easily ensnares. The escape mechanism is maintaining a humble spirit, endeavor to keep quiet, don’t be judgmental, and stay away from critics.
Breaking up yourself is an important step in escaping the clutches of criticism. Being broken makes you malleable in God’s hands. You are not rigid in your thinking or observations of others.
Brokenness is realizing that your opinions is not always right. Realizing that God may be working through the apparent foolishness of other people. Thus, a broken person is not quick to issue corrections or critiques but rather will look carefully first to check if God is the One pulling strings behind the scenes.
Brokenness is maintaining a humble spirit, endeavor to keep quiet, refuse to be judgmental.
How do you relate with a critic?
You will come across critics daily. They could be colleagues in the office; or neighbors, family relations or just plain strangers.
How do you relate with them?
If the critic is a person you don’t have to relate with closely then avoidance is the wise thing to do.
Make no friendship with an angry man, And with a furious man do not go, Lest you learn his ways And set a snare for your soul. Proverbs 22:24-25 (NKJV)
Sometimes, it is not possible to avoid a critic. The critic may be a spouse or sibling or a person you have to work with closely. In such circumstances, the best way to relate with the critic is for you to be more broken. Become more meek, and more receptive to the prompting of God’s Holy Spirit.
Though Miriam was a critic, Moses her brother decided to be more meek. Numbers 12:1-3 (NKJV).
Instead of complaining about critics or becoming frustrated by them, ask God to work more on you so that you become more humble.
Finally, pray for the critics around you. Your prayers will draw the mercies of God towards them and help them to make amends.