Encouragement For Those Times When You Deal With Mockers

So many Christians are going through their daily lives just trying to live good and upright lives and yet many will be attacked by those who don’t believe.  They are treated badly, ridiculed, teased, mocked and scoffed at for no real reason sometimes.  Other times the actions of a few mis-guided Christians cause the Christians who are on the right track to be bombarded because of their actions, such as in the case of those who were mistaken about the May 21st and soon to be the Oct 21st dates that they promote.  We have to learn to accept as followers of God that we will be mis-treated and mis-understood during our lives this life on Earth.  If Jesus was mis-understood and mis-treated, we will be too.  However, we can put our hope in God during those times.  We can learn from His Word that He does take care of those who mis-treat His children.  Their time of judgment is coming.  Read II Peter 3:3-7.

“3 First, be aware of this: scoffers will come in the last days to scoff, following their own lusts, 4 saying, “Where is the promise of His coming? For ever since the fathers fell asleep, all things continue as they have been since the beginning of creation.” 5 They willfully ignore this: long ago the heavens and the earth existed out of water and through water by the word of God. 6 Through these the world of that time perished when it was flooded by water. 7 But by the same word the present heavens and earth are held in store for fire, being kept until the day of judgment and destruction of ungodly men.”

In Noah’s day there were scoffers that would not listen to Noah’s message that he preached to them warning them of the judgment that was to come to those who would not obey God.  He suffered through 120 years of hard physical work building the ark while he emotionally suffered through the mocking and scoffing of those who watched him.  In the end he saw God’s judgment come to pass and the mocking ended.  He saw his faith rewarded for his persistence and endurance during the mocking times.  Joshua and Caleb were others who also had great faith and endured others lack of faith.  In Numbers chapters 13 and 14 we read about the people of Israel reaching the edge of the promised land.  Moses sends out 12 men to spy out the land and come back give a report.  Only Joshua and Caleb give a good report and show faith that God will take them in to the land.  As a result the people get to the point where they are even going to stone Joshua and Caleb.  They scoffed at them.  God suddenly intervenes and the people stop while Moses goes and hears what God says.  The end result was that the people would not enter the land.  They were judged as despising God and would have to wonder in the wilderness until they died and then their children could go in.  Only Joshua and Caleb would be allowed to cross over.  They received the promise after enduring the mocking.  The others received judgment.

As we see in II Peter, all people will receive their judgment for their mocking and scoffing.  God will keep His word to us and see us safely to eternity, despite the mocking we may have to endure.  God will punish those who despise Him.  So cling to that hope and promise.  God’s promises found in His Word will serve as encouragement for those times when you deal with mockers.

 

A Common Sense Time to Answer a Mocker

When dealing with mockers and scoffers have you ever noticed how they throw lots of arguments and rationale out at you that don’t really make a whole lot of sense?  They are so bent on their opinion that they pick really lame foolish arguments to attack you.  You also know from a spiritual standpoint that they are being foolish to the point where they might be hindering their own spiritual well-being.  We have a tendency as humans to want to argue back and make our point.  We love debating and proving ourselves right.  We really do want them to see the truth.  We really want them to have a strong faith in God and in the Bible.  However, a lot of times when we debate and argue, we really don’t get anywhere with them.  We just end up frustrated and angry.  We make them frustrated and angry.  We even sometimes drive them further away from God.  We really need to study how Jesus dealt with mockers and scoffers.  He used different approaches.  We never did see him just argue and debate with them.  Sometimes He answered their foolish questions and statements and sometimes He didn’t.  This goes back to a bit of wisdom we find in Proverbs 26: 4-5.

“4 Don’t answer a fool according to his foolishness, or you’ll be like him yourself. 5 Answer a fool according to his foolishness, or he’ll become wise in his own eyes.”

It sounds like two contradictory verses, but really they are not.  It’s just learning wisdom or common sense in dealing with someone who appears to be foolish.  Sometimes it is necessary to answer them and sometimes it is just not worth it.  We need to learn to depend on the Holy Spirit and study God’s Word to get a handle on how to answer a mocker or scoffer.  We will gain common sense as we study Jesus and how He took care of those people in His life.  We will gradually gain enough common sense to know when it is the right time to answer a mocker.

Instructions For Dealing With Mockers

Most of us would agree that as each day passes we are drawing closer to the end times and the Lord’s return.  Many of us feel we are in the actual last days, of course, the Apostles felt the same way.  The Apostle Peter gave lots of great advice in I Peter Chapter 3 about dealing with mockers and scoffers.  First he foretold that in the last days we would experience a rise in the number of mockers and scoffers against God and our faith.  I think most of us would agree that we are already seeing that.  When things like the May 21 fiasco happen, it pushes a rise in the number of mockers and scoffers.  In chapter 3 verses 3 -7, Peter gives us some good instructions for when we deal with these people:

“3 First, be aware of this: scoffers will come in the last days to scoff, following their own lusts, 4 saying, “Where is the promise of His coming? For ever since the fathers fell asleep, all things continue as they have been since the beginning of creation.” 5 They willfully ignore this: long ago the heavens and the earth existed out of water and through water by the word of God. 6 Through these the world of that time perished when it was flooded by water. 7 But by the same word the present heavens and earth are held in store for fire, being kept until the day of judgment and destruction of ungodly men.”

Peter reminds us that this mocking and scoffing is nothing new.  He brings to mind the story of Noah.  Noah lived in a world of evil people and God had determined to bring judgment.  He told Noah to build the Ark and warn the people.  Noah preached for 120 years and only reached his own family.  While he preached all those years and built the Ark, he dealt with the people mocking and scoffing at him.  What persistence and faith Noah had to go on through all of that.  Inside this passage Peter reminds us that we need to look to God’s Word when people mock us or our faith.  Inside God’s Word we will find stories of God’s faithfulness to us and stories that show God is not slack in keeping His promises.

So when people come against you and question your faith, remember God’s Word.  Go to God’s Word and show them through God’s Word that when God says something will happen, it will in His own timing and His own way.  These are wise instructions from Peter.  Don’t depend on your own wisdom, reasoning and logic to explain to people what God is doing.  Use God’s Word to respond to mockers.  Just as Peter used the story of Noah to remind the people that God keeps His Word.

Wisdom Dealing With Mockers

In light of the recent skepticism and mockery created by the recent false prophecies of a certain religious group, we need to address as Christians how to handle being mocked or respond to the mocker and skeptic.  As Christians our witness is put on the line by all those around us proclaiming to be Christians, as well.  So when groups like this do things that put Christians in a bad light, we are going face more pressure from the world for our faith.  We need to know how to respond.  Jesus gave us the best demonstration of wisdom when it came to those who deliberately mocked and scoffed at Him.  All throughout the four gospels you will find accounts of Jesus being ridiculed, laughed at, and asked skeptical questions.  Many of the questions He was asked were just to make Him look bad and place Him in jeopardy of the law.  When it came to His last days on Earth we see Him deal with mockers and scoffers even more frequently.  During His various trials before the Jews and conversations with Pilate we see Him being continually accused.  In Mark 15: 3-5 we read:

“3 The chief priests were accusing Jesus of many things, 4 so Pilate questioned him again,
Aren’t you going to answer? Listen to all their accusations! 5 Again Jesus refused to say a word, and Pilate was amazed.”

In our own human nature, we want to defend ourselves.  Jesus was the only truly innocent man there ever was.  Of all people, He had a right to defend Himself.  He also had all the power and wisdom to defend Himself that He needed.  Yet, in His wisdom He chose not to respond to the mocking and accusations.  His actions really did speak loudly for Him in the end.  By the time Pilate was done with Him, he felt Jesus was innocent and should be released.  Think about how you would feel about Jesus if you knew that He didn’t go innocently to the cross for us.  If Jesus lashed out at His accusers, and punished them for what they were doing, what would you be thinking about Him?  By the way He responded we see Him more as that true gentle, peaceable, loving Lamb of God.  We see Him as the true sacrifice for sin.  If He had gotten revenge on those who blatantly did wrong against Him, we would probably have a whole different view of Him.  He did more for the faith by staying strong and silent, then by coming back at those who mocked.  Even on the cross Jesus asked that the Father forgive them and in wisdom stated, “For they know not what they do.”

Mockers, scoffers and skeptics truly don’t know what they are doing.  They react out of worldly conditioning and sinful natures.  We need to learn to respond to those who come against us for our faith in wisdom like Jesus did.  We need to remember where they are at spiritually and if it were not for Jesus, we would be there too.

Think How Encouraged You Will Be

Sometimes it is just hard to wait on the Lord to solve a problem.  We can be going through some pretty tough times and be at our wit’s end.  We may not have any strength left to stand and fight.  Our faith may be dwindling.  David probably felt the same way at times.  He hadn’t done anything wrong.  He had been a faithful servant to King Saul, but Saul was jealous and was out to get him.  Several times David was within inches of King Saul.  Each time he was presented with the opportunity to eliminate his problem.  Each time he used wisdom and did not use those opportunities to his advantage.  He waited on the Lord.  His patience was rewarded on several occasions.  Read I Samuel 24: 16-22.

16 When David finished saying these things to him, Saul replied, “Is that your voice, David my son?” Then Saul wept aloud 17 and said to David, “You are more righteous than I, for you have done what is good to me though I have done what is evil to you. 18 You yourself have told me today what good you did for me: when the LORD handed me over to you, you didn’t kill me. 19 When a man finds his enemy, does he let him go unharmed? May the LORD repay you with good for what you’ve done for me today. 20 “Now I know for certain you will be king, and the kingdom of Israel will be established in your hand. 21 Therefore swear to me by the LORD that you will not cut off my descendants or wipe out my name from my father’s family.” 22 So David swore to Saul. Then Saul went back home, and David and his men went up to the stronghold.

In this passage we see King Saul recognize the error of his ways.  He sees he is wrong about David.  He recognizes that David will be King next.  He seeks David’s protection for his family.  Saul stopped pursuing David and his men.  What a relief it must have been for David to hear those words and be left in peace.  David was no doubt very encouraged by this turn of events.  He had remained faithful all this time and God rewarded him.  God gave encouragement through King Saul’s words to David.  God used that opportunity to remind David that someday he would be King. 

The same is true for us.  We just need to be patient. No matter how bad things may seem, we need to think about how encouraged we will be when the Lord provides us with answers, solves our problems and protects us.