Open rebuke is better than love that is hidden. Faithful are the wounds of a friend… – Proverbs 27:5, 6a

In 1 Kings 20, God used wicked King Ahab to punish the equally idolatrous King Ben-hadad of Syria. The Lord intended for Ahab to destroy Ben-hadad, but in verses 32-33 we find Ahab sparing Ben-hadad’s life out of human mercy. God was not pleased with Ahab substituting human compassion for His punishment, so He gave to Ahab the sentence of destruction that He had reserved for Ben-hadad.

Although it is highly unlikely we will ever be in a position exactly like Ahab’s, it is likely that we will be in a position to rebuke the sin of those we love. There are times when we will recognize the sin of our brethren, and The Lord will bring to our minds specific verses of Scripture that our loved ones are violating. We will feel prompted to offer rebuke in love, but out of a spirit of human compassion, we will let the matter go. When we do so, we run the risk of being unfaithful both to The Lord Who prompted us to offer the rebuke and to our brethren who would have benefited from the rebuke. As Proverbs 27:5-6a teach us, “faithful are the wounds of a friend” because a friend’s wounds, offered in love, are meant to build the character of the one rebuked and to help the rebuked build a stronger relationship with God.

God can use even the most wicked of us to bring about His judgments. We shouldn’t let our own sin stand in the way of offering loving rebukes to others when God has shown us a scriptural reason to do so. It is important, however, that we not rebuke our brethren unless their offenses are obvious violations of specific Scripture verses. If no Scripture is being violated, then the disagreement is based on human preference, not divine law. We should not stir up strife over human preference.