To View the Video on YouTube: https://youtu.be/sj0DkW94Idg
SHOW NOTES
Have you ever been accused of something you didn’t do? Welcome to a new week of the Hope Rescue Podcast. This week we are discussing five ways to handle false accusations.
Nothing hurts like being wrongly accused of something. Sometimes this can happen in small ways, like being blamed for something meaningless, but sometimes being wrongly accused can affect the rest of your life.
Matthew 5:11-12 says, “Blessed are you when others revile you and persecute you and utter all kinds of evil against you falsely on my account. Rejoice and be glad, for your reward is great in heaven, for so they persecuted the prophets who were before you.”
If you are suffering for the sake of the Lord and you are being accused of saying or doing something you didn't do, scripture says you are blessed and should rejoice. See this as an opportunity to honor Christ.
Tim and Kimberly go on to share five ways to handle false accusations.
Check yourself. When you are accused of doing something you didn’t do, do you feel overly defensive? Ask yourself why you are feeling so defensive. Is there something you did to make these accusations take place? Is there a pattern in your life that could lead to false conclusions?
Avoid a persecution complex or victim identity. Kimberly explains that when we develop a victim identity, we become difficult to have honest conversation with because we cause people to walk on eggshells around us.
Let God vindicate you. Romans 12:17-19 says, "Repay no one evil for evil, but give thought to do what is honorable in the sight of all. If possible, so far as it depends on you, live peaceably with all. Beloved, never avenge yourselves, but leave it to the wrath of God, for it is written, “Vengeance is mine, I will repay, says the Lord.”
Deal with the facts, not ad hominem. Establish evidence and try to not let your emotions take the lead when defending yourself. Matthew 18:16 says, "But if he does not listen, take one or two others along with you, that every charge may be established by the evidence of two or three witnesses.”
Know why you are suffering. If you are suffering for the name of Christ, count it as a blessing. If you are suffering because of a sin you have committed, this is justice. Although our sins are forgiven in Christ, there are still consequences to our actions. 1 Peter 4:12-18 says, "Beloved, do not be surprised at the fiery trial when it comes upon you to test you, as though something strange were happening to you. But rejoice insofar as you share Christ's sufferings, that you may also rejoice and be glad when his glory is revealed. If you are insulted for the name of Christ, you are blessed, because the Spirit of glory and of God rests upon you. But let none of you suffer as a murderer or a thief or an evildoer or as a meddler. Yet if anyone suffers as a Christian, let him not be ashamed, but let him glorify God in that name. For it is time for judgment to begin at the household of God; and if it begins with us, what will be the outcome for those who do not obey the gospel of God? And “If the righteous is scarcely saved, what will become of the ungodly and the sinner?”
Join us next week as we discuss how to handle true accusations.
