Read 2 Corinthians 12
16-18And why is it that I keep coming across these whiffs of gossip about how my self-support was a front behind which I worked an elaborate scam? Where's the evidence? Did I cheat or trick you through anyone I sent? I asked Titus to visit, and sent some brothers along. Did they swindle you out of anything? And haven't we always been just as aboveboard, just as honest? (The Message)
If you have never been the subject of gossip you either live in a cave and are know by no one or you are delusional and living in a fantasy world. Paul understands the potential damage that gossip can bring because he has seen it's damage to his own ministry and to the lives of others. The problem with gossip is that it never really is able to be confronted. It is often things that can't be proved wrong because it centers around peoples motives and unseen actions. Gossip casts a cloud around peoples intentions and it had very real possibilities of derailing Paul's ministry. In our contemporary language Paul is telling the people to either put up or shut up. He is saying that if they have prof of what they are whispering to show it and prove him wrong.
When faced with the knowledge that I am being gossiped about I often wonder what is the best response: to call out the gossip and prove it to be wrong or to hope and pray that my integrity and time will show the lies that are being spread.
Some thoughts to ponder and share with others:
- How do you think Paul felt when he learned that others were spreading lies about him?
- How do you feel when you learned that someone has been spreading lies about you?
- What do you think is the best way to respond to gossip, confront it or hope it goes away?
- How might you be contributing to the spread of gossip about someone else?
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