A Fault Finding Gift In The Body Of Christ? By Greg Gordon

[greggordon]

These people are grumblers and faultfinders. – Jude 1:16

Some modern believers act as if faultfinding is a virtue. The main objective of any conversation, meeting of believers or hearing a teaching is to try and find what is wrong in it. Instead of seeing the good in others they pick apart everything and always have something negative to say. They look for small problems in others and treat them as if they were big (Matthew 7:3). The faultfinder has a motive to build himself up by tearing others down. Many faultfinders can be filled with envy, discontented at the position and calling of others from God. Most faultfinders are not in any type of fruitful Christian ministry but are spectators always finding what is wrong in what they see. In envy he hurts others but it is himself he hurts the most. Just like the Pharisess they find fault in anything and even the sinless Son of God (Matthew 9:11). Faultfinders have very few friends or those who want to be around them because in the end they pick each one apart. These “mote-hunters” seek to find any small thing wrong with a minister or christian leader to try and disqualify them. They feel exalted in their ability to be able to see faults in others but this is a deception as its a work of the flesh. They will not be able to humble themselves to repent of their own sins because they are too busy looking at the sins of others. There is no spiritual gift of fault-finding, there is no virtue or benefit to it.

Basil the Great says, “If you see your neighbor in sin, don’t look only at this, but also think about what he has done or does that is good, and infrequently trying this in general, while not partially judging, you will find that he is better than you.” We are quick to look at the faults of others but at times slow to look at our own. The way of humility is to humble ourselves and see our own sin and need of mercy from God. f you have been judged by another brother or sister instead of finding fault in them also, leave them to God’s mercy. Instead of seeing to look at others faults we should seek to love them, show mercy, kindness, goodness (Galatians 5:22-23). Those who are overly critical lack peace and joy, suffering from tension and bodily problems. Faultfinders usually are not content with their own situations in life and therefore try to make others miserable by judging them. When we find fault, we sow discord amongst brethren, it divides, and does great damage. Faultfinders have a self-righteous attitude, a sense of superiority and they refuse to admit they are wrong. Let us not allow fault-finding in our life but put it away as its a work of the flesh (Galatians 5:20). Father in heaven, please forgive me for being critical and finding faults in others in your body. Give me grace to see the good in others and seek to uplift others in the Church. Amen.

[JosephM]

Hi greg and welcome,

 

You certainly won't find any debate from me. Perhaps we all pass through that arena at some time in our life and there is indeed no real peace in such a practice as you have spoken of. When peace becomes ones main focus in life, fault-finding dissipates. In my experience, the 2 can not live in harmony.

 

Peace,

Joseph

[romansh]

Welcome Greg

 

Are you fault finding "the act of fault finding"?

[PaulS]

I sometimes look at fault finders but then think of this:

 

3 “Why do you look at the speck of sawdust in your brother’s eye and pay no attention to the plank in your own eye? 4 How can you say to your brother, ‘Let me take the speck out of your eye,’ when all the time there is a plank in your own eye? 5 You hypocrite, first take the plank out of your own eye, and then you will see clearly to remove the speck from your brother’s eye.

Edited June 16, 2015 by PaulS

[soma]

Our thinking just reflects our own thinking positive or negative. We think we are judging others, but we are only judging ourselves.

[JosephM]

I'll ditto that Soma.

[romansh]

No doubt there are many kinds of judgement.

I like and dislike

I agree and disagree

 

both of these I have no problem with.

 

Then there is

I think something is right or wrong (in a moral sense)

I think some thing is good or bad (evil)

 

There is a high degree of correlation with these two judgements with the first two.

 

 

And then there is judgement, ie to chase an elusive truth ... I winnow out what does not make sense ... to try and understand.

Edited June 27, 2015 by romansh

[soma]

Greg thanks for bringing this topic up about faultfinders and grumblers and that there is no benefit to it.

 

I feel every person writes their own story through their thoughts, actions and connections with the external world, so this information stored in our unconscious makes a great impression on who we are and our potential so there is nothing to grumble about. It provides us with intuitions, and understandings of ourselves and our relationship to the universe. I feel the unconscious is the foundation for the spiritual mind if we draw a circle starting with the unconscious, the circles of the subconscious and the conscious minds would be circles within the unconscious circle. The unconscious indicates an absence of consciousness so is not observable for the subject whose mind it represents, but information that exists in an unconscious form can be activated and retrieved into our conscious mind. We can decide to think about our first love or kiss with the ability to choose how many memory traces to be called up to our conscious mind. We can see, hear, smell, taste and feel sensations that were present at that time if we decide to bring these details into a conscious form. In deep prayer, contemplation, an anaesthetized state, meditation or deep sleep a person is temporarily unconscious, but the conscious state returns sometimes knowing things that our mind can’t put in plain words. We develop our intuition by being brave enough to follow our inner voice that doesn’t use words, by quieting the mind so we can hear it and listen to the message from deep within our self. Honoring and trusting the soul is a way to tap into the current of universal life where everyone is connected, all pointing to our unique life that we will love if we are brave enough to follow it.