When Facts Take the Fun Out of Being Sure

The simple believes everything,

    but the prudent gives thought to his steps. - Proverbs 14:15

If one gives an answer before he hears,

    it is his folly and shame.  - Proverbs 18:13

The one who states his case first seems right,

    until the other comes and examines him. - Proverbs 18:17

God prefers caution on the part of His people rather than a habit of jumping to conclusions. This has always been His will, but these days, the urgency for our taking it to heart seems especially acute. Rumors, accusations, and innuendos targeted at public figures seem to be daily occurrences. Via social media and mainstream news media, I have observed that many people have no qualm deciding "what is so" about the veracity of the charges and running with their judgments.

This has become especially vivid with the recent explosion of accusations touching on sexual abuse and domestic violence that have saturated the news in recent months. Please understand that I have no sympathy for any abuser or predator. And, I have nothing but sympathy for the victims. I am simply confessing that I am not clairvoyant. In other words, I do not reflexively know who is telling the truth. Just this week, I read multiple posts by persons who clearly "know" that the charges of sexual misconduct against an Alabama senatorial candidate are absolutely true. That was followed up by breakfast with some fellows who are just as sure that they are false. I am left wondering from where all this so-called "certainty" comes. I know that there are bad people in the world who do bad things to other people. I also know that there are deceitful people who lie because of various agendas. I have not yet mastered identifying either.

I have the same tendency to react with knee-jerk belief and disbelief as anyone else, but I have also come to the conclusion that my reactions contribute nothing to establishing the facts of any case. So, without facts, why do we make up our minds so inflexibly? The reasons we do so are the very same reasons that God commands us NOT to jump to conclusions.

We are hopelessly biased. Our own life experiences color our judgment. Our ideologies shape our conclusions. Some social or cultural narrative of the day that is being pushed poisons our objectivity. Even loyalty to a sports team can impact our verdict of "Guilty" or "Not guilty" regarding a charge levied against some star player. We do not know our own hearts well enough to read the hearts of others.

Am I making too much of this? After all, we are not directly involved in the real processes of establishing guilt and innocence. Perhaps, our popping-off without knowledge is harmless, even recreational.

Christian, it DOES matter because Jesus only calls us to operate in the realm of truth. Do not be indifferent to the real fact that you are making your own contributions to the rancor, the chaos and the intellectual clutter of this age by speaking "folly" as Proverbs calls it. There is always a fifty-fifty chance that your judgment devoid of knowledge will be dead wrong. And, when we factor in all the nuances of any given situation, the chances are almost 100 percent that you will NOT trip across the absolute truth of any matter.

(On a parenthetical note: While the children of this age delight in elevating their idle speculations to the status of fact, they also delight in using Jesus' own words, "Judge not ..." against believers who speak to matters of sin. That's quite the irony. Christian, we are to speak what we believe God Himself revealed through His creation, His Word and His Son. To echo His revelation is to honor Him, not to be judgmental. Never be rattled by the world's silly accusations. Man cannot judge what God has already judged. In the proper perspective, the world's appropriation of Jesus' words becomes pathetic ... tragic only in relation to the blindness in which the accusers are steeped.)

As scintillating as it can be to pass judgments without being privy to the facts, learn to keep your mouth shut and your keyboard under control. You are a steward of your own words. Don't waste them on such "folly and shame"  (not my words). Besides, at the end of the day, when the facts do come to light, you wont have to be angry or embarrassed for being wrong, or smug for being right. Neither reaction is a fitting reflection on the kingdom where your true citizenship resides.