Hello everyone. Praise the Lord!
DON'T CRITICIZE OTHERS UNTIL YOU'VE
WALKED ON THE WATER YOURSELF.
Jesus didn’t intend for Peter to sink. Jesus meant for him to be able to walk back to the ship with Him. But don’t criticize Peter until you’ve successfully walked on the water without sinking! Then we’ll accept your criticism. Besides, when you criticize others, it hinders your own faith.
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In the last church I pastored, we had to raise some money in order to pay the church insurance which came due every three years. Since we only had to pay every three years, it was a large sum to raise in one service in those days.
On Sunday night I explained to the congregation that we needed to raise money for the church insurance. Within about ten minutes all the money we needed was given or pledged.
The next day my wife and I were in town. A cafe there in town was owned by a man who wasn’t saved, but his wife was. She was not a member of our church and neither was he, but they came to our church some on Sunday nights. He always wanted us to eat at his cafe free of charge, and we usually ate there every Monday at noon time.
One of the women in my church worked in that man’s restaurant as a waitress and she came to wait on us. We were alone in the cafe, so she began talking to me and told me that she didn’t like the way I had taken up the offering the night before. She really vented her feelings about it. I didn’t say a word; I just let her talk. All the time she waited on us, she was fussing about that offering.
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Finally, after we had prayed over the food, I asked her if she was through talking. I told her that we had some more things we were supposed to pay for that week and that on the next Sunday night we were going to raise money again to pay the lumber bill. I told her that she could take up the offering and that if she didn’t get the money, she could pay it out of her own pocket. She said she wouldn’t be there then; she’d just stay home.
So I told her that if she didn’t come to church that Sunday night, I would announce to the congregation why she didn’t come. And if she didn’t come, the next time she did come to church, I would have her stand up and I would make another announcement to the congregation about it.
She asked me if I really meant what I said and I said I did. Then she said that if I would not make her do that, she would never criticize me again as long as she lived. I said I had made up my mind and I wouldn’t change my mind unless the Lord changed my mind.
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She came on Wednesday night and asked me if she would still have to take up the offering on Sunday night and I told her, "yes." I told her that she should never criticize anyone until she can beat what they can do. She repented and said she couldn’t take up an offering better than I had. On Sunday morning she was there to teach her class and she said she was going to pray that the
Lord would change my mind.
When it was time for the evening service, she was there. I hadn’t really changed my mind, so I explained to the congregation about the offering and why we needed it. Just as I started to say that Sister So-and-so was going to receive the offering, she leapt to her feet and said that she would give the first portion of it.
Immediately people all over the building were pledging; and before I knew it, we already had the needed amount. The next day my wife and I were in the cafe and this woman said that she would never criticize me again. She said that she would keep her mouth shut and she didn’t
care how I took up my offerings.
So don’t criticize old Peter until you’ve walked on the water yourself! Don’t use Peter’s failure to believe as an excuse for you to be able to doubt God. When Peter saw the wind boisterous, the Bible says, he was afraid. Looking at the circumstances caused Peter to begin to sink.
