“For everything there is a season, and a time for every matter under heaven… a time to keep silence, and a time to speak;” Ecclesiastes 3:1, 7b.
“Answer not a fool according to his folly, lest you be like him yourself. Answer a fool according to his folly, lest he be wise in his own eyes.” Proverbs 26:4-5.
Sometimes we must speak, and other times we must be silent. This seems like (and is) good advice, and most people would nod their heads in agreement. However, what does this look like practically? How do we discern what to say and what not to say? Especially when it comes to making a defense against nonbelievers?
False teachers and doubters of Christianity and Christ will arise. There are always people around us who spread falsehood, some unintentionally and others intentionally. We must learn to defend the faith from those who seek to tear it down. 1 Peter 3:15 tells us, “but in your hearts honor Christ the Lord as holy, always being prepared to make a defense to anyone who asks you for a reason for the hope that is in you; yet do it with gentleness and respect.”
Notice it does not say “always make a defense” but rather “always be prepared to make a defense.” There is a difference. While we should learn to explain and stand up for our faith, we must not prove Christians to be fools. Many times, Christians can get so stuck on something (especially something small) that we will not let it go and make ourselves and other Christians look stupid. This is especially prevalent in social media culture, when some people feel they just must comment and have the last word on everything.
Jesus was not afraid to speak the truth. He is “the Word” (John 1). Jesus spoke truth even though it was unpopular and dangerous. People did not hate Jesus because He healed people and helped the poor. They hated the truth that He spoke about Himself and about God the Father. Jesus was not afraid to make people mad at him for speaking what was true. As Christians, we should not fear people either. Jesus says in Matthew 10:28,”Do not fear those who kill the body but cannot kill the soul. Rather fear him who can destroy both soul and body in hell.” Sometimes people will get mad at us.
In scripture, there are several instances where Jesus was silent, even when falsehoods and accusations were being thrown at Him. Jesus was silent because He knew the truth would not be listened to. The religious leaders sought to trap Jesus in His words, but He would not oblige them. He spoke openly to the people; He did not need to respond to their riddles.
One example of this is in Luke 20:1-8 (also told in Matthew 21:23-27). In this incident the Jewish leaders questioned Jesus, saying, “Tell us by what authority you do these things, or who is it that gave you this authority?” (Luke 20:2). They thought they could trap Him, because they knew Jesus would answer that it was from God, and then they could accuse Him of blasphemy. Jesus saw through their schemes and answered their question with a question: “Was the baptism of John from heaven or from man?” (Luke 20:4). The teachers debated, for they knew if they answered “from heaven” they would point out their own unbelief; but if they answered “from man” the people would rebel against them, for John had been a popular prophet. When they told Jesus they didn’t know, He told them He would not answer their question either.
A similar incident occurred in John 8:1-11. The Jewish leaders found a woman convicted of adultery. They took her to Jesus and asked Him what should be done with her, for Moses commanded that she be stoned. Verse 6, says, “this they said to test him, that they might have some charge to bring against him. Jesus bent down and wrote with his finger on the ground.” They knew Jesus would choose the way of mercy, but they sought to condemn him for not honoring the law of Moses. Jesus, however, ignored them and started writing in the dirt. The teachers got annoyed and kept asking Him. So Jesus stood up and said, “Let him who is without sin among you be the first to throw a stone at her.” (verse 7) Then Jesus knelt down again and continued writing in the dirt, seemingly ignoring them. When He stood up again, they were all gone, and He showed mercy to the sinful woman.
Of course we must mention Jesus’ silence against the accusations thrown at Him during the trials before His death. Matthew, Mark, and Luke all record only one response to accusations before the council, and one before Pilate. John records two additional responses. Before the Jewish council, many false accusations were brought against Jesus, but the false witnesses could not agree. Finally, they asked Jesus if He was the Christ. He answered, “If I tell you, you will not believe, and if I ask you, you will not answer. But from now on the Son of Man shall be seated at the right hand of the power of God.” (Luke 22:67b-69)
Before Pilate, in response to the question, “Are you the King of the Jews?” (Matt. 27:11) Jesus neither affirms nor denies their question, but says, “You say that I am.” He answers the same way when the Jews ask if He is the Christ (Matt. 26:63).
In all of these examples Jesus responds to the traps and accusations with a few words of truth and then silence. He does not try to get the last word. He does not try prove to the Jewish leaders how He fulfills Old Testament prophesy and fulfills the law of Moses. He tells them the truth and does not argue further.
The Jewish leaders were not seeking truth. They were not asking Jesus these questions because they wanted to know the answer, or wondered what His opinion was, or because they were curious what He would say. They wanted to make Him look foolish and wrong and make themselves look wise and right.
It is hard to let things go, when we know we are right about something, and others are making ridiculous statements. However, there comes a point when we need to stop answering a fool according to his folly.
There are many people in the world today who will not hear the truth, but will ask seemingly legitimate questions just to make Christians look foolish. We do not honor Christ or our fellow believers when we continue down the path of snares they have set for us. An example of this would be trying to answer the question, “Can God make a rock so big He can’t pick it up?” This is a stupid question, and no matter how you answer it, you will look silly. By making yourself look silly, you make Christ and His Church look silly.
Explaining and reasoning does no good when a person will not listen. This is only beneficial when someone is genuinely seeking truth. Sometimes it can be helpful to “answer the fool” when there are others around who may be open to truth. It is often hard to decide when to speak and when to remain silent. We cannot read minds and hearts as Christ did. But we do have the Holy Spirit within us. We must seek wisdom from Him in these situations so we can discern how to answer, how much to answer, or whether not to answer at all.
“So also the tongue is a small member, yet it boasts of great things. How great a forest is set ablaze by such a small fire!” (James 3:5)