Engaging in Respectful Dialogue with Those Who Reject Biblical Authority
Biblical authority stands at the center of Christian conviction, yet believers regularly encounter those who question or reject Scripture's claims. The question of how to engage such individuals has occupied Christian thought from the apostolic era forward, balancing the imperatives of truth-telling with the call to gracious conduct.
The Biblical Foundation for Engagement
Scripture itself acknowledges the reality of rejection. Ezekiel receives explicit instruction about those who refuse divine speech: "Whoever listens, let him listen; and whoever refuses, let him refuse, for they are a rebellious house" [2]. This passage establishes a sobering principle—the prophet's responsibility is proclamation, not coercion. The hearer's response lies beyond the messenger's control. Hebrews 12:25 intensifies this warning, noting that those who "refuse him who is speaking" face consequences far graver than those who rejected earthly messengers [3]. These texts frame the stakes without prescribing manipulative tactics or abandoning the task of witness.
Paul's instruction to "accept him whose faith is weak, without passing judgment on his opinions" [1] addresses intra-community disputes rather than fundamental rejection of biblical authority, yet it establishes a posture of patience that extends to broader engagement. The apostle distinguishes between matters of conscience and core gospel claims, modeling a discernment that refuses both rigidity and compromise.
Conduct Among Unbelievers
The New Testament consistently addresses Christian behavior in the presence of those outside the faith community. Paul instructs the Colossians to "walk in wisdom toward those who are without" [7, 8], a phrase Calvin interprets as requiring believers to "get no hurt by them, or contract any of their customs" while simultaneously avoiding actions that "increase their prejudices against religion" [7]. This dual concern—protecting one's own integrity while removing unnecessary obstacles to the gospel—shapes the contours of engagement.
Calvin's commentary on Colossians 4:5 emphasizes that believers should "do them all the good you can, and by all the fitting means" [7]. This positive obligation moves beyond mere avoidance of offense to active pursuit of the other's welfare. The command to have speech "always with grace, seasoned with salt" [8] combines attractiveness with preservation, suggesting communication that neither compromises truth nor repels through harshness.
John Gill's exposition of 1 Peter 2:11 notes that believers are to "provide things honest in the sight of men; to live and walk honestly before all" specifically because they dwell "among the Gentiles, that knew not God; idolaters, and unbelievers, profane sinners" [5]. The quality of Christian conduct serves as a form of pre-verbal witness, establishing credibility that words alone cannot achieve. This emphasis on visible integrity appears repeatedly in apostolic instruction, recognizing that those who reject biblical authority will scrutinize Christian behavior with particular intensity.
The Posture of Instruction
When verbal engagement occurs, Scripture prescribes a specific manner. Paul instructs Timothy regarding "those that oppose themselves" to the truth, directing that they be instructed "in meekness" [10]. Gill's commentary notes these opponents "resist it and deny it; or contradict some other tenets and principles of theirs, or the Scriptures, which they themselves allowed to be the word of God" [10]. Even when dealing with self-contradiction and obstinacy, the prescribed approach remains "tender and gentle" [10].
This meekness does not assume success. Gill observes that such instruction occurs with the recognition that "if God peradventure will give them repentance to the acknowledging of the truth" [10]. The conditional phrasing locates the outcome in divine sovereignty rather than rhetorical skill. The instructor's responsibility is method, not result—a distinction that relieves the pressure to win arguments while maintaining the obligation to speak truthfully.
Navigating Hostility and Contempt
Christian engagement with those who reject biblical authority frequently involves enduring contempt. Paul describes passing through the world experiencing both honor and dishonor, with some speaking "honourably of us" while others "think meanly of us, speak of us with the utmost contempt, and use us as if we were the filth of the world" [6]. Gill notes the apostolic response: "so we pass through the world; this is the treatment we meet with on the right hand and on the left; nor are we much affected with it" [6]. This equanimity in the face of varying reception models a stability grounded in something other than human approval.
The question of when to speak and when to remain silent requires discernment. Calvin addresses the silence of Hezekiah's officials before Rabshakeh's blasphemies, acknowledging the objection that "they ought not to have been silent when such blasphemies were uttered against God" [9]. While Calvin's text breaks off, the tension he identifies remains: believers must "testify that we cannot patiently endure that his honor and glory should be attacked" [9], yet not every provocation demands immediate verbal response. Silence can serve strategic purposes without indicating assent.
The Limits of Dialogue
Matthew Henry's commentary on Psalm 119:78 addresses those who "dealt perversely" with David, noting that "even those that deal most fairly may meet with those that deal perversely" [11]. David's response involved recognizing the opposition as "without cause" and therefore something that "may be easily slighted; it does not hurt us, and therefore should not move us" [11]. This perspective distinguishes between opposition that merits engagement and hostility that serves no constructive purpose.
The recognition of limits appears also in Jesus's own practice. His statement "I don't speak concerning all of you. I know whom I have chosen" [4] acknowledges differentiated relationships even within the circle of disciples. Not all engagement proceeds on the same terms, and not all rejection invites the same response.
Respectful dialogue with those who reject biblical authority thus involves maintaining truthfulness without coercion, demonstrating integrity in conduct, instructing with meekness when opportunity arises, enduring contempt without retaliation, and recognizing when further speech serves no purpose. The biblical pattern refuses both aggressive triumphalism and passive accommodation, instead modeling a confidence in divine sovereignty that frees believers to speak truth while entrusting outcomes to God. The goal is neither to win debates nor to avoid offense at all costs, but to bear faithful witness in a manner consistent with the gospel's own character.
Sources
- Romans “Romans 14:1 (BSB) — Accept him whose faith is weak, without passing judgment on his opinions.”
- Ezekiel “Ezekiel 3:27 (BSB) — But when I speak with you, I will open your mouth, and you are to tell them, ‘This is what the Lord GOD says.’ Whoever listens, let him listen; and whoever refuses, let him refuse, for they are a rebellious house.”
- Hebrews “Hebrews 12:25 (YLT) — See, may ye not refuse him who is speaking, for if those did not escape who refused him who upon earth was divinely speaking--much less we who do turn away from him who <FI>speaketh<Fi> from heaven,”
- John “I don’t speak concerning all of you. I know whom I have chosen. But that the Scripture may be fulfilled, ‘He who eats bread with me has lifted up his heel against me.’ -- John 13:18”
- 1 Peter (Baptist/Reformed) “John Gill on 1 Peter 2:11: Having your conversation honest among the Gentiles,.... To have the conversation honest, is to provide things honest in the sight of men; to live and walk honestly before all; to do those things which are right and honest in the sight of God, and among men; to order the conversation aright, according to the law of God, which is a rule of walk and conversation, and as becomes the Gospel of Christ; and which was the more, and rather to be attended to, because these converted Jews were "among the Gentiles", that knew not God; idolaters, and unbelievers, profane sinners,”
- 2 Corinthians (Baptist/Reformed) “John Gill on 2 Corinthians 6:7: By honour and dishonour,.... Some persons think and speak honourably of us, and behave in a reverent manner towards us; they wish us well, bid us God speed, receive us into their houses, and treat us with respect: others think meanly of us, speak of us with the utmost contempt, and use us as if we were the filth of the world, and the offscouring of all things; so we pass through the world; this is the treatment we meet with on the right hand and on the left; nor are we much affected with it: by evil report and good report; as it fares with our persons, so with”
- Colossians (Nonconformist/Puritan) “Matthew Henry on Colossians 4:5: The apostle exhorts them further to a prudent and decent conduct towards all those with whom they conversed, towards the heathen world, or those out of the Christian church among whom they lived (Col 4:5): Walk in wisdom towards those who are without. Be careful, in all your converse with them, to get no hurt by them, or contract any of their customs; for evil communications corrupt good manners; and to do not hurt to them, or increase their prejudices against religion, and give them an occasion of dislike. Yea, do them all the good you can, and by all the fitt”
- CCEL (Reformed) “Calvin, Commentary on Philippians, Colossians, 1-2 Thessalonians, section 42.1: Colossians 4:5-9 5. Walk in wisdom toward them that are without, redeeming the time. 5. Sapienter ambulate erga extraneos, tempus redimentes. 6. Let your speech be alway with grace, seasoned with salt, that ye may know how ye ought to answer every man. 6. Sermo vester semper in gratia sit sale conditus: ut sciatis quomodo oporteat vos unicuique respondere. 7. All my state shall Tychicus declare unto you, who is a beloved brother, and a faithful minister and fellowservant in the Lord: 7. Res meas omnes patefaciet vo”
- CCEL (Reformed) “Calvin, Commentary on Isaiah, Vol. 3, section 4.28: much disposed to yield obedience when matters were desperate. It will perhaps be objected that they ought not to have been silent when such blasphemies were uttered against God; for we ought not to conceal our sentiments when wicked men mock, and jeer, and reproach God, even though our life should be put in danger. We ought, at least, to testify that we cannot patiently endure that his honor and glory should be attacked. But it is not said that they were silent because they expressed their assent, or cared nothing about the reproaches which w”
- 2 Timothy (Baptist/Reformed) “John Gill on 2 Timothy 2:25: In meekness instructing those that oppose themselves,.... To the truth; resist it and deny it; or contradict some other tenets and principles of theirs, or the Scriptures, which they themselves allowed to be the word of God, and the rule of faith and practice, and so are self-convinced and self-condemned. These are to be instructed, being ignorant, and in a tender and gentle manner, though very perverse and obstinate. If God peradventure will give them repentance to the acknowledging of the truth: repentance here designs a repentance of errors in principle, a cha”
- Psalms (Nonconformist/Puritan) “Matthew Henry on Psalms 119:78: Here David shows, I. How little he valued the will - will of sinners. There were those that dealt perversely with him, that were peevish and ill-conditioned towards him, that sought advantages against him, and misconstrued all he said and did. Even those that deal most fairly may meet with those that deal perversely. But David regarded it not, for, 1. He knew it was without cause, and that for his love they were his adversaries. The causeless reproach, like the curse causeless, may be easily slighted; it does not hurt us, and therefore should not move us. 2. He ”