“Then his disciples came and said to him,
‘Do you know that the Pharisees were offended
when they heard this saying?’
But he answered and said,
‘Every plant which my heavenly Father
has not planted will be uprooted.
Let them alone. They are blind leaders of the blind.’”
Matthew 15:12-14

“Let them alone…”

Believers feel they have to correct wrongs when they see them. Not always. It’s true that we must always be ready to defend the faith or to respond to questions:

“…always be ready to give a defense to everyone
who asks you a reason for the hope that is in you…”
1st Peter 3:15

…but we are to use wisdom to discern when that is the case or when a reply is not advised. In this passage in Matthew, we are shown that when people oppose you with argument, you are to remain silent more often than not. “Let them alone” should probably be our instruction more often than not. When someone asks you a question, judge first whether they really want to know the answer, or whether they just want to argue. If they do not have a true heart seeking understanding, “Let them alone,” saith the Lord.

One of the most important elements in our walk with the Lord is the prayer we put into it. Pray for discernment. Pray for wisdom. Always be ready with an answer, but at the same time be ready to remain silent.

This is a discipline too few have mastered. The normal knee-jerk response is to speak back, but more times than not the Lord would have us be silent and “Let them alone.” This requires an intimacy with the Lord, a willingness to be sensitive to his lead in every situation, and the humility to be willing to stifle a come-back that he would have us not to give.