11/1/2025

Introduction

There are two voices that speak to the human soul. Both claim to reveal truth. Both portend to expose wrongdoing. Both appeal to justice. But only one does so righteously.

The first voice belongs to Satan—the accuser of the brethren[1]—whose ministry is condemnation and destruction. He points his finger not to correct or to heal, but to crush and to destroy both goodness and potential goodness. He speaks in tones of godliness that seem reasonable and moral to the natural man, yet his message brings despair and death. He whispers half-truths laced with venom, distorting reality and twisting justice into hopelessness. He preaches false virtue, inspires counterfeit empathy, and cloaks selfishness in the garments of compassion. He fixates on our faults, mocks our faith, and whispers that repentance is impossible. His accusations are cold, merciless, and final. He binds sin and evil to our identity and mocks, “’Twas always thus, and always thus will be.”

The other voice belongs to Jesus Christ—the righteous Advocate[2]—who also exposes sin, but always for the sake of redemption. He does not deny our guilt; He exposes it to inspire repentance. He convicts the conscience yet fills the humble heart with hope. His judgment is not the end of the sinner—it is the beginning of the saint. Where Satan condemns to destroy confidence and faith, Christ rebukes to correct and reconcile. One works through fear and shame; the other through truth and love. One binds through despair; the other liberates through forgiveness. Jesus gives hope to sinners by preaching the gospel of repentance, sanctification, and transformation. He reveals sin not to label us as failures, but to call us upward into holiness—to become as He is.

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The Nature of Accusation

Accusation is judgment without mercy. It claims the moral high ground but seeks only to tear down. Its aim is not to heal but to harm, not to restore but to ruin. The accuser thrives on exposing faults without offering a remedy. This is why Satan’s accusations are so persuasive—they often contain partial truths, but are presented in a spirit of crushing criticism rather than love.

Accusation often masquerades as righteousness. It imitates moral indignation but lacks humility and understanding. When religious people attack others under the banner of “defending truth,” yet do so with cruelty and self-exaltation, they do not act as advocates for Christ but as accusers in His name. As Isaiah lamented, “With their lips they do honor Me, but have removed their heart far from Me.”[3]

Many sincerely believe they act in love when they seek to expose others’ faults, but the spirit of their rebuke often betrays an unacknowledged ulterior motive to gratify one’s pride merely by finding fault in others. The test is simple: does the correction include clarification on how one should improve, correct mistakes, and repent, or does it lead to bitterness and despair?

I’ve seen religious individuals who claim to be motivated by love when they point out the faults of others; which can be a legitimate claim; but when I see this done with unusual viciousness and cruelty, by making unsubstantiated ad hominem character attacks, putting everyone they know down with blanket accusations, and at the same time exalting themselves as sinless saints, I have to really question whether they are really playing the role of an advocate for Christ or an accuser of their brethren.

John the Revelator described Satan as “the accuser of our brethren…which accused them before our God, day and night.”[4] Why would Satan be motivated to accuse the brethren? Is he just trying to be helpful? Or is he trying to destroy the confidence and credibility of others while seeking to exalt himself?

The Spirit of Advocacy

One of the great tragedies of our time is that many mistake the voice of the Advocate with the voice of the accuser. Some, fearing accusation, reject all correction. Others, who inwardly relish dishing out condemnation, mistake cruelty for love and holiness. Yet truth is neither indulgence nor cruelty—it is light, and light exposes reality as it is.

There is a profound difference between accusation and advocacy, between condemnation and correction, between Satan’s counterfeit justice and Christ’s redemptive truth. While both confront sin, only one offers hope and salvation. For Christ’s purpose in revealing our sin is to restore us to the Father, while Satan’s purpose is to ensure that we never see the light of day again.

Satan’s entire enterprise is to accuse, condemn, and destroy. Satan’s goal is to invalidate the truth, goodness, and redemptive power of God by making false accusations and teaching half-truths.

Christ, on the other hand, stands as “our advocate with the Father…”[5] He pleads the cause of the righteous and teaches us how to become righteous through repentance and faith in His name. Only then can He effectively plead our cause. And so, He 100% can and will defend the sinner who repents. But we must repent first.

Christ’s advocacy often takes the form of redemptive confrontation as an expression of Christlike love. The Lord does not flatter us with comforting lies or flattering compliments, but rather, He reveals our mistakes and weaknesses so we may repent, improve, and experience greater peace and joy.

“As many as I love, I rebuke and chasten: be zealous therefore, and repent.”[6]

True advocacy never excuses sin, but it always offers a way out. The Advocate does not minimize guilt; He transforms it into grace through repentance. His correction pierces the heart but heals the soul by showing us hope through following His way. He calls us to forsake our sins, not to drown us in guilt, but to rise in newness of life. Thus, His rebuke becomes a lifeline, not a final verdict. His light exposes darkness only to invite us into the light of a new day.

Preachers of righteousness are often accused of being accusers. But they are not—at least not with the malicious and prideful spirit they are accused of. Preachers of righteousness expose sin, express truth, and advocate faith in Jesus Christ unto repentance and redemption. When we accuse preachers of righteousness of being “accusers,” similar to Satan, we expose our own corruption, pride, and hardness of heart.

Judgment and Discernment

Not all judgment is evil. Judgment, properly understood, is a divine principle of discernment—the ability to distinguish between light and darkness, good and evil, truth and deception.

“Judge not according to the appearance, but judge righteous judgment.”[7]

The question, then, is not whether we judge, but how and why we judge.

When judgment is animated by pride, resentment, or self-righteousness, it becomes the spirit of accusation. But when it springs from love, compassion, and a sincere desire for another’s welfare and redemption, it becomes the spirit of advocacy. Christ judges in perfect righteousness because His motive is perfect love. Satan judges in malice because his motive is misery and destruction. Apparently, misery loves company.

Our challenge is to discern which spirit governs our own judgment—whether we speak to shame or to save, to exalt self or to elevate others.

The Battle Within

Often the voice of the accuser is not another person’s—it is our own.  Or at least it sounds very much like our own. When Satan speaks, his voice almost always sounds exactly like our own.

By this voice, the adversary teaches us to confuse remorse with repentance and guilt with unworthiness, until the soul grows weary of trying.

He whispers that we are too far gone, too flawed, too late. He tries to tell you, you are a hopeless case.

But the Advocate counters with mercy: “Though your sins be as scarlet, they shall be as white as snow.”[8]

The Savior’s voice invites movement, progress, and rebirth. The accuser’s voice immobilizes. One says, “You are broken and have fallen; therefore, you are worthless and hopeless.” The other says, “You have been blind and have fallen; therefore, open your eyes and arise!”

To know which voice we follow is to know our spiritual direction—downward into despair or upward toward redemption.

Conclusion: The Voice We Choose

The would-be disciples of Christ must learn to discern by which voice he speaks and which voice he heeds.  The accuser whispers despair and division, stirring pride and self-righteousness under the guise of goodness. The Advocate speaks truth in mercy, inspiring repentance, renewal, and reconciliation. One drives the soul into isolation; the other lifts it toward divine fellowship and redemption.

To follow Christ, therefore, is to embrace the painful honesty of His rebuke while rejecting the venom of misdirected condemnation.  For in His chastening there is hope, and in His judgment there is love. He exposes sin only to heal it, corrects only to redeem, and convicts only to save.

When we disregard the accuser and follow the Advocate, the battle for the soul is well underway to being won. For in Christ, mercy and justice meet, truth and grace embrace, and the sinner becomes a saint.

“For God sent not His Son into the world to condemn the world; but that the world through Him might be saved.”[9]

May we therefore listen always to the voice that redeems, and speak always with the spirit that saves.

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[1] Revelation 12:10

[2] 1 John 2:1

[3] Isaiah 29:13

[4] Revelation 12:10

[5] 1 John 2:1

[6] Revelation 3:19

[7] John 7:24

[8] Isaiah 1:18

[9] John 3:17

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