We must always take what our opponent says seriously and treat him respectfully. That means we don’t scoff when he says something really stupid. (From the Wittenberg Door)That makes sense. It's always difficult to hold a conversation with someone stupid after you've told him he is stupid. Talk between you then tends to turn into a shouting match, and nothing is gained. A lot more can be accomplished by allowing him to come to the realization he is stupid all by himself.
Stupid is defined as a lack of intelligence. For the most part, I think stupid folks are that way because of their laziness in trying to better themselves. Not many of us would identify someone who lacks inate intelligence as stupid. No, stupid people are stupid because they choose to be.
Still, we gain a lot more by treating them respectefully as human-beings made in the image of God and not as the dolts they truly are. Besides, God commands we treat our neighbors as ourselves, even if they are jerks. But, I still like what Jesus called some stupid, jerks, while He was here - "whitewashed tombs." That pretty much says it.
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