Jesus taught us that when all men speak well of us, we should be greatly concerned. In a corrupted and compromised world, universal acclaim is a great danger sign. All who desire to live a godly life in Christ Jesus will be persecuted, St. Paul tells us.
So when we do not receive universal acclaim, we should be encouraged in the first place. But in the second place, immediately, we must guard ourselves against the natural temptation which comes with this comfort. That is the temptation of believing that all persecution against “our most worthy selves” must be automatically be dismissed by us without further thought or reflection.
But this is wrong-headed, and so we must be careful to remember two things. First, humility does not require acquiescence in the charges. It does not require that we nod politely at any outrageous claim that is made. The Bible is full of the saints of God defending themselves by many means, and by many instruments.
But second, the Bible also shows that meekness before God translates to the right kind of confidence before accusers. Meekness before God does not mean weakness before man. But meekness before God most certainly does mean meekness before God.
There has never been a slander against God’s saints which wise men among those saints could not profit from. Profiting this way is absolutely not the same thing as agreeing, but is rather simply the acknowledgment that our sovereign God holds all things in His hands, including the words of our adversaries. At the same time that we must deny words twisted against us as they come from the mouths of accusers, we must humbly seek to learn from God’s purposes in having this sort of thing come upon us. We rest in His name and His reputation, after all. He does not rest in ours.