Restoration in a Spirit of Gentleness

-


Scripture:

Gal. 6:1 ¶ My friends, if anyone is detected in a transgression, you who have received the Spirit should restore such a one in a spirit of gentleness. Take care that you yourselves are not tempted.

Observation:

Followers of Jesus Christ may discover themselves falling into a transgression, or a fault.  There are occasions when this happens and the Apostle was well aware that this could be the case and therefore he established a method by which to restore such an individual.  However, those engaged in the restoration are admonished here that they are to be cloaked in a spirit of meekness.  Why?  Because when we become engaged in the reproach of others, we may discover that we are tempted, and this may occur on many levels.  We may be tempted to think that we are above transgressions or faults, or we may be tempted to use our power to hurt or damage the other individual.  Restoration should always occur in with a spirit of gentleness. 

Application:

It is sometimes difficult to know how to respond to a fellow believer who is misbehaving.  That’s because the problems can be found across an entire range of behaviors, from gossip to sexual misconduct.  Somehow we seem to rank these behaviors, weighing some more than others.  The reality is that sin is sin, albeit some seem to have greater consequences for the individual and the community more than others.

As followers of Jesus Christ we are to live this Christian life within community.  Each one of us is a part of a community in one way or another.  We need the community to strengthen us, encourage us, and hold us accountable in our Christian walk.  This is what John Wesley did through his Methodists societies. 

Unfortunately I have often seen two extremes when it comes to detecting a fellow believer in a fault or transgression.  One, we ignore the problem entirely because we find it too embarrassing and we don’t want to confront the individual, or we determine that the person or persons must be punished and we go about it in a very public way leaving numerous wounded individuals and much collateral damage along the way.  Neither one of these is helpful to the kingdom.

This advice is very practical.  When we detect someone in a transgression, take the time to pray!  Allow the Holy Spirit to lead us and may that Spirit pour out of us with the kindness and gentleness of a loving heavenly Father who is correcting a dearly loved child.  That is the spirit with which we are to respond to the “faults” that we have detected in others.  In this way it is the Lord doing the correcting, and not us!  When we believe that we must be the ones to correct others’ wrongs, we are falling into temptation.  May God save us from this type of behavior and may we seek the God of all comfort and the presence of the Holy Spirit to give us divine wisdom when it is necessary.

Prayer:

Lord, may I seek you and your Spirit today and every day.  Amen.





Comments

Post a Comment

Popular posts from this blog

Take Off Your Ornaments

-
Scripture: Ex. 33:4 ¶ When the people heard these harsh words, they mourned, and no one put on ornaments. Ex. 33:5 For the LORD had said to Moses, “Say to the Israelites, ‘You are a stiff-necked people; if for a single moment I should go up among you, I would consume you. So now take off your ornaments, and I will decide what to do to you.’” Ex. 33:6 Therefore the Israelites stripped themselves of their ornaments, from Mount Horeb onward. Observation: The people had sinned before God by making and worshiping the golden calf!  They had taken their golden jewelry — the earrings and other items they had gotten from the Egyptians and used them to create an idol.  Now, in an act of humility and repentance they were to take off all of their jewelry and ornaments.  It was a time of mourning over their sin and it included intentional action on the part of the Israelites.  Application: We don’t do all that well with humility and repentance!  It seems that we live in a ti...
Read more

Does God Value Boys More than Girls?

-
Scripture: Lev. 12:1 ¶ The LORD spoke to Moses, saying: Lev. 12:2 Speak to the people of Israel, saying: ¶ If a woman conceives and bears a male child, she shall be ceremonially unclean seven days; as at the time of her menstruation, she shall be unclean. Lev. 12:3 On the eighth day the flesh of his foreskin shall be circumcised. Lev. 12:4 Her time of blood purification shall be thirty-three days; she shall not touch any holy thing, or come into the sanctuary, until the days of her purification are completed. Lev. 12:5 If she bears a female child, she shall be unclean two weeks, as in her menstruation; her time of blood purification shall be sixty-six days. Lev. 12:6 ¶ When the days of her purification are completed, whether for a son or for a daughter, she shall bring to the priest at the entrance of the tent of meeting a lamb in its first year for a burnt offering, and a pigeon or a turtledove for a sin offering. Lev. 12:7 He shall offer it before the LORD, and make atonement on her ...
Read more

On Grief and A Flute Player

-
Scripture: Matt. 9:23 When Jesus came to the leader’s house and saw the flute players and the crowd making a commotion, Matt. 9:24 he said, “Go away; for the girl is not dead but sleeping.” And they laughed at him. Matt. 9:25 But when the crowd had been put outside, he went in and took her by the hand, and the girl got up. Matt. 9:26 And the report of this spread throughout that district. Observation: This is a simple story which we have heard or read numerous times. Jesus heals the little girl and the people rejoice. But at the moment in which he arrives at the home he encounters the professional mourners. These are the flute players, the ones who have come to make a great noise about the child’s death. It is the flute player that testifies to the fact that she is truly dead. Also, flutes were generally employed when it came to the death of a child. The whole community would therefore understand that it is a child who has died in this home. The flute player is doing the job they have ...
Read more