God loved lost humanity so much that "he gave his only begotten Son" for us (John 3:16). Christ loved hateful, sinful man so much that he died for us, "But God commendeth his love toward us, in that, while we were yet sinners, Christ died for us" (Romans 5:8). "We know that we have passed from death unto life, because we love the brethren. He that loveth not his brother abideth in death" (1 John 3:14). If we love our brethren we will do all that we can to restore one if he is "overtaken in a fault."
God's Love For His Children. Nowhere is God's great love and concern for His children more clearly pictured than in Luke chapter fifteen. In this chapter God, our Heavenly Father, is pictured as a shepherd who would leave ninety-nine sheep in the wilderness and go in search of one who had strayed from the flock. He is like the woman who had ten silver coins and when one coin was lost she swept her house and sought diligently until the lost coin was found. He is like the father whose son left him to go into a far country, and when he came back rushed with outstretched loving arms to welcome him home. Since we are to be imitators or "followers of God, as dear children" (Ephesians 5:1), should we not have the same love and concern for our brethren who err?
This article concerns the work of "Restoring the Wayward." Our aim is that it will awaken us to our duty and give us God's plan for accomplishing this serious and important task.
The apostle Paul said, "Brethren, if a man be overtaken in a fault, ye which are spiritual, restore such a one in the spirit of meekness; considering thyself, lest thou also be tempted" (Galatians 6:1). I am afraid that the command in this verse to restore wayward children of God is treated by too many as a suggestion. We are given no choice in the matter if we "are spiritual."
Brethren Have An Obligation. Faithful brethren have an obligation to brethren that sin. In all ages certain obligations have rested upon man's shoulders as a result of being brothers. When Cain killed Abel, God said unto Cain, "Where is Abel thy brother?" (Genesis 4:9). Abraham suggested to Lot that there be no strife among their herdsmen, for, he said, "We be brethren" (Genesis 13:8). Joseph, in Genesis chapter forty-five, felt a special obligation to his brethren to rescue them from famine. The Psalmist declares in Psalm 133:1, "Behold, how good and how pleasant it is for brethren to dwell together in unity!" The same is true of the church, we are brethren (Matthew 23:8). Because we are brethren, certain obligations rest upon us of a general nature.
Love The Brethren. We are to love the brethren (1 Peter 1:22). We are to "consider one another to provoke unto love and good works" (Hebrews 10:24). We are to "have the same care one for another" (1 Corinthians 12:25). Many are the general obligations such as these. Yet, God has placed upon the shoulders of faithful brethren a special duty toward brethren that sin.
The Process Of Getting Lost Ones To Return. Just how do we go about the process of getting the lost ones to return? What can we do as brethren as well as the whole congregation? We are to convert them from the error of their way (James 5:19-20). It seems that many think that "convert" only applies to alien sinners, but when brethren forsake the right ways of the Lord, they need to be converted. The Lord said to Peter, "But I have prayed for thee, that thy faith fail not: and when thou art converted, strengthen thy brethren" (Luke 22:32). To convert means "to turn around," to get men to come back to the way of righteousness and holiness again.
We are to restore them to their first state (Galatians 6:1). "Restore" means to correct or mend. In Matthew 4:21, it is used with reference to mending nets. The Greeks used it with reference to the work of a surgeon setting a broken bone. When brethren sin we are to correct them and get them to make amends for their faults.
We are to save brethren from the fire (Jude 23). Brethren who sin are lost! They are headed full speed down the road to eternal destruction in hell. We are to save them by "snatching them" (ASV) from their sin and destruction. Their condition is so serious that there is no time to waste. They are so near the fire of hell that there is only time to "snatch" them from the flames. They are "lingering on the brink of woe," and as Lot and his family lingered so that the angels had to "snatch" them by the hand and get them out of the city (Genesis 19:16), so we must snatch brethren who sin out of the fire.
This is indeed a most serious responsibility with very grave consequences if we fail to discharge it. Our failure will result in the sinner losing his soul and may result in our losing our own souls. It will likewise result in the church being polluted and corrupted and its influence greatly damaged.
Paul commanded the Corinthians to "Purge out therefore the old leaven, that ye may be a new lump, as ye are unleavened. For even Christ our passover is sacrificed for us" (1 Corinthians 5:7). Then he said to them, "For I am jealous over you with godly jealously: for I have espoused you to one husband, that I may present you as a chaste virgin to Christ. But I fear, lest by any means, as the serpent beguiled Eve through his subtlety, so your minds should be corrupted from the simplicity that is in Christ" (2 Corinthians 11:2-3). Of Christ and the church, Paul said, "That he might present it to himself a glorious church, not having spot, or wrinkle, or any such thing; but that it should be holy and without blemish" (Ephesians 5:27).
God knew that it would be impossible for His children to live perfect lives in a world where they are surrounded daily with sin and temptations of every sort. The newborn Christian is spotless, cleansed of every sin by the precious blood of Jesus Christ. Yet, temptations are so many, and the weaknesses of the flesh so universal, that those who live will make mistakes. This means that God's plan for saving man must, of necessity, include not only a way of securing the forgiveness of those sins one has committed before becoming a Christian, but also a means of securing forgiveness of those sins that will be committed after one becomes a Christian. Now God did not provide this "second law of pardon" to encourage us to sin. Paul asked, "What shall we say then? Shall we continue in sin, that grace my abound? God forbid. How shall we, that are dead to sin, live any longer therein?" (Romans 6:1-2). Our loving Heavenly Father knew that we would sin and therefore by His loving grace provided a means of cleansing our purification.
Continuous Faith is Necessary. When one becomes a Christian he or she is a babe in Christ and must continue to grow in faith and in the knowledge of the Lord (1 Peter 2:1-2). Paul suggested to the Colossians that they "continue in the faith grounded and settled" (Colossians 1:23). In the Ephesian letter he emphasizes that above all, Christians should take the shield of faith wherewith they are able to "Quench the fiery darts of the wicked" (Ephesians 6:16). Christians are urged to: "let us hold fast the profession of our faith without wavering" (Hebrews 10:23). All this is commanded because "without faith it is impossible to please" God. So if the Christian should lose faith, it would not be possible for him to receive the forgiveness of sins committed after he became a Christian. However, just as faith alone is not sufficient for the alien sinner to receive the forgiveness of sins, it is not sufficient for the erring child of God to receive the forgiveness of his sins.
Repentance Is Necessary. God requires men to repent as often as they commit sin. Remission of sins never comes without repentance. Simon the Sorcerer was commanded to "Repent therefore of this thy wickedness, and pray God, if perhaps the thought of thine heart may be forgiven thee" (Acts 8:22). It is not hard to see that repentance was a definite condition of his forgiveness. Jesus declared in reproving the church at Ephesus, "Remember therefore from whence thou art fallen, and repent, and do the first works; or else I will come unto thee quickly, and will remove thy candlestick out of his place, except thou repent" (Revelation 2:5). God's mercy delays our destruction that we may have time to repent (2 Peter 3:9). The sinner, and that means every sinner, must be moved by faith to repent before forgiveness is possible.
Confession Is Necessary. The alien sinner in becoming a Christian must confess faith in Jesus Christ. The erring child of God is required to confess the sin or sins he has committed in order to receive forgiveness (1 John 1:9). Forgiveness of sins is
conditional upon a confession of sins. So many times
we hear, "If I have done anything wrong I want to be forgiven," instead of, "I have sinned, Father, forgive me." To be continued.-1925 County Highway 59, Haleyville, AL 35565