Wednesday, September 28, 2022 Some material taken from The Church I Want To Belong To
Brethren, even if anyone is caught in any trespass, you who are spiritual, restore such a one in a spirit of gentleness; each one looking to yourself, so that you too will not be tempted. Bear one another's burdens, and thereby fulfill the law of Christ. Galatians 6:1-2
Restore in Love - you who are spiritual, restore such a one in a spirit of gentleness…
As we have been talking about restoration this week, we come to the part where the rubber hits the road. Restoration does not happen without action and sometimes our loved ones and friends might need our help. Don’t ever underestimate a relationship or a moment that God puts you in where you are able to help someone out of a place they don’t need to be in. We may feel that we do not qualify for “you who are spiritual,” but as we learned on Sunday this is about those who are trapped in sin themselves. If you find yourself in a place and you feel God is leading you to restore someone in love, then you are there for a reason and should follow His lead. It is our responsibility when He leads us to restore someone, and it is a responsibility that we should not take lightly, and we should not ignore.
Restoring someone is a delicate situation because we all feel like we should mind our own business and we don’t want others poking around in our stuff. But if we truly love someone, we will want to keep them from moving further away from God, physically hurting themselves, or losing jobs or relationships. If we love them, we will want to restore them – as restoration is the theme of God’s Gospel for the world. We get saved and then restored because that is God’s plan. And sometimes we have to be restored again. That is part of His plan as well.
If you dislike confrontation like I do, you may shrink back from doing this, but confrontation does not mean we are going to wrestle someone into doing what they need to do. We are not going to judge and condemn them, or scold. If we restore in love – and a spirit of gentleness, confrontation will not be a part of the equation. We need to be sensitive because there is likely already some wounds to be treated with tenderness. The Fruit of the Spirit is so necessary here. But the fruit of the Spirit is love, joy, peace, patience, kindness, goodness, faithfulness, gentleness, self-control; against such things there is no law. Galatians 5:22-23
Paul warns us not to be tempted as we restore someone. Paul knew the weakness of the human flesh. He also wanted us to remember that we could be the one – none of us are above being taken out by Satan because of our vulnerability and human weakness and the moment we think we are not, is when he attacks.
So, what am I to do when someone I love seems to be sliding away or “caught in sin”?
· Pray for that person and ask God to help you understand their weakness or situation.
· Ask God if you are the one who should be reaching out to this person. If this is a loved one or family member, then you know you cannot leave them in their sin. You may have been the one hurt by this sin and as a result you may not be the best choice to “restore in love.” You are probably dealing with some stuff yourself that needs to heal and would have a hard time not “being the consequence.” It is a natural reaction to being hurt.
· Go with a desire to restore and not punish or condemn the one defeated and ensnared. It is not our job to judge or condemn, just to love and gently restore.
· Share with them your genuine love and concern and offer to help them find help.
· Be prepared to step away if they do not respond to your efforts to let God work further on them. Be prepared for their reaction which could be anything from anger (embarrassed from being caught) to remorse. Do not take responsibility for their problem. Assist them to seek further help but do not take responsibility for it. If they do not want to change, there is nothing more you can do besides pray for them. It is not a failure on your part.
You may also want to be aware that you could end up losing the relationship with them – either temporarily or permanently. They may be angry about you trying to help them. They could pull away out of shame. It is a risk but if God has called you and if you love them and want them restored it is a risk worth taking.
· Trust God to restore them. Pray and leave it with God.
It can be heartbreaking to watch someone who is caught in sin. It can be devastating if you are the one hurt by someone else’s cycle of sin. If we pray about it and feel God is calling us to gently restore someone in love, we need to be obedient to His calling.
