(S)cripture:





1 Corinthians 5:9-13 "When i wrote to you before, i told you not to associate with people who indulge in sexual sin. But i wasn't talking about unbelievers who indulge in sexual sin, or are greedy, or cheat people, or worship idols. You would have to leave this world to avoid people like that. I meant that you are not to associate with anyone who claims to be a believer yet indulges in sexual sin, or is greedy, or worships idols, or is abusive, or is a drunkard, or cheats people. Don't even eat with such people.

It isn't my responsibility to judge outsiders, but it certainly is your responsibility to judge those inside the church who are sinning. God will judge those on the outside; but as the scriptures say, 'You must remove the evil person from among you' "





(O)bservation:





I am sure we've all heard these 3 famous words "Don't Judge Me" or "you have no right to judge me". Well, according to this scripture, only unbelievers have the right to say that, if you are a believer or even "claim" to be one, you are subject to judgement.





So, if you are currently active in church or people think you are a follower of Jesus Christ, but you are seen indulging in sexual sin, getting drunk or even engaging in corrupt practices, a fellow brother should be able to confront you about your sin, and not hear those 3 famous words.





What do you think Apple would do, if it was told one of its stores wasn't providing the expected experience for its customers in that area? Would they simply shrug it off with a "don't judge them" statement? or would they immediately send a representative to the store to help identify the problem and restore it?





The name of Jesus is a brand, just like Apple. In the Lords prayer, it is evident how important His name is and should be..."Our Father in Heaven, may your name be kept Holy...", if Apple doesn't joke with its brand, why should we joke with ours?













If you claim to be a believer, you automatically become a brand ambassador, if other ambassadors notice you are misrepresenting the brand, shouldn't they be able to call you to order so you don't tarnish the image of the brand they are also representing?





If you noticed, Jesus never judged unbelievers, but he did have some words for those who claimed to be believers;





Case in point: the woman caught in adultery in John 8 "...where are your accusers? Didn't even one of them condemn (judge) you? No, Lord, she said. And Jesus said, Neither do I. Go and sin no more"





But in the case of the pharisees (those who claimed to be believers) in Matthew 23 , i never noticed it until now, but the entire chapter is dedicated to the judgment of the religions leaders "... (15) what sorrow awaits you teachers of religious law and you Pharisees. Hypocrites! For you shut the door of the Kingdom of Heaven in peoples faces. You won't go in yourselves, and you don't let others enter either... (2 3) you are careful to tithe even the tiniest income from your herb gardens, but you ignore the more important aspects of the law - justice, mercy and faith. You should tithe, yes, but do not neglect the more important things..."





(A)pplication:





Would it surprise you, if i told you the Bible actually gives us a guide on how to handle situations like this? The fact that it says we can judge believers, doesn't automatically give us the right to abuse that privilege.





Matthew 18:15-17 gives us the balance to this message "If another believer sins against you, go privately and point out the offence. If the other person listens and confesses it, you have won that person back. But if you are unsuccessful, take one or two others with you and go back again, so that everything you say may be confirmed by two or three witnesses.









If the person still refuses to listen, take your case to the church. Then if he or she won't accept the church's decision, treat that person as a pagan or a corrupt tax collector"





Isn't it just amazing how the Bible just has all the answers? Wow!!! Notice the sequence though, when someone sins against you, it doesn't say tell people about it first, or run to the pastor, it says we should go privately to speak to the person. How many lives could have been restored if we simply followed this sequence?





- Meet the person privately, not to condemn the person, but to convict, restore and remind them of their identity in Christ

- Go with 2 or 3 people if the person still continues, then

- Take your case to the church









(P)rayer:





Father, i thank You for the gift of Life you've given me today. Thank You for the word You've shared with me just now, i ask that You help me represent Your Name well and that You surround me with the right people who will correct me when i take the wrong step. Give me the right words & approach to help my brothers and sisters who are currently struggling with sin, help me gossip less and give me the Grace to follow your sequence of restoration in Jesus Name





Kindly share this post with your family and friends, if you feel led to!!! Social media links are below





"Seek First" is a platform inspired from Matthew 6:33 where we are encouraged to Seek the Kingdom of God above all else, live righteously, and everything we need will be given to us.





Our objective is to show you the practicality of this verse and hopefully inspire you to seek Him first daily. We use the S.O.A.P model as a study guide to help fulfill this mandate. We pick different scriptures and try to figure out how we can apply them to our daily lives, how they relate to the Kingdom of God and how we can live righteously through them. (S)cripture (O)bservation (A)pplication (P)

rayer





(S)cripture: Luke 12:15-21 "...Beware! Guard against every kind of greed. Life is not measured by how much you own. Then he tol...





Continue reading >>>