Brethren, if a man should be precipitated, also, in some offense, you, who are spiritual, be attuning such a one, in a spirit of weakness, noting yourself, that you, also, may not be tried. Bear one another's burdens, and thus fulfill the law of Christ.
Galatians 6: 1-2, Concordant New Testament
A lot going on this week in the world of faith and knowing the Lord. First off, I learned that a dear brother in the Lord had stumbled and fallen into the wiles of the world. What's funny is that my very first reaction was to somehow lecture this fallen brother with all sorts of scriptures about the dangers of the world, that we're better than that blah blah blah. There I was defaulting once again back into that which I was brought up to believe. Growing up in the church, it's easy to see why I'm inclined to return there every now and then. That is the mainstream church model in dealing with a misbehaving brother caught up in the world. Let him know what those bible verses say and that we, as Christians, are different. I would dare to say that we who know Jesus are different. Different than the legalistic drama of the mainstream church. Different than the rituals and traditions they practice. We may call ourselves religious, but when it comes to Jesus Himself, we are as anti-religion as Jesus was. As I thought of my brother this week, I wondered the jumble of emotions he must be enduring. I can certainly relate, because I've been there. That's right, I've been in the crosshairs of the anti sinner mainstream church mafia before. As I thought of my brother, I also wondered, what if it had been me? What sort of reaction would I be expecting from my church going brethren? Sadly, I already know that answer. I hate to lump most church going believers into the holier than thou crowd, but this is the reaction many who stumble and fall in the world face. When I summoned up the courage to admit my own shortcomings, I was weak, I had abandoned God and now He was punishing me for my behavior. I learned pretty damn quick not to divulge my shortcomings to those in the church who claimed that they were there for me. As I said, we who truly know Jesus are different.
"I don't need to punish people for sin. Sin is it's own punishment, devouring you from the inside. It's not my purpose to punish it; it's my joy to cure it."
William Paul Young, The Shack
There is a weekly Christian radio call in prayer show on Sunday evenings where the hosts proclaim that they are simply being Gods hand extended. That is, by offering prayers over those in the grips of the world, that they are extending the love and mercy of the Lord over them as well. I would agree. I would take this a step further to say that we who come beside those who have stumbled are also Gods hand extended. For it was never the intent of the Lord to punish those who are suffering. Jesus invited all who were weary and heavy laden with the burdens of the world to come to Him {Matthew 11:28}. Yeah, but that was back in the days of Jesus right? Gods hand extended. Jesus proclaims that we who believe should let our light shine before others {Matthew 5:16}. It can be said that Jesus will be known through those who know Him. Gods hand extended. When He who is in us reaches out to the afflicted, the glory is not ours but Gods alone. We have become, in effect, the Lords hand extended unto others. For those who have stumbled, there is no safer place than in the presence of Christ Jesus. I am confident that my friend who has suffered affliction knows the Lord. As we all know, knowing the Lord has never been a bullet proof way of preventing affliction. However, knowing who to turn to when the rubber meets the road can go a long way to making our suffering easier to deal with. Bible verses and legalistic teachings will not calm a heart damaged by our own guilt and shame. Jesus calls upon us to bring those burdens to Him.
So that, if anyone is in Christ, there is a new creation: the primitive passed by. Lo! There has come new!
2 Corinthians 5: 17, Concordant New Testament
~Scott~
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