We all sin. We all have temptations that we struggle with. But there are some Christians who repeatedly give in to their temptations and no longer fight them. They have faith in Jesus for salvation but they continue to live in sin. You may be thinking of such a person right now. It may be a friend or relative, even one of your children. What should our response be? What can we really do that makes any difference? Should we even get involved? Here are some suggestions to help when you find yourself in that situation.
SHOULD WE GET INVOLVED? Here is what the Bible says: “Brothers and sisters, if someone is caught in a sin, you who live by the Spirit should restore that person gently. But watch yourselves, or you also may be tempted” (Galatians 6:1). That makes it pretty clear we must do everything we can to rescue them. However, Paul does warn of the danger of us getting caught in sin. If a person who isn’t a very good swimmer tries to rescue someone who is drowning, the chances are good that the victim will pull down the rescuer with them. The same is true spiritually. Who then is qualified to reach out to a sinning Christian?
QUALIFICATIONS TO BE ABLE TO HELP. The main qualifier in offering help is making sure you are spiritually mature. Dealing with a person’s sin is not something that everyone can handle – for a wide variety of reasons. If there is sin in your life you’re not having victory over, or if you struggle with the same or similar sin to what the other person is facing, it could be dangerous for you to reach out to them. They might pull you under. If you are a young Christian and have not grown in the faith, you may face more than you can handle. You should still do what you can from a distance by praying for them and trying to encourage them, but know your own limits.
DOES THE PERSON WANT HELP? It’s impossible to help someone who doesn’t want help. Sometimes people want to avoid the consequences of their sin or the guilt of their sin but they don’t really repent of the sin itself. They can’t be helped if they don’t have a desire to change. The person must be willing to change their mind as well as their actions. They must admit their helplessness to the sin and their need to have victory over it. Until they have genuine sorrow over their sin and are willing to pay the price to change, there is nothing you can do to help them. If their actions have hurt someone else they must be willing to ask forgiveness and to make restitution in any way they can
If they do not have this attitude you can’t really help them. But it is still important for you to keep praying for them. Show them unconditional love and acceptance as a person while lovingly making it clear that their area of disobedience is sin. Befriend them but don’t enable them to make it easier for them to continue in their sin. Set healthy limits on what you will and won’t do for them. Don’t continually nag them about their sin but also don’t let them in anyway think you approve or support them in it. Don’t do anything that enables them to continue in sin, covers up their sin or avoids the consequences of the sin.
Even when they have a heart attitude to repent and return to Jesus, make sure you are close to Jesus and filled with God’s Presence when you pray with them and lead them to repentance. Seek God’s timing as to when and how to approach them. Listen to how God leads you. After speaking and praying with them, do all you can to encourage them and support them.
When a person is caught up in sin, the restoration process may not be quick; it may be a gradual process. That’s why Paul encourages those who are spiritual and mature to engage in this process.
A guiding principle is to ask yourself how you would want others to treat you if you were in that position. Ask yourself just what Jesus would do if He was in your place and then do as He leads and directs. We can never go wrong when we do what Jesus would do.
Proverbs 27:5-6: “Better is open rebuke than hidden love. Faithful are the wounds of a friend.”
Luke 17:3: “Pay attention to yourselves! If your brother sins, rebuke him, and if he repents, forgive him”
Hebrews 3:13 “Exhort one another every day, as long as it is called ‘today,’ that none of you may be hardened by the deceitfulness of sin”
1 Thessalonians 5:14: “We urge you, brothers and sisters, admonish the unruly . . . be patient with everyone.”
Do you know a Christian caught in sin? Pray for them and for wisdom about how to approach them and what you can do to help. You may not be the one to bring them all the way back, but you dan do something to help the process. Then again, you might be the one God uses!
cto Rev. Dr. JERRY SCHMOYER
Christian Training Organization
Jerry@ChristianTrainingOrganization.org
(India & Africa & Spanish Outreach, Spiritual Warfare, Family Ministries, Counseling, World View)
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