Bring Back the Wanderers

“My brothers, if anyone among you wanders from the truth and someone brings him back, let him know that whoever brings back a sinner from his wandering will save his soul from death and will cover a multitude of sins.” (James 5:19-20 ESV)

We read in the Scriptures that we who are part of the body of Christ are to encourage, exhort, counsel, urge (with a holy urging), and instruct one another. And we’re to speak the truth in love one to the other so that we are not led astray by false teachings coming from the mouths of deceitful and cunning and crafty human beings, and so we are not hardened by sin’s deceitfulness, etc. And if all of us were doing this, in practice, perhaps we would not have so many wanderers from the faith falling back into sin.

[Matt 5:13-16; Matt 28:18-20; Jn 4:31-38; Jn 13:13-17; Jn 14:12; Acts 1:8; Acts 26:18; Rom 10:14-15; Rom 12:1-8; Rom 15:14; 1 Co 12:1-31; Eph 4:1-16; Eph 5:17-27; Php 2:1-8; Col 3:16; Heb 3:13; Heb 10:23-25; 1 Pet 2:9,21; 1 Jn 2:6]  

There was a time in my life when I did wander from the faith (from the truth), and when I did fall back into sin, and that was wrong, and it was my fault. But there were others who contributed to my demise, encouraging and pushing me toward sin and not trying to help me out of sin, and/or who were treating me hatefully and meanly in “slam-dunking” me, as I called it. For I was like a drowning person, and every time I came up for air and tried to survive, I had someone there pushing me back under. And so I sank.

But the Lord brought me back. No human did. None reached out to me and tried to help me, but there were plenty there to make certain I drowned and that I did not come up for air. And this is because Satan was fighting hard against me, for he did not want me to survive, and maybe because he was made aware of God’s calling on my life and what the Lord was going to have me be doing, and so he “pulled out all the stops” to try to make sure I did not survive but that I drowned. But he lost that battle.

And so I speak from personal experience here when I encourage you to be one who speaks the truth in love to those you know who have fallen back into sin or who have made false professions of faith in Jesus Christ and who remained in slavery to sin. Tell them the truth of the gospel (the whole counsel of God) and let them know the consequences of them continuing in deliberate sin against the Lord, especially habitual sin. For the Scriptures teach that if sin is what we practice, and if righteousness and obedience to our Lord are not what we practice, we will not inherit eternal life with God.

[Matt 7:21-23; Matt 24:9-14; Lu 9:23-26; Rom 1:18-32; Rom 2:6-8; Rom 6:1-23; Rom 8:1-14,24; Rom 12:1-2; Rom 13:11; 1 Co 6:9-10,19-20; 2 Co 5:10,15,21; 1 Co 1:18; 1 Co 15:1-2; 2 Tim 1:8-9; Heb 9:28; 1 Pet 1:5; Gal 5:16-21; Gal 6:7-8; Eph 2:8-10; Eph 4:17-32; Eph 5:3-6; Col 1:21-23; Col 3:5-17; 1 Pet 2:24; Tit 2:11-14; 1 Jn 1:5-9; 1 Jn 2:3-6,24-25; 1 Jn 3:4-10; Heb 3:6,14-15; Heb 10:23-31; Heb 12:1-2; Rev 21:8,27; Rev 22:14-15] 

Bring Back the Wanderers

Video Talk

March 16, 2023

https://youtu.be/XqjcMiqb2Pw

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For Our Nation  

An Original Work / September 11, 2012

Bombs are bursting. Night is falling.

Jesus Christ is gently calling

You to follow Him in all ways.

Trust Him with your life today.

Make Him your Lord and your Savior.

Turn from your sin. Follow Jesus.

He will forgive you of your sin;

Cleanse your heart, made new within.

Men betraying: Our trust fraying.

On our knees to God we’re praying,

Seeking God to give us answers

That are only found in Him.

God is sovereign over all things.

Nothing from His mind escaping.

He has all things under His command,

And will work all for good.

Jesus Christ is gently calling

You to follow Him in all ways.

Men deceiving: We’re believing

In our Lord, and interceding

For our nation and its people

To obey their God today.

He is our hope for our future.

For our wounds He offers suture.

He is all we need for this life.

Trust Him with your life today.

https://vimeo.com/379406352