I Sat Down
Today I saw a question on social media as to whether or not a single ministry worker should be sat down if they get pregnant. There were so many opinions, and it caused me to reflect on my experience. I had sex while I was single, this was the sin not the pregnancy, and I figured that God and I had talked about this so it was over. I didn't tell anyone, but when I found out I was pregnant it made my sin apparent. Without hesitation, I sat down. Here was my response to the question "should the church sit a person down who got pregnant out of wedlock."
Having a child is a life changing event whether in marriage or out of it. I believe that being sat down isn't a punishment if done correctly, but a time to reflect and deal with your new situation. As someone who went through it, I believe that it was an advantage for me to be sat down because I had to deal with what my life was looking like. No one shamed me, and I got wonderful support and love. Being forgiven is not equal to acting like nothing happened though. The church exists to show love and truth together. I had to deal with the truth that I was out of the will of God. I needed rehabilitation. If we embrace the gift and ignore people's issues we're no better than careless employers who are seeking only a profit. Also the church is not only allowed, but responsible for correcting each other. We don't correct the world because they aren't part of our kingdom, but we are supposed to hold each other accountable and help each other out. The church can not afford to ignore obvious, and not so obvious, congruence conflicts with it's teachings. To leave a person in place without addressing it at least would look like the church is saying this is okay. It would also look like we are so desperate for the gift that we are willing to ignore lifestyle issues and the person who is struggling. Anyone who is having a baby needs help and even more so when the pregnancy is under hurtful or unexpected circumstances. The mother and father should be counseled loved on and maybe sat down while they recover, and prepare for their baby. God has more than one person with whatever gift they have. It's more important that these people (man and woman) get healthy, get a plan together, and spend time in God's face.
Galatians 6:1 says ,"Brethren, if a man be overtaken in a fault, ye which are spiritual, restore such an one in the spirit of meekness; considering thyself, lest thou also be tempted."
I have 4 ideas in this text for us to consider together.
1. Overtaken- Every person has faults. We all fall short of the glory of God (see Romans 3:23). However the idea of being overtaken can be also defined as taken over. If you've been caught up on some sin and you are trying, you've been overtaken. You might hear people in this situation saying things like, "I don't know why I did that. I knew better."
2. Spiritual - Every person isn't spiritual. Scripture says that if we walk by the spirit we won't fulfill the lusts of the flesh. Spiritual doesn't refer to people who shout and pass out, or cry. These are people who are led by the spirit of God. These people are the ones who are qualified to address the issues of fallen saints.
3. Restore - There are several definitions of restore, but basically all of them address the need to bring something into place that was out of place. Restoration of a chair takes time. Old broken pieces need to be repaired, and old paint needs to be worn down to create a fresh start. It is the same with people. It takes time and energy of everyone involved.
4. Spirit of Meekness - Remember the chair we were just talking about restoring. What if the person restoring the chair was heavy handed and overconfident? The chair would likely be ruined. It is the same with with people. The ministry of restoration is for the humble, discreet, and kind hearted because people in crisis need grace and mercy along with truth.
The success of restoration to me, is measured in how well the glory of God is shown on the life of the one that was previously overtaken. Let us give people the time they need to be restored.
Having a child is a life changing event whether in marriage or out of it. I believe that being sat down isn't a punishment if done correctly, but a time to reflect and deal with your new situation. As someone who went through it, I believe that it was an advantage for me to be sat down because I had to deal with what my life was looking like. No one shamed me, and I got wonderful support and love. Being forgiven is not equal to acting like nothing happened though. The church exists to show love and truth together. I had to deal with the truth that I was out of the will of God. I needed rehabilitation. If we embrace the gift and ignore people's issues we're no better than careless employers who are seeking only a profit. Also the church is not only allowed, but responsible for correcting each other. We don't correct the world because they aren't part of our kingdom, but we are supposed to hold each other accountable and help each other out. The church can not afford to ignore obvious, and not so obvious, congruence conflicts with it's teachings. To leave a person in place without addressing it at least would look like the church is saying this is okay. It would also look like we are so desperate for the gift that we are willing to ignore lifestyle issues and the person who is struggling. Anyone who is having a baby needs help and even more so when the pregnancy is under hurtful or unexpected circumstances. The mother and father should be counseled loved on and maybe sat down while they recover, and prepare for their baby. God has more than one person with whatever gift they have. It's more important that these people (man and woman) get healthy, get a plan together, and spend time in God's face.
Galatians 6:1 says ,"Brethren, if a man be overtaken in a fault, ye which are spiritual, restore such an one in the spirit of meekness; considering thyself, lest thou also be tempted."
I have 4 ideas in this text for us to consider together.
1. Overtaken- Every person has faults. We all fall short of the glory of God (see Romans 3:23). However the idea of being overtaken can be also defined as taken over. If you've been caught up on some sin and you are trying, you've been overtaken. You might hear people in this situation saying things like, "I don't know why I did that. I knew better."
2. Spiritual - Every person isn't spiritual. Scripture says that if we walk by the spirit we won't fulfill the lusts of the flesh. Spiritual doesn't refer to people who shout and pass out, or cry. These are people who are led by the spirit of God. These people are the ones who are qualified to address the issues of fallen saints.
3. Restore - There are several definitions of restore, but basically all of them address the need to bring something into place that was out of place. Restoration of a chair takes time. Old broken pieces need to be repaired, and old paint needs to be worn down to create a fresh start. It is the same with people. It takes time and energy of everyone involved.
4. Spirit of Meekness - Remember the chair we were just talking about restoring. What if the person restoring the chair was heavy handed and overconfident? The chair would likely be ruined. It is the same with with people. The ministry of restoration is for the humble, discreet, and kind hearted because people in crisis need grace and mercy along with truth.
The success of restoration to me, is measured in how well the glory of God is shown on the life of the one that was previously overtaken. Let us give people the time they need to be restored.
Comments
Post a Comment