Wednesday 1 May 2013

Read: Matthew 18:15-20, 1 Timothy 5:19-20, Titus 3:9-11

"I need to talk to you about something." Does this phrase ever make you nervous? If you are anything like me (Josh) you will find that these words (especially when said a number of days before the intended conversation) will cause a flurry of nervous self-examination. You might be thinking, "What have I done wrong?" or "What could the problem be?" for days before finding out that the person only wanted to discuss the latest episode of their favorite TV show. But sometimes these words are actually the precursor to a serious conversation about sin and can be the seeds of real change in your life. How precious are these times? Despite the pain and difficulty of such a conversation, when both parties are open, God can use it to grow you more into the man or woman He intended you to be.

 

Does Jesus actually condemn these types of conversations by saying, "Do not judge"? Is Jesus shooting down this type of useful ministry to one another? Today's readings show us that that is clearly not Jesus' intention. In fact, later in His ministry, Jesus not only sets out clear guidelines for how to confront another believer but he commands that we confront sin. Look in vs 15 of today's reading from Matthew 18: "If your brother sins against you, go and show him his fault, just between the two of you."

 

Jesus doesn't give us room for wimping out on confronting each other about our sin. Instead we are commanded to confront each other about sin for the sake of building one another up in Christ. We see this backed up by the words of Paul in 1 Timothy and Titus.

 

Do you use a passage like this from Matthew 7 to avoid confronting another believer about their sin? Do you watch sin in the lives of others whilst saying nothing for fear of judging. Of course, we are commanded to exercise wisdom in the way that we approach others and extend to them the same grace that Christ has extended us but we cannot use this as an excuse for sitting idly while our brothers or sisters drown in sin. Spend some time praying today that God would give you the courage to have the difficult conversations and to build up your fellow believers in love.

 

Prayer:

Write down your prayer points in the space provided. Use today’s reading to help you get ideas.

 

Adoration:

 

Confession:

 

Thanks:

 

Supplication:

¥ Pray that God would build in the hearts of His people a desire to be kindly and lovingly confronting one another about sin. Pray that God would give you a spirit of humility to hear where there is sin in your life and to respond graciously.

¥ Pray for the preaching of God's word this Sunday in churches around Toowoomba, around Australia and around the world. Pray that wherever God's people are gathered that the Word would be preached boldly and faithfully and that many would come to know Christ as a result.

 

My Additional Prayer Points.

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Discussion Questions For Families and Groups

1. Under what circumstances would it be appropriate to confront another believer about their sin?

2. Jesus outlines the process for confronting another believer in Matthew 18. What would this process look like at your church in the 21st Century?