"If any man see his brother sin a sin which is not
unto death, he shall ask, and He shall give him life for them that sin not unto
death." 1 John
5:16
We are always pretty quick to see
where other people are failing - the way they raise their children, keep their
houses, their language or dress, worldliness, shallow understanding, etc. If we
are concerned about the things of God, it is inevitable that we will be
troubled by the sins and shortcomings of people we know and care about. But it makes a big difference how we see our
own selves. It is very easy to become a
criticizing hypocrite. We might feel like
we know they are wrong because we ourselves got it right – we understand things
better, we act better, we are more worthy.
We must look at things
differently. It is not our worthiness,
our wisdom, or even our superior and doctrinally correct understanding of
Scriptures. If we correctly see others’ failings, it is because He has blessed
us in Christ to know something of His own character. If we
are His children, we have, by his grace, been made anew to be more Christ-like,
more sensitive, more attuned to God’s holiness and majesty, more aware of our
own failings, more humble about our own capabilities, more compassionate about
the shortcomings of others.
All this is another way of saying
that Christ’s spirit (the Spirit of God) dwells in us. It is not a matter of mastering the
knowledge of the revelation; it is a matter of submitting our wills to
His in the walk of faith. This certainly
requires the written revelation to guide use.
But the “fruit of the Spirit” must be born in our lives, and we should
give glory to Him for it – not to our own wisdom or worthiness.
If we realize this, we will remember that
God says if one sees a brother sinning, ". . . he shall ask, and He shall
give him life for them that sin not unto death." We will see ourselves as saints with the responsibility
of discernment concerning other souls. The failings of others are revealed to
us – not so we can feel superior - but so that we may take these souls before
Him in prayer. When we intercede for
them, God says He will give us "life for them that sin not unto
death." God will give to us spiritual
life to bear a burden on their behalf - to have the mind of Christ about them,
and to work toward the forgiveness of those whose hearts can be turned back to
Him.
How this works in detail I cannot
explain. But the Bible teaches that in the providence of God, in His care for
His people, He makes many opportunities for His children for repentance, to be
restored to Him and forgiven. If we pray
for them sincerely and earnestly, we can be a part of that providence. He will give US life for them that sin “not
unto death.” What a glorious
thought! What a great
responsibility! How often I have failed
in my prayer life for those around me who are stumbling and failing.
Of course, it must be emphasized that
we cannot effectively pray for the sins of others, if we are not sensitive to,
and recognizing, and humbly repenting and confessing our own.
Think about this. What if, instead of spending most of our
prayer time focused on others’ physical illness or grief or financial woes, we spent
more time praying in compassion and mercy for those who struggle
spiritually? Not praying arrogantly “I
am better than they are” (the Pharisee of Luke 18) but determined to give our
own time, effort, pleading and tears on their behalf, lifting them up to our
heavenly Father. Imagine that the
promises of God might really work! What
kind of difference might we see in spiritual growth in our congregation?
