If you ever broke a limb or sickness has worn you down - how did you feel? Were you bothered that a part of your body was not functioning properly? Of course you were!
We, as Christians, are ALL part of the body of Christ. If one falls away, we ought to be grieved, wholeheartedly praying for their restoration, and encouraging them back onto their feet. They are a part of you, and you are a part of them. We need one another to be a fully functioning body.
“If a man has a hundred sheep and one of them wanders away, what will he do? Won’t he leave the ninety-nine others on the hills and go out to search for the one that is lost? And if he finds it, I tell you the truth, he will rejoice over it more than over the ninety-nine that didn’t wander away! In the same way, it is not my heavenly Father’s will that even one of these little ones should perish." Matthew 18:12-14
Lord, if we can't love our own, how can we truly love a lost and dying world? When we judge the "fallen" rather than love them back to the Truth; when we kick the wounded rather than embrace their brokeness; when we turn our backs rather than let them see Your love shine on our faces - we aren't demonstrating who YOU are to a world we say we want to see saved. Why would the world want to embrace a God who turns His back on His own children?
Forgive us, Father, for misrepresenting You. Help us to see our own selfishness and self righteousness. May our hearts break for those who stray. Use us, Lord, to draw them back into the fold.
Our bodies cannot function properly if they are sick. The body of Christ cannot either. We can't kick the wounded and expect them to heal. We need to stick together. We need the heart of our Heavenly Father:
“If a man has a hundred sheep and one of them wanders away, what will he do? Won’t he leave the ninety-nine others on the hills and go out to search for the one that is lost? And if he finds it, I tell you the truth, he will rejoice over it more than over the ninety-nine that didn’t wander away! In the same way, it is not my heavenly Father’s will that even one of these little ones should perish." Matthew 18:12-14
Lord, if we can't love our own, how can we truly love a lost and dying world? When we judge the "fallen" rather than love them back to the Truth; when we kick the wounded rather than embrace their brokeness; when we turn our backs rather than let them see Your love shine on our faces - we aren't demonstrating who YOU are to a world we say we want to see saved. Why would the world want to embrace a God who turns His back on His own children?
Forgive us, Father, for misrepresenting You. Help us to see our own selfishness and self righteousness. May our hearts break for those who stray. Use us, Lord, to draw them back into the fold.
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