The teacher broke the trust of the parents, the school, and the students in his choices. He was dismissed, faced charges, and was convicted. Discussing this with a friend, I observed that his very wrong decisions did not negate all the good he had done through the years. Should he face justice? Yes, because there are consequences for crime. Should his actions be recognized for what they were; wrong and abhorrent? Yes, again. Should he be tossed from memory, his good years erased? As a Christian, I don’t think so. I think we all struggle with how to relate to failure, don’t we? How do we find justice, yet offer forgiveness? What is the ultimate aim of justice – vengeance or rehabilitation?
Since the first decades of Christian faith, the balance between compassion and conviction, punishment and restoration, has proven to be difficult to find. It is even more difficult in this era of a ‘cancel culture.’
Are you wrestling with how to relate to someone who has sinned or failed, especially one who claims to be a follower of Christ? I hope these few words are helpful.
The church in the ancient city of Corinth at first erred on
the side of compassion, failing to address grievous sexual sin in their congregation.
Paul wrote to them demanding that the man be put out of the fellowship,
reminding them that sin, if left uncorrected, spreads like yeast in bread dough! Those Christians had mistakenly taken pride
in their broad-minded tolerance, unable or unwilling to call the sin what it
was. The apostle took them to task for that and they ultimately did put the man
out of their church fellowship. But that
is not the end of the story! In his second letter to that church, Paul urges
them to forgive the man, apparently because his excommunication had brought
about repentance. "Now it is time to forgive him and comfort him.
Otherwise he may become so discouraged that he won’t be able to recover. Now
show him that you still love him." (2 Corinthians 2:7-8, NLT)
In the little letter to Philemon, Paul demonstrates compassion. While he was under arrest in Rome, somehow a man named Onesimus (oh-ness-i-mus), whose name means ‘useful,’ found him. They developed a friendship and Onesimus became a Christian believer. Paul had known him when he was a slave in the household of Philemon a Christian convert in Colossae. Onesimus had stolen from the house and run away to Rome, but the life of a runaway slave was one of fear, living in the shadows. Paul counseled this new Christian to go back to Philemon and make things right to escape the endless fear and to clear his conscience. Was that an easy choice? Not at all. His punishment could be severe. He could be beaten or reduced to the lowest place in the household or even sold to some other household. The apostle, however, pens a letter to Philemon that is one of the most personal in the New Testament. He becomes an advocate for both men, asking them in the name of Christ to go against social norms! He asks Philemon to forgive the man and to accept him into the household, not as a slave but as a brother in Christ! In a play on the name of Onesimus he says "Formerly he was useless to you, but now he has become useful both to you and to me." (Philemon 11, NIV) What a letter of conviction, compassion, and restoration.
People will fail, fall, and disappoint us. We will sin against others in big and small ways.
Do you want to be reduced to that most awful moment, that terrible decision you made, judged as worthless, erased from life?
Will you cancel all the good of another thinking only of the
blot on the page as they were writing the story of their life?
Living in grace is a choice that frees us from becoming the judges of the world, that allows us to reach out to the one who has fallen flat on his face.
Grace does not require that we ignore or minimize wrong. It means that every action, even justice, is framed by love, seeking God’s best for the one who has sinned.
The word from the Word invites deep thought, a balance of
compassion and conviction in us. May the wisdom of the Spirit help us find our
way.
"Dear brothers and sisters, if another Christian is
overcome by some sin,
you who are godly should gently and humbly help that
person back onto the right path.
And be careful not to fall into the same temptation
yourself.
Share each other’s troubles and problems, and in this way
obey the law of Christ."
(Galatians 6:1-2, NLT)
Lord, fill us with wisdom, making us capable of being persons of both conviction
and compassion equally, in the name of Jesus. Amen.
(Video of this blog at this link)
____________________
I searched the world but it couldn't fill me
Man's empty praise and treasures that fade
Are never enough
Then You came along and put me back together
And every desire is now satisfied here in Your love
Oh there's nothing better than You
There's nothing better than You
Lord there's nothing
Nothing is better than You
I'm not afraid to show You my weakness
My failures and flaws
Lord You've seen them all
And You still call me friend
'Cause the God of the mountain
Is the God of the valley
There's not a place
Your mercy and grace won't find me again
You turn mourning to dancing
You give beauty for ashes
You turn shame into glory
You're the only one who can
You turn graves into gardens
You turn bones into armies
You turn seas into highways
You're the only one who can
Brandon Lake | Chris Brown | Steven Furtick | Tiffany Hudson
© 2019 Brandon Lake Music; Maverick City Publishing Worldwide; Music by Elevation Worship Publishing; Bethel Music Publishing
CCLI License # 810055
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