Bring Back The Wandered Sheep

The Compassionate Heart Of The Lord

“The LORD is good to everyone; His compassion rests on all He has made” (Psalm 145:9 HCSB).

In this ministry, we have had the blessed and humble privilege of learning and hearing from the Lord and we will not be silent about the Lord’s Goodness to us and many other people. As Christian’s, we often reacts angrily and judgmentally towards some Christians and unsaved people who sins. Naturally, we tend to condemn and respond unsympathetic towards people who sins as painful the result of such sinning to us, how much pain does the ‘sinner’ feel or endure? As it is, we should remember the person who sinned have to deal with rejection, a feeling of worthlessness and shame (Jeremiah 6:15). Therefore, if we condemn we take the position of Satan the accuser (Revelation 12:10; Zechariah 3:2) instead of being clothed with compassion to win our brother or sister back.

A few years ago, we had a boy aged 10 who joined our ministry after he gave his heart to the Lord Jesus. Like most of us, he expressed a great joy in knowing the Lord and his dedication to the Lord was unquestionable. Being at such a tender age, he could not manage the pressure of his peers and the appetites of his flesh.

Additionally, we heard reports of some bad conduct regarding the boy which were really disturbing. In fact, the Lord Himself would reveal some things to us NOT to condemn but to correct and encourage the lad in the ways of the Lord (Romans 15:1; 1 Thessalonians 5:11). Honestly, our attitudes towards the boy were not sympathetic but harsh and this drove him to ran away from home and ‘escaped’ from the Lord which really added to his confusion and feelings of rejection. Upon his return home, the Lord addressed the boy saying, “You must be grateful that I am a merciful, forgiving and compassionate God”. As a result, the Lord commanded us to also commend the boy for his good behavior to encourage him.

Don’t Condemn The Wandered Sheep

Similarly, fairly recently a girl of about 12 years was accused of having stolen some money, when we inquired of the Lord regarding the incident the Lord said, “You (referring to our ministry) must just forgive without asking questions” (John 8:9-11). While we had an appetite to ‘deal’ with the girl for bringing such shame upon us (Joshua 7:24-25) the Lord taught us to be compassionate to re-assure the ‘sinner’ of His love and forgiveness.

Consequently, we shared with the girl what the Lord said and this strengthened her faith and confidence in the Lord’s compassion for her. We on the other hand, learned from this experience is to be merciful and to encourage the brethren who fell into sin to regain their confidence in the Lord. Does this incident not remind us of the one lost sheep which wandered? (Matthew 18:10-14). For sure, the Lord cares more for the lost than us, so let us not drive people away from the Lord and make them feel unwelcomed in our services or assemblies it is such people He calls (Luke 14:13-14). Furthermore, there is enough room for the rich folk too who are spiritually poor and they too are welcomed to serve and follow our Lord Jesus Christ (Mark 10:17-31).

The Lord’s Kindness Leads To Salvation

Recently, an elderly sister in the Lord called me to help her with her vehicle which had starting problems. As I explained to her how we should resolve the problem on her car, I overheard how she verbally warned and attacked one of her daughter’s who has a history of bad behavior. As it was, the young woman’s calm response to her mother’s insults broke my heart and I felt a deep compassion for her. Later that in the day, during our worship session, the Lord gave me a word to tell the elderly sister not to speak down on her daughter and be abusive towards her and when I told her she was stricken with guilt and she repented right there. As a result of the Lord’s message to her, she reported to me that she had apologized to her daughter who also showed remorse for her wrongs and that she (her daughter) expressed a desire to walk and obey the Lord.

Finally brethren, let us not fall into the habit of looking down on our weaker brethren and even speak abusively to them just because they sin purposely. As we have shown above, it is not our duty to condemn to discourage people but to show love and compassion while we gently correct (Galatians 6:1). Again, let us not be opportunist who waits in a spirit of self-righteousness to pour shame on a brother or sister who sinned. No! God forbid we know from experience that a brother or sister who sinned feels ‘wounded’ spiritually and he or she will react defensive and offensive. The above scripture to correct in a gentle spirit is the best remedy to win our brother or sister back just as the Lord restored Peter and the woman who was caught in an adulterous act (John 21:15-25; John 8:1-11). In conclusion, let us help to gather souls for God’s Kingdom and not scatter through gossip and malicious talk fueled by the Accuser Satan (Matthew 12:30).

If you would like to accept Jesus Christ as your Lord and Savior, please pray this Prayer of Sincere Repentance to get you started. For any questions or comments on this article or our ministry, please contact us.

Blessed Peace

Brother Glenn