Sin in a Fellow Believer

Today’s Scripture: 1 John 5:13-21

Key Verse: 1 John 5:16

If you see a fellow believer sinning in a way that does not lead to death, you should pray, and God will give that person life.

Our church family is an amazing gift that God wants us to enjoy. However, when believers do not follow Biblical instructions on how to handle tough issues that come up, then the church environment can become toxic.

Our Key Verse gives us one of the instructions to keep the church environment healthy.

Because believers can sin, they too often do sin. What should believers do when they see fellow believers sinning in their church?

Our Key Verse tells us to pray for that believer.

How often do we see problems in God’s church develop because believers do not pray for their fellow believers but gossip about them or go and confront them?

Sometimes believers forget or do not fully understand the power of prayer. Thus, they may opt to handle these things on their own. But this is never a good choice.

The Apostle James in his letter wrote: “The earnest prayer of a righteous person has great power and produces wonderful results.” (James 5:16).

Let’s look at our Key Verse as it relates to our spouses.

Earnest prayers can heal marriages that are in trouble. However, this only happens when couples decide to pray earnestly first and follow up with healthy communication. Marriage between a man and a woman was God’s idea and He is ready to help any couple that seeks Him first.

Couples certainly can see their spouse’s various sins. Be sure to first pray earnestly for your spouse and ask God to help them see their sin and repent.

When someone is struggling to forgive their spouse, they need to remind themselves how often God has forgiven them. Jesus spoke of how important forgiveness is in His model prayer: “and forgive us our sins, as we have forgiven those who sin against us.” (Matthew 6:12). And then Jesus added: “If you refuse to forgive others, your Father will not forgive your sins.” (Matthew 6:15).

I must remind myself of these verses over and over, especially during times when I feel my wife has been unfair to me.

Healthy homes create healthy church environments; be a prayer warrior for your marriage, your home, and your church.

Father, when I see someone sinning, or feel sinned against, help my first thoughts be how often you have forgiven me. Thank you for your grace and mercy that you give me fresh and new every morning. I pray this in Jesus’s Name, amen.