Mentoring Minutes

Therefore confess your sins to each other… (James 5:16a)

Love and Lordship in Focus…The Greek word from where we get our word and response of confession literally means, “to agree with.” That’s powerful if you think about it. I’ve recognized that my sin(s) or fault(s) have come against God’s Truth and I’m now willing to admit them and turn in agreement with His Truth rather than my “truth” that was wrong. This is the first step in true heart change if it is Godly and sincere as we found is needed in the Corinthians passage earlier. This is true confession!

Once again, James in his matter of fact, in your face, style gets right to the point of our “one another” for today. In James 5:16a he tells us to “Confess your sins to each other…” That’s another OUCH!

You mean I need to air my dirty laundry to other believers? Evidently so. While it’s not a specific Scripture, the principle is Biblical…”Confession is good for the soul.” It is good because it not only brings my sin out of the darkness and into the light but it also helps hold me accountable to others who love The Lord and love me.

I think we do need to be discerning as to those who are mature in The Lord that we can bring our sins to them and confess. We also must remember that as we do so, and as others confess their sins to us, this is not for gossip or to look down on anyone but to grow together in Christ and as the rest of the context of this James passage states, “so that we may be healed.”

What sin(s) may be keeping you from being healed? Humble yourself before The Lord and others (certainly takes humility to confess my sins and failures to others) and trust that He will honor that in forgiveness and healing.

Especially be willing to confess, say you’re sorry and ask forgiveness of those that you have specifically and/or intentionally wronged. In this way healing and restoration can take place to strengthen you (and them) as disciples and together build up Christ’s Church.

One caution: If you do find those that are not mature and discerning to handle sins confessed by wise and careful to find others who are…while the same time not using it as an excuse not to confess your sins to others nor to stop loving them. Be wise but certainly be obedient.

There are 3 confessions in Scripture and I need to be able to mature in making all of them as needed. First I need to daily confess before others that Christ is the Lord of my life and live accordingly. In humbly doing so, I need to confess my sins to Him and know that as I do so with heartfelt remorse and conviction that I’m forgiven. Finally, and this may actually be the most difficult one because it exposes me to other fallible human beings…as our “one another” command for today reminds us, I must confess my sin(s) to others to help hold me accountable and so that I may be healed. We definitely need The Lord to help us to do these daily and/or as needed so we can grow in Christ and help others do the same.

What keeps you from confessing your sins to mature believers? Do you have at least one person you can go to and trust to do so? What keeps you from being one that others can confess their sins to (if that’s the case)? How can you become a believer who will confess your sin(s) and be healed and set free as well as one to whom others can come to in faith and with trust? This is what God is looking for in His Church and Kingdom.

We must remember that confession never comes easy and in reality it’s quite difficult in our natural fleshly pride. However, the old adage, “Confession is good for the soul,” as mentioned earlier, is actually a Biblical principle that we’d all be wise to follow. Where are you when it comes to confessing your sins to The Lord and others?

Food for Thought…The freedom you’ll experience will far outweigh the pain and difficulty of mustering the courage and then following through in obedience to this command!

Love in Action…

1. Spend time with God and in His Word, prayer and listening every day…begin with the Scriptures in this message.
2. Ask The Holy Spirit to teach you.
3. Pray and ask The Holy Spirit to convict you and show you anything that you need to bring before The Lord and then follow through in confession.
4. Pray and ask The Holy Spirit to convict you and show you anything that you need to confess to others and then follow through with them as well.

Whew! I told you this “one another” would not be easy but as I’ve shared, and know that much of it was from my own experience, the freedom and laying down the burdens of unconfessed sin is totally worth it. Be willing to push through by His grace and try it today…you won’t be sorry!  

Contact us at loveandlordship@gmail.com.

Love and Lordship Prayer Focus…Heavenly Father, confessing my faults and sins does not come naturally to me. Thank You for providing Your Holy Spirit as I believe in Christ that empowers me to humble myself and agree with Your Truth in open confession to those I’ve wronged. In Jesus Name. Amen.

“Don’t grumble against one another, brothers and sisters, or you will be judged. The Judge is standing at the door!” (James 5:9)

Love and Lordship in Focus…How do you respond to others? Would they consider you to be pleasant and encouraging…or a grumbler and complainer? God’s Word tells us very clearly that grumbling leads to judgment. Where do you stand before The Judge when it comes to your loving…or not so loving responses to others?

Christ has made it so that we can always respond with kindness and without grumbling no matter what the circumstances or the nature of the others involved. Take Him at His Word and cease grumbling.

James is one of the most practical books of the application of our faith in the works and fruit that are evidence of our salvation. As the Elder at the fledgling church in Jerusalem shortly after Christ’s Resurrection and Ascension…and as the half-brother of Christ, I can only think that his practicality, led by The Holy Spirit, was borne out of real-life situations and relationships.

In our previous “one another” from James, he commanded believers not to slander or say anything evil about others. The next practical “one another” is found in James 5:9 where again his pragmatic instruction to us is, “Don’t grumble against each other…” Hmm, you think that Christians were and are prone to grumbling against each other?

Of course we are! Because, as Paul stated in various ways, even though we are saved and have the new identity in Christ and The Holy Spirit in us, as long as we are alive and breathing, we must still contend with this fallen, sinful flesh of the old man or woman. That means our natural tendency is to complain, grumble, slander, cut others down rather than build them up.

We can only follow through on these commands consistently as we continue to mature in Christ and His Holy Spirit maturing us in the new nature He has imparted and imputed to and in us!

Remember that latter part of this verse states that if you grumble and complain against others, your will be judged accordingly because The Righteous Judge Himself is observing how you are handling things…and especially your relationship with others.

Paul echoes this in Philippians 2:14-15 and it also echoes in my ears and mind often as my dear Mother used to quote this to me and my siblings whenever we would begin to grumble or complain about anything. She and my Dad would add, “doesn’t do any good and only makes matters worse so it’s up to you.”

How are you doing when it comes to grumbling against others… not on your good days but on your worst days? That’s the real test. How do you handle it when others grumble against you?

Christ has made a way as we walk with Him as Lord…not just as Savior…to be able to mature in His Spirit as we become more and more like Him allowing His Spirit to have His way in and through us. That’s how others can see Jesus!

Let’s thank The Lord for making it possible for us to die to the old person of our flesh and selfish desires and live in the new person that we are in Christ by the indwelling presence of His Holy Spirit. This is the only way that we can truly live out these “one another” commands to love others and maybe even especially those like today’s exhortation to not grumble against each other…even when things don’t go my way or others grumble against me. Let’s thank Him for helping us exhibit the love of Jesus by the power of The Holy Spirit so others can see and know Him and build His Kingdom and bring Him Glory! (Philippians 2:14-16a)

Food for Thought…Have you become a grumbler by your thoughts and habits…the way you think and react to others when things don’t go your way? In line with James, and of course they’re in line because The Holy Spirit is the uniting Author of all Scripture, Paul tells us in Philippians 2:14, “Do everything without grumbling or complaining,” and then v.15 reminds us why…so we can shine like stars in the universe…that would be shining His light. Where are you when it comes to this command to be like Christ and ultimately to shine His light to a lost and dying world? How would those closest to you answer that question?

Love in Action…

1. Spend time with God and in His Word, prayer and listening every day…begin with the Scriptures in this episode.
2. Ask The Holy Spirit to teach you.
3. Pause to consider whether others, especially those closest to you, would consider you a grumbler and complainer. If so, begin to allow The Holy Spirit to change you.
4. What and whose light are you shining by how you respond to others? If it’s your light, be willing to stop the grumbling and make it His!

Once again we’ve got a “negative one another” that tells us to stop doing what our flesh naturally and generally tends toward. Know that only in Christ and His Holy Spirit can we truly accept others with all their quirks and warts and do so without grumbling against them. Thank The Lord for those in your life who’ve helped you realize and grow in this and help others follow in this same path to be more like Jesus.  

Contact us at loveandlordship@gmail.com.

Love and Lordship Prayer Focus…Heavenly Father, forgive me when I allow myself to become a complainer and grumble against others when things don’t go my way. This only makes things worse for others…and for me. Help me to remember Your commands are for my good so help me to not grumble against others or any time. In Jesus Name. Amen.

“not abandoning our own meeting together, as is the habit of some people, but encouraging one another; and all the more as you see the day drawing near.” (Hebrews 10:25)

“Brothers and sisters, do not slander one another. Anyone who speaks against a brother or sisteror judges them speaks against the law and judges it. When you judge the law, you are not keeping it, but sitting in judgment on it.” (James 4:11)

Love and Lordship in Focus…Positive encouragement is a great part of loving others but there is also the refraining from negative actions and reactions toward others that strengthens our love for one another.

I shared in last week’s post about the form of encouragement known as “spurring one another on,” that encouragement comes in many forms…one of those is in the form of a negative command that The Lord calls us to not simply encourage each other but to be sure that we are not slandering or tearing others down. How are you doing when it comes to encouragement vs slander? 

In this message we’ll look at 2 “one anothers” as one of them is a continuation of last week’s command and a repeat of several others, showing its importance. Paul reminds us, as He exhorts us to not forsake our assembling together in loving fellowship, that we are to once again “encourage one another” in Hebrews 10:25. So let’s look for ways to encourage other believers especially when it comes to gathering together in order to build up the loving fellowship of all believers…we need this now as much if not more than ever!

This is not just meeting for weekend services, although that is certainly an important part of it as the writer of Hebrews reminds us. This also includes, as it would have in Biblical times, gathering in small groups, homes and other fellowship meetings to encourage one another and build Godly relationships that lovingly hold us accountable to The Lord and to each other in His Love. Be constantly looking for opportunities to do so…and then make it happen.

Whatever you do don’t get caught up in being guilty of ignoring our second “one another” in this post…

This “one another” is from James, the half-brother of Jesus and elder of the Church at Jerusalem. In James 4:11 he instructs us under the guidance of The Holy Spirit, “…Do not slander one another.” You think maybe as the head of the young church in Jerusalem that James may have encountered the human nature found in all of us that tends to pull and tear others down…even among believers? This is the antithesis of encouragement…which is why I’m sharing these two “one anothers” together…what we are called to do and what we are called not to do.

My precious late Mother, along with my recently passed Dad, used to say to my brother, sister and me something we’ve likely all heard, “If you can’t say something good about someone, don’t say anything at all.” This would certainly help us to not slander or tear others down, especially other believers.

This does not mean we avoid speaking hard Truths that must be shared or we are not loving but it does mean we never intentionally speak harm to or about others but as we’ve been commanded elsewhere we build one another up in Christ.

I find it very compelling that this text comes right after James 4:10 in which we are instructed to humble ourselves before The Lord. Without humility we will find ourselves slandering and tearing each other down under the guise of “pointing out faults” or “for prayer.” May we humble ourselves and choose not to slander our brothers and sisters in Christ!

Have you ever been the target of slander from other believers? Did you respond in kind or did you humbly pray and forgive? Do you find yourself in weak moments saying things that tear others down (slander them)? How can we intentionally choose to encourage rather than slander?

I doubt there is one of us that has not at some point been guilty of slandering someone else. I know I have. We need to seek forgiveness when we are caught in those moments when we choose to tear someone down because it has been done to us or we fail to lift and build them up…encourage them…as we are called to do. This requires humility to lift someone up and not slander or tear them down…or bring them down to my level. Let’s seek The Lord and His

Spirit to help us once again as a powerful way of loving others to encourage and build them up by Your grace and for Your Glory!

Food for Thought…When has someone encouraged you and others to help build up the group or community of believers? What do you do when given the opportunity to encourage others? Slander only serves to destroy or tear down others and the Body of Christ? What’s been your experience with slander…and the outcomes?

Love in Action…

1. Spend time with God and in His Word and prayer every day…begin with the Scriptures in this episode.
2. Ask The Holy Spirit to teach you.
3. When have you seen the results of encouragement and slander on the community of believers? How have either or both impacted you?
4. What can you do in your fellowship of believers to ensure that you’re encouraging others and refraining from slander even when others do so?  

Contact us at loveandlordship@gmail.com.

Love and Lordship Prayer Focus…Heavenly Father, encouragement is so powerful and essential not just in our lives as individuals but in the community of Christ’s Church. Help me to encourage at every chance that I can and choose not to slander even when it seems natural or others may be doing so to me. May I choose humility in Christ in all things. In Christ’s Name. Amen.