amdntstr,
Hey there, I hope this post finds you well and in great health!!
God is still working out of us ALL of not being that 'so-called brother'. I can confess this to you - as I know God's at Work and He's not done with me yet! I know God is still bring my heart's idol's to bear, little by little, so those verses are still our mirror.
So, that verse got to FIRST be our mirror before we can 'gather with Christ.'
So when we read Scripture it's for us to see Jesus and our very many spots. I too have to let God expose in me through His Light so that my own "so-call brother walk" is not hiding deep down in my own heart-land!
Once God has cleared off some enemies off our own land, through Him bringing the darkness to bear - bringing the His enemy before me to see them clear to utterly put them to death and their idol on my heart, then we can minister to hearts the Way God wants it THAT others with hearts will be edified even when we do point to His Word through His Spirit.
May God keep ON TAKING the "that's not biblical" in ~my heart first,.......then I might be able to take out my brother's tiny splinter that I see.
But Love's got to be our Father's eye's first! Then He'll make us FISHERS OF MEN!!!
A patient work~
In Christ,
Connie
When we are born again we are no longer sinners instead we are the righteousness of God in Christ as long as we obey God. We are made perfect in the sight of God right then and there.
Now the druggy who is born again is not going to be able to quit drugging right away. It took me a couple of months to do so. It took my husband (who is anti-drugs) on his week vacation for me to do it completely. But until I was able to quit I had made a decision to do so and I worked on it until I was able to do so.
In also took for me to quit I had to disassociate myself from those who I had called friends. As much as I pray for those I still call friends to find God, I know that I can not go and visit or witness to them.
I made a decision to quit and because of that and the fact that I worked on it, I was still able to walk in the Light of God and not Darkness. I was able to receive forgiveness for my slips because the intent of my heart was to do the right thing.
The scripture you brought up is for hyprocrites. I means that while I was smoking I could not judge others for doing so. That would be wrong. I could not teach others about quitting until I did so myself.
Now if someone who is on-line (because I could never be around people who do drugs because I am not strong enough for that) or in church comes in and is need of help to quit a habit that is not right with God, then it is my duty to help and pray for that person. To be there even through their "slips".
But if that same person decides to talk about and teach that it is OK to do such things, that is a different ballgame. If a person has not made the decision to quit and is trying to teach that it is ok to do such a thing, then it is ok for me to judge that person and put them away from me. UNTIL, that decision by them has been made. Once the decisions has been made by that person to quit then it would be wrong of me to not accept that person and not to call that person a brother.
I will never turn away someone who is searching for help, or to not be compassionate to a person who is trying to quit something. That would be so very wrong.
If I had a brother that was a witch, I could still talk with him. As long as he doesn't bring up witchcraft. If he doesn't respect that or tries to lead me away from what I know is right, then even though he is a brother, I would have to drop contact with him. If however my brother calls me and asks me for help to get away from witchcraft, then it is my responsiblity to help any and every way I could.
If a "christian witch" comes into church and tries or starts to teach others that it is OK to worship a goddess, then it would be up to the pastor to teach the Word to that person. Being called as a teacher, it is my resposibility to try and teach that person. If that person whether in church or on-line wishes to continue to to teach that which is wrong, it is not wrong of me to walk away and not have that person as a friend or for the pastor to turn them away from church.
That does not mean that I would not be there for that person when they make the decision to walk with God, nor would I push that person away. I would bend over backwards to help that person.