RESTORATION
Galatians 6:1-2
Brothers and sisters, even if a person is caught in any wrongdoing, you who are spiritual are to restore such a person in a spirit of gentleness; each one looking to yourself, so that you are not tempted as well. 2 Bear one another's burdens, and thereby fulfill the law of Christ.
The house that I now live in was once our camp and before that it had been a farmhouse for 100+ years. We bought it at auction over 20 years ago and at the time, others that were bidding on it had intentions of taking a bulldozer and leveling it. But my dad and I saw something of value and over a year or so we made a comfortable and sturdy home of it.
All too often we see a brother or sister that is caught in a sinful situation and we might become angry over the sin or we see the situation as hopeless. However in Paul's letter to the church in Galatia he tells them (and you and me) that we have a responsibility to restore this brother or sister.
Paul doesn't say that it will be easy or painless, he just says to do it. We must be diligent in this. If we hadn't seen the value in restoring that old farmhouse it would have been destroyed and of no use. The same is true of a brother or sister in Christ.
The restoration process may not be quick, in fact in some cases of years of neglect and deterioration it might take a long long time to completely restore what has deteriorated. The Bible doesn't say how long to work on the restoration process, it just says to do it. Like the case of our old house, there are things that need continual restoration.
When dealing with a long-term sinful situation, it will be a long-term fix. Don't give up, remain dedicated to fulfill the calling of restoration.
When we restored the farmhouse we just didn't throw some wallpaper and paint on it. No, we had to confront the damage and tear it down to the studs and start to rebuild. If we hadn't dealt with the detioration issues it would have never stopped. The same is true with dealing with sin. If we don't confront the sin that has gone on it won't stop. We must be bold and at times tough. Gentleness does not mean whimpiness.
Nothing worthwhile is easy, remain vigilant in love and gentleness. Restore.
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