Review • "Shepherding discipline" is the business of every member of the church, and represents the "immune system" of the body of Christ, the church. • Like your heavenly Father, and Jesus himself, you are called to "seek and rescue" a brother/sister who is (temporarily) lost — as any good shepherd would do. • You must guard your heart against hypocrisy or vengefulness that would militate against the "spirit of gentleness" the Lord requires. • Yours is an extension of the ministry of Christ — administering the benefits of his atoning death/forgiveness to others in the family — and can only be fruitful by the power of the indwelling Holy Spirit — at work in both you and the other. • Your heart must overflow with a desire to forgive and restore in light of what God in Christ has done to forgive/restore you.
I. When you have a problem with a brother/sister who has sinned against you, Jesus commands you to go to him/her and resolve the issue privately through a loving, restorative confrontation.
II. Perhaps you will "win back" your brother/sister, effecting reconciliation.
III. If not, you can get help from others in the family.
IV. Jesus promises that he will resolve conflict and restore relationships in his church by means of these procedures — when you carry them out with the proper attitude of heart and his ultimate goal in view.
SERMON ACTIVITY
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Pastor Wagner has been an ordained minister of the Orthodox Presbyterian Church for 48 years, serving the Bayview congregation since 1983. He is a graduate of Westmont College (B.A., 1970) and Westminster Theological Seminary in Philadelphia (M.Div., 1973), and in 1998 was...
