by Steve Hale
"Then the LORD said to Cain, Where Abel, your brother?' He said, 'I do not know. Am I my brother's keeper'" (Gen. 4:9, NKJV)?
Cain was a murderer and a liar! He knew full well here his brother was! The LORD told him: "What have you done? The voice of your brother's blood cries out to Me from the ground'" (Gen. 4:10, NKJV).
We are lying to ourselves if we do not believe the welfare of our brethren's souls are our responsibility. Ezekiel put it so succinctly: "When I say to the wicked, '0 wicked man, you shall surely die!' and you do not speak to warn the wicked from his way, that wicked man shall die in his iniquity; but his blood I will require at your hand. Nevertheless if you warn the wicked to turn from his way, and he does not turn from his way, he shall die in his iniquity; but you have delivered your soul" (Eze. 33:8-9, NKJV).
Too many precious souls have left the faith here at the Mt. Juliet congregation. Even one is too many! We want to reclaim them. Currently, the elders and preachers have been visiting with this reclamation in view. But, we must all reach-out!
In fact, Paul emphasized that this was the concern of anyone who claimed to be spiritual: "Brethren, if a man is overtaken in any trespass, you who are spiritual restore such a one in a spirit of gentleness, considering yourself lest you also be tempted" ( Galatians 6:1, NKJV).
Notice that this is not just for elders! While elders will give an account for the souls under their watch ( Hebrews 13:7,17), all of us must have this care ( 1 Corinthians 12:12-26)!
This next quarter, April, May, and June, we will be preaching on the subject "When The Fire Goes Out" from the pulpit. This will deal with why some brethren leave the church. A brochure is available to send to these brethren to invite them to specific sermons during this series. Your help is needed to make this effort a success:
1. Make a list of 10 delinquent Christians you know, and pray for them by name. Pray that the Lord will open a door of opportunity to restore them! Pray over this list daily for a week.
2. Visit and Invite. After you've prayed, visit and invite these precious brethren to this series!
The Lord will bless us in this most important work! '