I received a message the other day from someone that I love very much.
“Alex, I have sinned. I have made serious mistakes and brought shame upon myself. I don’t know what to do. Can you help me?”
I can tell you this much; I am right there with you. I struggle. I sin. I do things that separate me from God and make mistakes, too. When this happens, I have to remind myself that I want to do what is right, and I want to be back in a right relationship with God.
Nevertheless, it’s not just something that happens. Getting back into a right relationship requires us to be reconciled back to God and those people we have sinned against and hurt. Here are a few things that need to happen for reconciliation.
- We need to repent. We have to turn the other direction away from sinful behavior, choices, and actions and begin moving the other way towards righteousness. Whatever we did, we have to stop doing it. If drunkenness is our sin, we have to stop drinking. If cussing someone out is our sin, we must change our language. If cheating is our sin, we have to stop and become honest. If negativity is our sin, we must turn in the opposite direction and learn to be positive.
- We need to pray. We have to learn to communicate with God and begin to rebuild the relationship. Communication is key to any relationship. God speaks to us through His Word, and we to Him through our prayers. Get the dialogue open again and tell God what is on your mind and how you want to be a better follower of Christ.
- We need to immerse ourselves in Bible reading. Like I said above, the Bible is the Word of God and is His way of communicating to us. If we neglect the Word of God, then we don’t hear what he has to say to encourage us to come back to Him. He outlines everything we need in His Word, and we need to read it, apply it, and obey it.
- We need to attend worship. Coming before the Lord in worship will bring us closer to Him and is required to please Him. He expects us to worship Him, and if we “skip church” to do our own thing or get “too busy” and not make it a priority over everything else, then we communicate to God what is really important to us. Attending worship is the bare minimum of what God expects. It’s the least we can do, but yet very beneficial in our process of reconciliation back to God after sin.
- We need to fellowship with other Christians. Being around others who are like-minded encourages us to keep going and motivates us to do what is right and stay on the right path. When you are alone physically, you begin to feel alone spiritually. I believe that is why God designed the church to be together not just for worship but for fellowship outside the worship setting. Get together, and your reconciliation to God and others is even more poised for success.
- We need to be involved. When we are down and depressed or are struggling, serving the Lord and working in the church always brings a new level of encouragement. Our involvement strengthens our devotion to God. When we plug ourselves into the life and work of the church, it makes it that much easier to get back within a good right relationship with the Lord and His church.
Let’s all evaluate our lives right now and see how we can reconcile ourselves back to God. If you are in the middle of sin right now, come back to God and be reconciled! You need it!
I love you,
Alex
Extra Bible Study for those that want to see for themselves: I intentionally left out the Bible verses to go along with the Biblical principles above. Can you find passages that back up what is taught above?