May 13th - Rescuing the Wandering

This morning we are finishing up our study in the book of James.The book of James is considered by many to be one of the most practical books in the Bible.
As we finish this book, I am really struck by how blunt James is as he ends this letter.
This letter, this epistle, ends differently than most of the epistles in the New Testament.
Most New Testament epistles end with some kind of greeting to the readers of that letter or with a benediction or a doxology.
It appears James was more of a “get to the point” kind of guy.
So instead of using some “feel good” type of words at the end of his letter, he closes with one last call to action.
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The situation for Christians when this letter was written was very difficult.
There was a lot of persecution.

It was a tough environment in which to keep one’s faith intact.
There were some who were wandering away from the truth as a result of the difficulties.
James in his closing remarks is encouraging us to make every effort to try to bring back those who are wandering from the faith.
We are called to make every effort to bring a wandering soul back because Christians are family.
If you saw your son or your daughter or your brother or your sister or anyone in your family wander from the truth, you would do everything possible to get them back on track.
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A question that arises when reading this passage is: “About whom is James writing – believers or unbelievers?
The idea of saving a soul, a sinner, from death tends to lend support to the idea that James is writing about unbelievers here.
On the other hand, James does address his audience as “My brothers” and goes on to say “if one of you should wander from the truth.”
The idea of bringing back someone who has wandered from the truth sounds more like James has a fellow believer in mind here.
But you know, it really doesn’t matter whether James is referring to unbelievers or believers who have temporarily strayed from the truth.
Our responsibility is the same in either case.
Regardless of whether that straying sinner is a genuine brother or sister in Christ or an unbeliever, our responsibility is clear.
Caring Christians rescue straying sinners.
Jesus called a little child and had the child stand among them and this is one of the things Jesus said as recorded in Matthew 18:12-14:
“What do you think? If a man owns a hundred sheep, and one of them wanders away, will he not leave the ninety-nine on the hills and go to look for the one that wandered off? And if he finds it, I tell you the truth, he is happier about that one sheep than about the ninety-nine that did not wander off. In the same way your Father in heaven is not willing that any of these little ones should be lost.
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James in his epistle has given a series of tests by which one’s faith can be evaluated.
In chapter one, true saving faith is marked by its proper response to trials, temptations, the Word of God and God’s standards for holy living.
In chapter two, true saving faith is marked by its response to people from various social classes and its manifestation of righteous deeds.
In chapter three, true saving faith is marked by proper speech, wisdom and by not being a friend of the world.
In chapter four, true saving faith is marked by humility and submission to God’s will.
In chapter five, true saving faith is marked by a proper view of money and by truthfulness.
These tests form the benchmarks against which a person’s faith can be measured.
These final two verses in James provide four points to enable Christians to identify and help those who have wandered from the truth.

1. The Evidence

James 5:19a = My brothers, if one of you should wander from the truth . . .  
The phrase if one of you should wander from the truth indicates that it is a possibility.
We find evidence in our text for today that it is possible to wander from the truth.
The truth refers to the Word of God.
There are a couple ways we can “wander” from the truth.
We can wander from the truth doctrinally.
We can leave the teachings of the gospel for some other teaching.
We can wander from the truth in a practical way.
We can begin to ignore the great moral teachings of the gospel to the point that our lifestyle reflects a rejection of Jesus.
Those who reject God’s Word also reject the principles of Godly living that the Word of God teaches.
Despite any outward profession of faith one might make, those who live in open defiance of God’s Word are probably not saved.
Jesus said: “Why do you call me ‘Lord, Lord,’ and do not do what I say?”    (Luke 6:46)
If they do not repent, such people will one day hear from Jesus the shocking words: “I never knew you. Away from me, you evildoers!” (Matthew 7:23)
The one who wanders from sound doctrine and Godly living is referred to as a sinner in here in the book of James .
The term “sinner” frequently describes hardened believers, those who openly and defiantly ignore the teachings of Scripture.
In the New Testament, generally, the term “sinner” describes those who are outside the Kingdom of God.
A sinner is someone who is without God and Christ and is need of salvation.
Christians do sin occasionally but they choose not to live a lifestyle of sin.
A sinner, on the other hand, is one who continually, habitually practices sin.
We have an interesting verse in I John 2:19.
I John 2:19 = They went out from us, but they did not really belong to us. For if they had belonged to us, they would have remained with us; but their going showed that none of them belonged to us.
This may help us understand our text for today.
Even though James addresses them as “brothers” there were some who were perhaps not “true brothers”.
They were part of the assembly of believers but were not actually true believers themselves.
They knew about Jesus but did not know Jesus as their personal Savior.
True believers are to pursue those whose faulty doctrine and sinful lifestyle give evidence that they do not know Jesus as their personal Savior.

1. The Threat

James 5:20 = Whoever turns a sinner from the error of his way will save him from death and cover over a multitude of sins.
Realizing the terrible fate that awaits unrepentant sinners should motivate believers to call to salvation those who stray from the truth.
Nothing less than each person’s eternal soul is at stake, his most priceless possession.
The soul refers to the inner, immortal person who lives in a mortal body.
The threat facing the soul is death – eternal hell, the final state of the unrepentant sinner.
Jesus spoke more of Hell than Heaven.
Proverbs 14:12 = There is a way that seems right to a man, but in the end it leads to death.
Unrepentant sinners face eternal death weighed down with a multitude of sins.
The word “multitude” emphasizes the hopeless condition of sinners.
Throughout their lives they accumulate a weight of sin that ultimately will send them to Hell unless they have an encounter with Jesus.

1. The Instrument

James 5:19; 5:20 = someone . . . whoever
James uses these two pronouns to define the instruments, the agents or the people God uses to recover straying sinners.
Recovering stray sinners is the task of all believers, not just the pastors and elders.
2 Corinthians 5:18 = All this is from God, who reconciled us to himself through Christ and gave us the ministry of reconciliation: . .
So God has given us as believers the ministry of reconciliation.
This ministry of reconciliation includes the task of bringing wandering sinners to God.
Jesus said this about Himself: “. . . the Son of Man came to seek and to save what was lost.”    Luke 19:10
When someone comes to Christ, there is joy in heaven and there is joy on earth.
Luke 15:10 (Jesus is speaking here) = . . . there is rejoicing in the presence of the angels of God over one sinner who repents.”
There is also joy on earth.
When someone comes to Christ, family members and friends who are believers will rejoice.
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Much is written in God’s Word about us helping each other to keep us from sin.
In our world, many people will say: “It’s none of your business how I live my life.”
But if you are a believer, it is the business of fellow believers to help keep you from wandering.
That’s why fellowship is so important.
Hebrews 10:25 = Let us not give up meeting together, as some are in the habit of doing, but let us encourage one another – and all the more as you see the Day approaching.
The “Day” refers to the Second Coming of Jesus.
We are a community of believers.
We are not Lone Rangers.
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When one wanders from the truth, that person chooses to walk down a path where he loses his way.
To stray is to fail to live out the truth God has revealed to you.
God’s Word clearly tells us to be involved in helping each other live Godly lives.
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It takes courage to reach out and help a brother or a sister who has fallen into sin.
Your help may not be well received.
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Galatians 6:1 = Brothers, if someone is caught in a sin, you who are spiritual should restore him gently. But watch yourself, or you also may be tempted.
The person who attempts to restore a brother becomes a target for the enemy because this person is doing eternal business or kingdom work and Satan doesn’t like that.
In our attempt to rescue someone from sin, we must not give into the temptation to stray from the truth or water down the truth.
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If a believer lives a lifestyle of sin and dies with unconfessed sin in their lives, he or she will have to give an account of their behavior at the Judgement Seat of Christ.
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Leading people to Christ is sometimes very difficult.
But there is something more difficult than that.
It is trying to bring someone back to Christ once they have wandered away.
Why is this so hard to do?
Because people who wander from the truth often become hardened and they don’t want you to disturb their lifestyle.
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What is the most effective way of bringing back someone who has wandered from the truth?
A young man once described going astray from God like this:
“It was like I was at sea in deep water, deep trouble and all my friends were on the shoreline hurling biblical accusations at me about justice, penalty and wrong . . . but there was one Christian brother who actually swam out to get me and would not let me go. I fought him, but he pushed aside my fighting, grasped me, put a life jacket around me, and took me to shore. By the grace of God, he was the reason I was restored. He would not let me go.”

1. The Goal

James 5:20 = Whoever turns a sinner from the error of his way will save him from death and cover over a multitude of sins.
To turn a sinner from the error of his way means to help them come to a place of repentance.
How do we do that?

1. Pray that the blinders would be removed from their eyes.
2. Be ready to teach the truth in love.
3. Be living the truth in your own life.
4. Be ready to encourage them.
5. Do not condone their sin but do not condemn them.

That is the goal: To turn sinners from the error of their ways.
This will save them from death, eternal death.
Their sins will be forgiven.
They can then experience a meaningful life here on earth and eternal life with God in heaven.
Peter in the book of Acts told the crowd: “Repent, then, and turn to God, so that your sins may be wiped out, that times of refreshing may come from the Lord.”    (Acts 3:19)
The Psalmist David wrote the following in Psalm 32:1: Blessed is he whose transgressions are forgiven, whose sins are covered.
Only the death of Christ can provide forgiveness of sin.
When we repent, God takes our sin and casts it into the depths of the sea, removing that sin as far from us as the east is from the west.
God has given to each one of us the ministry of reconciliation, reaching out to people who don’t know Christ and those who have wandered from the truth.
Can you think of anything more important than that?
We have the privilege of introducing people to Christ, the One who can give them a life of inner peace and contentment, and also the sure hope of eternal life.
The last verse of the hymn “Come Thou Fount of Every Blessing” is very revealing.
The last verse reveals something about that which we don’t really care to embrace or come to terms with.
The third line of the third verse of the hymn goes like this:
“Prone to wander, Lord, I feel it, Prone to leave the God I love.”
We do have wandering hearts and when we wander, the natural, normal course is away from God’s fellowship.
When we wander, we wander away from God and we wander toward sin.
When we do not take our thoughts captive, our heart is prone to wander.
It is possible for any of us to wander.
None of us are beyond that possibility of wandering from the truth.
The words of the hymn “Come, Thou Fount of Every Blessing” were written by Robert Robinson in 1758.
He wrote this hymn 3 years after his conversion to Christ at the age of 23.
The reality of which Robinson spoke of in the third verse tragically came true when he lapsed into a lifestyle of sin.
It was during this time that the story is told of Robinson entering a stagecoach with a lady joyously humming this hymn.
Turning to Robinson, she asked if he knew the hymn that had ministered to her so much.
Robinson replied: “Madam, I am the poor unhappy man who wrote that hymn many years ago, and I would give a thousand worlds, if I had them, to enjoy the feelings I had then.”
Robert Robinson wandered from the truth.
We have to approach our spiritual rescue work with a great deal of humility, understanding that we too, are prone to wander from the truth.