We are each other's keeper. We help each other, we love each other, we care for each other. We are family.
Dear children, let us not love with words or speech, but with actions and in truth. 1 John 3:18
Ready. Set. Go! My heart leaping in my chest, I launch myself forward and with one leg stretched out in front of the other, I run. Arms pumping, legs pushing and breath heaving, I race to the finish line hundreds of metres away. At a consistent pace, I set my speed and shift my mind into only one gear - the finish line.
In life, we are all running a race. I'm sure you have heard of this motivating metaphor or have seen the beautiful film, Overcomer, that reveals our lives here on earth as an endurance race with Jesus. A race that involves commitment, endurance, support and training. A race that teaches you how to rely on Jesus and to follow where His Spirit leads. This race that rewards you with eternal life at the finish line.
But beautiful friends, the race I'm talking about today is the race we run with our fellow brothers and sisters in Christ. This is the family race.
Cain and Abel were brothers. Abel, being second born, was a shepherd and offered the best of his firstborn lamb as a gift to God. Cain, being firstborn, cultivated land and gave some of his crop as a gift to God. God only accepted Abel's gift. Cain became full of jealousy because of this and killed Abel, his own brother. Cain further lies to God and asks if he is his "brother's keeper" (Genesis 4:9). From this story, we can see that Abel was the second born in this world, but the first to obey God. Abel showed a wholehearted love and obedience towards God, whereas Cain showed a halfhearted love and obedience towards God. Abel died for his righteousness but Cain suffered for the rest of his life with God's judgement marked on him. Two brothers of the same blood - yet a totally different ending for both because of Whom they served. So good question Cain - am I my brother's keeper?
What does this mean?
Well, Jesus restored our righteousness with God through Him. Our actions and sins here on earth are forgiven as we believe, by faith, in Who Jesus is and what He did for us. He commanded us to love one another as He has loved us. Through this new covenant He made with us, our inheritance into His Kingdom has brought all believers into His family. We have become children of God and brothers and sisters of Him as we obey His teachings and follow His Spirit. Jesus said in Matthew 18:15, "For whoever does the will of My Father in Heaven is my brother and sister and mother." Jesus says here that through Him, we become one with Him and our lives are no longer determined by who we are on this earth, but by who we are in Jesus.
So, yes. I am ought to be my brother's keeper. As we are family, and one with Christ, we believers have a responsibility for each other's actions. We are all running this race with Christ together, but are we running this race wholeheartedly for Him, like Abel, or halfheartedly for Him, like Cain?
Paul addresses this issue in Galatians 6:1. He says, "Dear brothers and sisters, if another believer is overcome by sin, you who are godly should gently and humbly help that person back onto the right path. And be careful not to fall into the same temptation yourself. Share each other's burdens, and in this way obey the law of Christ." As we are made holy in the sight of God, we need to obey Him and live for Him. By doing this, we are setting an example of His Kingdom and that is why it is so crucial to stay on the right path or to stay in the race. Satan has many traps laid out before all churches, all Christians and every person of this world, to not see and inherit the Kingdom of God. It is so easy to fall into temptation and these traps have been set out to keep up us from obeying God and living in His righteousness. And yes, as humans we all sin and fall into these traps from time to time, but that's why God's grace is sufficient and as His disciples we ought to be ready to help the fallen.
"So, because you are lukewarm, neither hot nor cold, I am about to spit you out of my mouth," Revelation 3:16. Over the years I have come across many lukewarm Christians and it saddens me so much. It is better for a person to be unsaved than to be a lukewarm Christian. Why? Because an unsaved person has the opportunity to still get saved, but a lukewarm Christian cannot be helped anymore. We can only pray for them and trust God for their eyes to truly see.
As believers and as a family, we must live a life of goodness and peace and joy in the Holy Spirit (Romans 15:17), for this is the true Kingdom of God. When we live, we need to honour the Lord, and when we die, it is to honour the Lord (Romans 15:8).
So we should not condemn another believer, but instead live a life in such a way that it will not cause another believer to stumble and fall (Romans 14:13). We are a family - we need to care for each other, support one another, help one another and love each other. We need to confront each other in love and we need to accept each other in our walks with Christ, just as Christ has accepted us (Romans 15:7). We can only learn to aim for harmony in the church and to try and build each other up (Romans 14:19). In this way, we shine His light brighter and we do not distort His light through hypocrisy.
As we near the finish line, there may be a fellow runner who falls or who stops to catch their breath. There may be a runner who is ready to quit or who cannot run anymore. For these runners, we need to stop and take their hand and help them finish the race. We need to lookout for the one's who have been misled by the hurt that they have had to endure. We need to rescue those who feel pulled by the weight of their sin and ungodliness. And we need to bring them to Jesus - Who satisfies wholly, Who comforts, Who heals and Who knows the pain. The scars that we bear in our hearts are the scars that show we belong to Jesus... and through Jesus we win the race!
Thank You Lord for Your life and love that renews, restores and rewards the race of life that we have had to endure. Thank You Jesus for helping us along the way and for revealing Yourself through others who follow Your ways and obey Your Word. Father, may you strengthen Your church, may your purify us from our sins and may Your glory touch the ends of the earth through Your disciples who have made You theirs. May Your love endure forever and may Your light shine brighter! In Jesus name, Amen.
Commentaires