It is not an excuse for abandoning our faith in the Lord; but it seems there is less encouragement today than their should be when it comes to acknowledgment from one believer to another of seeing evidence of good fruit in their lives and thus Christ is on display. This is not to substitute for good theology and in the short term would not be good advice for someone to share with another without carefully and prayerfully examining the evidence. As a rule; I would say that those needing such a boost are the ones who say little of their struggles; their needs and their personal lives but where it is evidence of sacrificial service to God.
It is easy to look to the academic achievements; or a legacy of years of preaching with authority and assume such building up is unnecessary. At times; of course it seems those who are in authority are unapproachable. This is unwise; and is an issue if there isn't a group of elders helping to copilot or keep the ship steady; as it were.
Kindness and compassion should never be out of style. Neither should rebuke and exhortation as well. We need a healthy balance of these two for the overall health of a local church congregation.
What we should NOT do is first of all spend all our time with those who simply are looking for a handout (of money; or unreasonable use of our time) that are NOT serious about God's Word. This means according to scripture a SEPARATION from those who would claim to believe but are living in a sinful LIFESTYLE. If we advise someone and they are not interested in either their personal edification it is probably even more problematic that the welfare of those in the Body of Christ that are nearest to them isn't a concern. IF WE HAVE THE SPIRIT we then have the mind of Christ. ( 1 Cor. 2:16). Just as we function to strengthen our brothers and sisters we also learn to TRUST God to bring other believers when in need to strengthen us.
It is not an excuse for abandoning our faith in the Lord; but it seems there is less encouragement today than their should be when it comes to acknowledgment from one believer to another of seeing evidence of good fruit in their lives and thus Christ is on display. This is not to substitute for good theology and in the short term would not be good advice for someone to share with another without carefully and prayerfully examining the evidence. As a rule; I would say that those needing such a boost are the ones who say little of their struggles; their needs and their personal lives but where it is evidence of sacrificial service to God.
It is easy to look to the academic achievements; or a legacy of years of preaching with authority and assume such building up is unnecessary. At times; of course it seems those who are in authority are unapproachable. This is unwise; and is an issue if there isn't a group of elders helping to copilot or keep the ship steady; as it were.
Kindness and compassion should never be out of style. Neither should rebuke and exhortation as well. We need a healthy balance of these two for the overall health of a local church congregation.
What we should NOT do is first of all spend all our time with those who simply are looking for a handout (of money; or unreasonable use of our time) that are NOT serious about God's Word. This means according to scripture a SEPARATION from those who would claim to believe but are living in a sinful LIFESTYLE. If we advise someone and they are not interested in either their personal edification it is probably even more problematic that the welfare of those in the Body of Christ that are nearest to them isn't a concern. IF WE HAVE THE SPIRIT we then have the mind of Christ. ( 1 Cor. 2:16). Just as we function to strengthen our brothers and sisters we also learn to TRUST God to bring other believers when in need to strengthen us.
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