Nougat 21

[I remember going through a phase where I didn’t want to read the same scripture repeatedly. If that’s you, I realize that reflecting on a Nougat series is hard. My prayer is that you find stimulation and encouragement from the different perspectives offered in each iteration.

Further, I hope that we’re inclined to study the scriptures for ourselves in other settings. And, as we reflect, I encourage us to allow God to speak directly to us through the scripture, as well as the reflections].

When we see others operating outside God’s will, do we correct them or stay silent? If the latter, do we guard against the same issue impacting us? Consider Today’s Holy Nougat

“Dear brothers and sisters, if another believer is overcome by some 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.” ‭‭Galatians‬ ‭6‬:‭1‬ ‭NLT‬‬

Be Careful, Lest

One of my favourite Jamaican expressions from my god-granny is ‘should in cased’. Transliterated as ‘lest’, or ‘on the off-chance’, should in cased invites us to think of other potential scenarios to the one facing us in this moment. When applied to our Nougat, we then see the apostle inviting the more matured saints to not only offer faithful and loving correction, but to also watch out for how we treat with the sin, _should in cased_ we find ourselves drawn to the same sinful action.

You see siblings, we not only need to appropriate scripture for addressing our various situations. We ought also guard against falling prey to sin by anticipating scenarios that might lead us astray. This is less about being judged by the company we keep; rather, it’s related to our over-exposure to sin patterns by our continued association with them.

If we trivialise the impact of sinful behaviour (that is, ideas and actions that are contrary to God’s will), it has the potential to become attractive to us. When we avoid association with such, the impact is less likely. We don’t need to harangue someone or relegate them to ‘back bench’ in reprimand. But we can correct in love. We can help steer someone back in the right direction towards God’s will.

How do we correct someone who’s misaligned? Let’s see whether we can reflect on that a bit tomorrow. Until then, a brief reminder on some simple patterns that may turn sinful if we’re not careful.

—

May all we seek be found in Christ