In Luke 17:3, it is written, " 3 Take heed to yourselves: aIf thy brother trespass
against thee, brebuke him; and if he repent, forgive him. " God
has commanded us ( see Ecclesiastes 12:13, for example ) to rebuke our brother
or sister in Christ, when he or she sins against us. How they respond
to that rebuke is their decision. However, in Proverbs 12:1, it is written,
"12 Whoso loveth instruction
loveth knowledge: but he that hateth reproof is1brutish. " God
says that he who hates correction is stupid. God's will ( see Matthew
7:21-27 and James 1:22, for example ) is that the brother of sister in Christ
who commits a trespass be rebuked, for the purpose of leading that one to repentance. God
does not want us to continue in sin. In Romans 6:1-4, it is written,
"6 What shall we say
then? aShall we continue in sin, that grace may abound? 2 1God
forbid. How shall we, 2that are adead
to sin, live any longer therein? 3 1Know ye not, that
aso many of us as were baptized into Jesus Christ bwere
baptized into his death? 4 Therefore we are aburied
with him by baptism into death: that blike1 as Christ
was raised up from the dead by cthe glory of the Father, deven
so we also should walk in newness of life. " God wants us to repent
of our past sins, and obey the gospel message ( see also John 3:16, 17, and 36;
14:6, 15; Acts 2:38, 41, and 47; 15:1-21 ( especially verse 7, for example );
Romans 3:21-31 ( especially verse 25, for example ); and Ephesians 1:1-14 ( especially
verse 13, for example ), for example ). If the human race consisted of
only one person, then there would be noone else around to rebuke us when we commit
sin. We do not live in a vacuum. In Romans 14:7, it is written,
" 7 For anone of us liveth to himself, and no
man dieth to himself. " Most notably, God sees what we are doing,
for example. In Psalm 33:13 ( RSV ), it is written, " 13 The
LORD looks down from heaven, he sees all the sons of men. " God
sees everyone.
In Luke 17:11, it is written, " 11 And
it came to pass, aas he went to Jerusalem, that he passed through
the midst of Sa-ma´-ri-a and Galilee. " At this point, Jesus
was not yet in Jerusalem. In Luke 19:28, it is written, " 28 And
when he had thus spoken, ahe went 1before, ascending
up to Jerusalem " ( Emphasis mine, R.E.W. ). The section heading
for Luke 19:28-44 is The Triumphal Entry. In Luke 17:1, it is written,
"17 Then said he unto
the disciples, aIt is impossible but that
1offences will come: but bwoe unto him, through
whom they come! " Jesus ( see Luke 14:3 ) said that offenses
will come, but he also issued a woe to those in this world through whom those
offenses come. Sinners ( see Matthew 26:36-46 ( especially verse 45, for
example ), for example ) can dress immodestly ( see 2 Corinthians 11:29 and 1
Timothy 2:9, for example ) and use profanity ( see Ephesians 4:29, for example
), for example, but if they do not repent and obey the gospel message, they will
spend an eternity in hell ( see Mark 9:42 and 2 Thessalonians, chapter 1 ( especially
verses 5-10, for example ), for example ). Sinners also like to challenge
those of us men, who are full-time evangelists ( see 1 Timothy 2:11, 12 and 2
Timothy 4:1-5, for example ), to a debate, but their motives are oftentimes not
sincere ( see 2 Corinthians 1:12, for example ). The Bible teaches that
it is a sin to start a quarrel and to quarrel ( see Proverbs 20:3 and 2 Timothy
2:24, for example ). Thus, it should not be a surprise to find us full-time
evangelists take the opportunity to avoid a debate. The Bible also
teaches that it is a sin to argue, simply for the sake of arguing. In
Proverbs 26:21, it is written, " 21 aAs1coals are to burning coals, and wood to fire; so is
a contentious man to kindle strife. " God commands us, as Christians,
to pursue peace with all men, for example. In Hebrews 12:14, it is written,
" 14 aFollow1 peace with all men,
and holiness, bwithout which no man shall see the Lord. " God
commands us, as His chilren, to try to get along with everyone. NOTE:
The picture, located at the upper, left corner of this paragraph, was downloaded
from the " bing.com " web page.1 Please
seek ye out of the book of the LORD, and read ( see Isaiah
34:16, for example ). Please study the Holy Bible. 🕮
