Charles Pogue
Have you ever seen signs you have possibly been ostracized by a person or persons and yet those who have separated you from their company are silent as a tomb never telling you why you are now persona non-grata? Has it ever appeared you have been banished from the company of others for the misdeeds of someone else, and again no one ever talks to you about it?
Sometimes the offended party is silent because they know the offense brought against them was justified. They have in fact sinned. However, that is a different situation than the one under consideration in this brief article.
One cannot be fairly disfellowshipped without being told about it, can he? Jesus said if your brother trespasses against you go and tell him his fault between you and him alone (Matt. 18:15). It is possible for one to offend another individual and not realize it. Whether the guilty one realizes it or not, Jesus said if your brother trespasses against you, go tell him. If you or I am the offended one, we have an obligation to try to resolve the problem.
It is necessary for preachers in delivering a sermon to reprove rebuke and exhort (2 Tim. 4:2). Why? Because if someone who is listening has sinned, they can have the sin identified and brought to their attention that they might repent of it and obtain God’s pardon. If there is a problem between two individuals the one who has done wrong still needs to be called upon it by the one who was wronged.
The fourth chapter of Leviticus makes it very plain that under the law of Moses a sin that is done through ignorance must be dealt with. It is obvious the principle remains as evidenced by the fact that a person who does not know the Gospel plan of salvation requires baptism because he is still amenable to it, and is lost if someone does not tell him. If someone has offended you or me let us not assume in every case that the offense was committed intentionally and with the knowledge of the offender.
It is a height of conceit if someone sins against me or you for us to clam up and not go to them as Jesus instructed and do all we can to make things right between us.
Source: The Gospel Preceptor, editor Jerry C. Brewer
