Has peer pressure ever gotten the best of you -- have you done something you know is wrong, just because you think your friends wanted you to do it? God's Word says that He loves when His people "listen carefully to the voice of the Lord your God and do what is right in His sight" (Exodus 15:26), rather than behaving in an unrighteous way. Part of behaving righteously is trying to be aware of when we hurt someone or treat them unjustly. Once we realize we have done something wrong, we need to repent and ask forgiveness.

Example of Wrong

We should follow God's command to "honor your father and mother" (Deuteronomy 5:16). He instructed His people "to do what is right, to love mercy, and to walk humbly with your God" (Micah 6:8). God's Word tells stories of His people: when they did what was right, God blessed them; when they did what was wrong, God corrected them.

Today, Christians can rely on the Holy Spirit for guidance; the Apostle Paul instructed, "let the Holy Spirit guide your lives. Then you won’t be doing what your sinful nature craves" (Galatians 5:16).

Repent and Ask Forgiveness

Since I was rude to my mother, I needed to apologize and seek forgiveness from her and from God. His Word reminds us that "if we confess our sins to Him, He is faithful and just to forgive us our sins and to cleanse us from all wickedness" (1 John 1:9).

When we have gained forgiveness, we should remember to ask God to help us so that we do not give in to the temptation to sin again. God's Word tell us, "Now repent of your sins and turn to God, so that your sins may be wiped away" (Acts 3:19).

Prayer, Care, and Share Jesus

What if you are wrong?

Scripture: Matthew 5:23-26

If you’ve been following the Prayer, Care, and Share Jesus guide, you’ve already learned that one of the first steps to CARING for someone is to ask for God’s blessing, peace and love on them. We’ve also shared with you that according to the Bible in Matthew 5:43-48, Jesus wants us to pray for our enemies, and that forgiveness plays a big role in this. God lifts a tremendous weight from our shoulders when we forgive and pray for those who have wronged us.

You might also be asking “But what do I do if I have wronged someone?” Great question! In Matthew 5:23-24 Jesus makes it clear that we should immediately go to the person, ask forgiveness, and make amends so there can be reconciliation.

This may not be easy, and should be handled with PRAYER and CARE. The Bible tell us in Matthew 18:15-17 how we should handle it. First, you are to try to work it out just between those involved. You should make every attempt to have wrongs sorted out this way. If the problem is still not resolved, then you may bring a friend trusted by everyone into the situation to help. Should the problem still be unresolved, then it is time to bring the Church into it and let a group of elders, pastors, or deacons, decide. The working out of these problems can be a great witness (example of what Jesus would do) because reconciliation and forgiveness doesn’t happen often in our world.

Someone may come to you with a wrong that you committed which you may not know about. When you become aware of the wrong, you still must apologize and make peace. This holds true even if you believe that you were not in the wrong. Jesus says clearly that the criteria is if your brother has something against you (Matthew 5:23).

Also, just because this week isn’t focused on the Take Five challenge anymore, that doesn’t mean that your challenge is over! How is your Take Five going? Continue to pray for them as well.