Restoring A Broken MarriageSample

What if he/she is Not Repentant? 

I want to speak to the party who is truly seeking to remain faithful in the marriage. I want to share with them the importance of loving an unfaithful person. I want to say to them, “This person is not trustworthy but that’s not grounds for you to not do what you were called to do. Let’s evaluate this person not according to what they are supposed to do, but according to who they are. Let’s anticipate in wisdom how you can begin to walk in love towards this person, knowing some of the choices they are going to make.”

As a shepherd, I would have them lean heavily on the support of their congregation. To the church, I would ask that where we know there is a lack of faithfulness, we need to exercise discipline. And look at how we can support this man or woman, in the process of church discipline: 

• We understand what we’re doing, who this person is, their unwillingness to repent, and here is how we’re going to stand with you. 
• Here’s how we’re going to help you practically deal with the fact that this person is causing devastation to this relationship. 
• Let’s talk about how God wants you to handle this devastation, knowing that the church does not have all the answers, but the one thing we know is that this is an opportunity to build your character and your faith, not in that person but in Jesus Christ himself. 
• Let’s strategically identify what traits of your character we need to help you grow in through this unrepentant person. 
• What attributes of God do we help you embrace as you walk through this?

The church of our time needs to deal with marital sin in its midst. We cannot allow these things to go on in our congregations. We have to address them if we believe what the Bible says in Galatians 6:1, “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.” By addressing their sin, it is restorative in nature. It’s not punishing them, it is loving them, and seeking to rescue them.