1. Hope still dey for person wey commit serious sin? Explain.

 FOR the article before this one, we learn about wetin apostle Paul tell the congregation for Corinth make them do when one man commit serious sin and e no gree repent. E say make them remove-am from congregation. But as the Bible verse wey them carry this article from talk, Jehovah fit help person wey don commit serious sin to repent. (Rom. 2:4) How the elders fit help people wey don commit serious sin to repent?

2-3. Wetin we need to do if we know say brother or sister don commit serious sin and why?

² Before the elders go fit help person wey don commit serious sin, them go need to know say the person don commit serious sin. If we know say brother or sister for congregation commit serious sin, wetin we need to do? Make we encourage the person to go meet the elders make them help-am.—Isa. 1:18; Acts 20:28; 1 Pet. 5:2.

³ But wetin we go do if the person no gree go tell the elders wetin e don do? Make we go tell the elders wetin we know so that them go fit help the person. When we do like that, we de show say we love our brother or sister because we know say the elders go fit help-am. If the person no gree change, e go continue to spoil im friendship with Jehovah. And if people wey no de serve Jehovah hear about-am, them fit start to talk bad about Jehovah and im people. So because we love Jehovah and our brother or sister, we no go fear to talk.—Ps. 27:14.

 HOW ELDERS DE HELP PEOPLE WEY COMMIT SERIOUS SIN

4. Wetin the elders go get for mind when them meet with person wey don commit serious sin?

⁴ When person for congregation commit serious sin, the body of elders go choose three elders wey go meet with the person. a This elders wey them choose need to know where them suppose do reach and dey humble. As them de do their best to help the person wey commit serious sin to repent, them know say them no fit force-am to change. (Deut. 30:19) Elders know say no be everybody go accept help like David and repent. (2 Sam. 12:13) Some people wey commit serious sin fit no listen to advice from Jehovah. (Gen. 4:​6-8) Even with this one, wetin the elders get for mind na to help person wey sin to fit repent. Wetin the elders need to remember when them de meet with person wey don commit serious sin?

5. How elders suppose behave when them de meet with person wey don commit serious sin? (2 Timothy 2:​24-26) (Still check the picture.)

⁵ The elders know say even though say person commit serious sin, e still get value to Jehovah. (Luke 15:4, 6) So, when them meet with the person, them no go talk for harsh way, but them go treat-am for kind way. And them no go meet-am just because na wetin them suppose do. Instead, them go do their best to show the better-better character wey dey 2 Timothy 2:​24-26. (Read-am.) Them go do their best to dey gentle and dey kind because them want help the person to change the way e de think.

6. How the elders fit prepare their own heart before them go meet person wey don commit serious sin? (Romans 2:4)

⁶ The elders need to prepare their own heart. Them de try to copy the kind way Jehovah de treat sinners, and remember wetin Paul talk when e say: “God dey kind, e de try to help you make you repent.” (Read Romans 2:4.) Elders na shepherds under Christ and them go need to follow im direction and copy im example for the way them de care for the congregation. (Isa. 11:3, 4; Matt. 18:​18-20) Before the elders go meet with the person wey don commit serious sin, them go pray to Jehovah make e help them so that them go fit help the person to repent. Them go do research from Bible and our book them and pray make Jehovah help them understand the person situation. Them go need to know some things about the person life wey fit don cause the person to de  think the way e de think, and do wetin e do.—Prov. 20:5.

7-8. How elders fit copy Jehovah example to dey patient when them meet with person wey commit serious sin?

⁷ Elders de copy Jehovah example to dey patient. Them de remember how Jehovah try to help people wey commit sin for past. For example, Jehovah dey patient with Cain and tell-am wetin go happen to-am if e no gree change and say e go get blessing if e obey. (Gen. 4:6, 7) Jehovah send prophet Nathan to correct David. When Nathan meet King David, e use one story help-am fit think deep and repent. (2 Sam. 12:​1-7) And Jehovah “continue to send” im prophets “again and again” to Israel people when them disobey-am. (Jer. 7:​24, 25) E no wait for im people to repent before e help them. Instead, when them still de sin, e advice and de encourage them to repent.

⁸ Elders de try copy Jehovah example when them de try help people wey commit serious sin. As 2 Timothy 4:2 talk, them “dey patient” for the way them de treat brother or sister wey commit serious sin. So elder need to dey calm and dey patient so that e go fit help person wey don sin to do the correct thing. If the elder vex or e show-am say the matter tire-am, the person wey sin fit no listen to advice or fit no want repent.

9-10. How the elders fit help the person think deep about how the decisions wey e make cause-am to commit serious sin?

⁹ Elders go try know the things wey happen before the person commit serious sin. For example, wetin don make the friendship wey the Christian get with Jehovah weak? Na because e stop to de do personal study or to go preaching? Or na because e no de always pray to Jehovah? Or na because e don de allow bad thing to de grow for im heart? Who be im friends? Which kind things e de use enjoy imself? How all this things don affect the way e de think and feel? E understand how Jehovah de feel about wetin e don do?

¹⁰ The elders fit ask the person questions wey go make-am think deep about the things wey fit don make im friendship with Jehovah weak and make-am sin. Them go do-am for kind way and them no go ask-am some private matter wey no concern the matter, or wey them no suppose know. (Prov. 20:5) Apart from that one, elders fit use example to help the person think deep about wetin e don do so that e go understand why wetin e do really bad, just the way Nathan help David. E fit be say as them de meet with the person for the first time, e fit start to feel sorry for the things wey e do and begin to change the way e de think. In fact, e fit even repent.

11. How Jesus treat people wey commit sin?

¹¹ Elders de do their best to copy Jesus example. When Jesus de help Saul of Tarsus, e ask-am one question wey make-am think. Jesus ask-am say: “Saul, Saul, why you de suffer me?” This question help-am see say wetin e de do no correct. (Acts 9:​3-6) And when Jesus de talk about “that woman Jezebel,” e talk say: “I give-am time to change.”—Rev. 2:​20, 21.

12-13. How the elders fit allow time for the person wey commit serious sin to repent? (Still check the picture.)

¹² Because the elders de copy Jesus example, them no de hurry to talk say person wey don commit serious sin no go fit repent. Na true say some people fit repent for the first time wey the committee meet with them, but other people fit need more time. So the elders fit arrange to meet with person wey commit serious sin more than one time. E dey possible say after the first time wey them meet  with-am, person wey commit serious sin fit start to think deep about the things wey the elders tell-am. E fit show say e dey humble and pray to Jehovah make e forgive-am. (Ps. 32:5; 38:18) So, the next time wey them go meet-am, e fit behave for better way pass the way e behave for the first meeting.

¹³ To help move the person wey don sin to repent, the elders go need to show say them de feel for the person and dey kind. Them de pray to Jehovah make e bless everything wey them go do to help-am and hope say the brother or sister wey don sin go think deep and repent.—2 Tim. 2:​25, 26.

14. Who de really help person wey commit serious sin to repent, and why we talk like that?

¹⁴ If the person wey commit sin repent, we go really happy! (Luke 15:7, 10) But who go get the praise? Na the elders? Think about wetin apostle Paul write about people wey commit sin. E talk say: “Maybe God go fit allow them repent.” (2 Tim. 2:25) So na Jehovah, no be anybody, don help the brother or sister change the way e de think and behave. Paul explain some of the good wey de happen after person don repent. The person go understand the truth more-more, come back to im sense and e go fit run comot from the trap of Devil.—2Ti 2:26.

15. How elders fit continue to help person wey repent?

¹⁵ When person wey commit sin repent, the elders wey handle the matter go arrange to continue to visit-am so that them go fit help-am to make im faith strong, to fit face any other temptation, and to fit do the correct thing. (Heb. 12:​12, 13) The truth be say the elders wey handle the matter go keep the matter private. But wetin brothers and sisters for congregation go need to know?

“FOR FRONT OF EVERYBODY, . . . GIVE STRONG CORRECTION”

16. As e dey for 1 Timothy 5:​20, who be the “everybody” wey Paul de talk about?

¹⁶ Read 1 Timothy 5:20. Paul write wetin we just read to Timothy wey be another elder say make e give strong correction for “front  of everybody” to “people wey continue to sin.” Wetin this one mean? E mean say na to correct person wey commit sin for front of “everybody” for congregation? E fit no be so. Instead, e de talk about the people wey know about the sin wey the person commit. Them fit be people wey see wetin happen or the people wey the person wey commit sin fit don tell. The elders go tell only this people say them don handle the matter and don correct the person wey sin.

17. If plenty people for congregation fit don know or them go later know about the serious sin wey person commit, wetin the elders go announce, and why?

¹⁷ Sometimes, plenty people for congregation fit don know or them go later know about the serious sin wey person commit. For this situation, na the whole congregation be the “everybody” wey apostle Paul de talk about. So elder go announce say them don reprove the brother or sister. Why? Paul talk say: “So that this one go be warning for other people” for congregation make them no fall for sin.

18. Wetin the elders go do if person wey don baptize and never reach 18 years for age commit serious sin? (Still check the picture.)

¹⁸ Wetin the elders go do if person wey don baptize and never reach 18 years for age commit serious sin? The elders go arrange make two elders meet with the pikin, together with im papa and mama wey be servant of Jehovah. b The elders go like know wetin them don do to help their pikin to fit repent. If the pikin follow the advice wey im papa and mama give-am to fit change the way e de think  and behave, the two elders fit decide say e no go dey necessary make committee of elders meet with the pikin and im papa and mama. Because the elders know say na papa and mama Jehovah don give the work to train and correct their pikin with love. (Deut. 6:6, 7; Prov. 6:20; 22:6; Eph. 6:​2-4) But the elders go arrange to visit the papa and mama from time to time to make sure say their pikin get the help wey e need. But wetin go happen if the pikin continue to commit sin and no gree repent? For that situation, elders go arrange make committee of elders meet with the pikin together with im papa and mama wey be servant of Jehovah.

“THE LOVE WEY JEHOVAH GET REALLY DEEP AND E DE SHOW PITY”

19. How elders fit copy Jehovah example when them de meet with person wey commit serious sin?

¹⁹ Jehovah give elders the work to protect the congregation from people wey no want follow God law and make-am clean. (1 Cor. 5:7) Them de do their best to help people wey commit serious sin to repent if e dey possible. And when them de help anybody wey sin, them get hope say the person go change. Why? Because them want copy Jehovah example, the God wey get ‘deep love and de show pity.’ (Jas. 5:11) See how apostle John show love to im brothers and sisters. E write say: “My small children, I de write this things to una so that una no go sin. But if anybody sin, we get person wey de help us and e dey with the Papa. This person na Jesus Christ, wey de do wetin correct for God eye.”—1 John 2:1.

20. Wetin we go discuss for the last article for this Watchtower?

²⁰ E no de make us happy to know say sometimes some Christians no de gree repent. If na so, them go remove them from the congregation. Wetin elders go do when e happen like that? We go talk about this one for the last article for this Watchtower.