Category: Church Discipline

Purpose/Motivation

The first aspect of biblical church discipline that we need to address is one of motive.  The Bible does not simply call the church to practice restorative church discipline.  The Bible calls us to do it in a certain way: With the motive of restoration and purity.

Motive 1: Restoration & Reconciliation (Love).

Consider the following texts:

Galatians 6:1 ¹Brothers, if anyone is caught in any transgression, you who are spiritual should restore him in a spirit of gentleness. Keep watch on yourself, lest you too be tempted.

James 5:20 ²⁰let him know that whoever brings back a sinner from his wandering will save his soul from death and will cover a multitude of sins.

1 Timothy 1:20 ²⁰among whom are Hymenaeus and Alexander, whom I have handed over to Satan that they may learn not to blaspheme.

1 Corinthians 5:5 ⁵you are to deliver this man to Satan for the destruction of the flesh, so that his spirit may be saved in the day of the Lord.

The goal of the church as a whole must never be anger, revenge, or punishment.  The primary goal of restorative church discipline in the Bible is one of restoration.  There are two aspect of this restoration.  Restoration of the believer to the church and to God himself.

1. Reconciliation between the believer and the church.  When sin is present, there also most likely some amount of conflict.  This is because when we sin, we sin agains God but also, secondarily we sin against others.  Furthermore, when the church is walking in purity, a christian who is walking in sin will not fit right within a Biblical church.  This leads to a certain level of distance that can only be fixed through repentance and restoration.
2. Reconciliation between the believer and the God. When someone is in a pattern of sin, they are not walking in the spirit and are suffering the loss of joy in God. The loving thing to do for this person is to seek to restore him in his walk with the Lord.  He needs to see Jesus as satisfying and his sin and damaging.  Church discipline is trying to lead a dehydrated man from drinking mud to drinking refreshing the water of life in the presence of God.

Motive 2: Purity (Protection)

We must realize as a church that Sin spreads. Consider the following passages:

Hebrews 12:15 ¹⁵See to it that no one fails to obtain the grace of God; that no “root of bitterness” springs up and causes trouble, and by it many become defiled;

1 Corinthians 5:2 ²And you are arrogant! Ought you not rather to mourn? Let him who has done this be removed from among you.

1 Corinthians 5:6–7 ⁶Your boasting is not good. Do you not know that a little leaven leavens the whole lump? ⁷Cleanse out the old leaven that you may be a new lump, as you really are unleavened. For Christ, our Passover lamb, has been sacrificed.

1 Timothy 5:20 ²⁰As for those who persist in sin, rebuke them in the presence of all, so that the rest may stand in fear.

Galatians 2:11 ¹¹But when Cephas came to Antioch, I opposed him to his face, because he stood condemned.

Sin causes impurity which tarnishes witness of the church. One of the reasons why the church has a bad reputation for being unloving and being full of conflict is because church discipline is not practiced.  Unrepentant sin is ignored and unbelievers cause divisions and the world sees them as believers- because the church seems to communicate that by “welcoming” them.  Welcoming people who live in sin with no desire to turn from it and run after Jesus to become part of the church is an American invention, not a biblical practice.  This is the death of the church.

This idea that unbelievers come to the church to hear about Jesus comes partly from a misunderstanding of the difference between the Old Covenant and the New.  In the Old Covenant, the people of God had a huge beautiful temple and a beautiful land.  God’s intention is that people would came to them (Think of the Queen of Sheba in 1 Kings 10).  But in the new covenant, we are not called to build big beautiful building and wait for people to come to us.  We are called to “GO and make disciples of all nations” (Matt. 18).  We are called to lead people to the cleansing blood of Jesus and then be part of our community called the church.  When someone in the community are not following Jesus, this must be addressed through Church Discipline for the sake of church purity.  God wants to make the Church pure (Eph. 5:27) and we are called to be part of this glorious project by practicing church discipline. It is a serious thing to neglect this practice that God has been very clear on (Rev. 2:20)

When is it Necessary

This list is not exhaustive, but is simply the main examples we find in the Bible. The big factor in this though is consistency and repentance.  Never does the Bible call for church discipline when there is repentance for an offense.  In each instance there seems to be a pattern of habitual sin with an false understanding that sin is ok.

1. A matter of unrepentant sin that cannot be solved privately.

 

Matthew 18:15–17 ¹⁵“If your brother sins against you, go and tell him his fault, between you and him alone. If he listens to you, you have gained your brother. ¹⁶But if he does not listen, take one or two others along with you, that every charge may be established by the evidence of two or three witnesses. ¹⁷If he refuses to listen to them, tell it to the church. And if he refuses to listen even to the church, let him be to you as a Gentile and a tax collector.

2. Someone Continually Causing Division

Romans 16:17–18 ¹⁷I appeal to you, brothers, to watch out for those who cause divisions and create obstacles contrary to the doctrine that you have been taught; avoid them. ¹⁸For such persons do not serve our Lord Christ, but their own appetites, and by smooth talk and flattery they deceive the hearts of the naive.

Titus 3:10 ¹⁰As for a person who stirs up division, after warning him once and then twice, have nothing more to do with him,

Jude 19 ¹⁹It is these who cause divisions, worldly people, devoid of the Spirit.

3. Continual & Unrepentant Incest

1 Corinthians 5:1 ¹It is actually reported that there is sexual immorality among you, and of a kind that is not tolerated even among pagans, for a man has his father’s wife.

4. Continual & Unrepentant Sexual immorality, Greek, idolatry, veiling, drunkenness, swindling

1 Corinthians 5:11 ¹¹But now I am writing to you not to associate with anyone who bears the name of brother if he is guilty of sexual immorality or greed, or is an idolater, reviler, drunkard, or swindler—not even to eat with such a one.

5. Refusing to work

2 Thessalonians 3:6–10 ⁶Now we command you, brothers, in the name of our Lord Jesus Christ, that you keep away from any brother who is walking in idleness and not in accord with the tradition that you received from us. ⁷For you yourselves know how you ought to imitate us, because we were not idle when we were with you, ⁸nor did we eat anyone’s bread without paying for it, but with toil and labor we worked night and day, that we might not be a burden to any of you. ⁹It was not because we do not have that right, but to give you in ourselves an example to imitate. ¹⁰For even when we were with you, we would give you this command: If anyone is not willing to work, let him not eat.

6. Rejecting Scriptures clear teaching

2 Thessalonians 3:14–15 ¹⁴If anyone does not obey what we say in this letter, take note of that person, and have nothing to do with him, that he may be ashamed. ¹⁵Do not regard him as an enemy, but warn him as a brother.

7. Continual blasphemy and not holding to the faith and a good conscience.

1 Timothy 1:19–20 ¹⁹holding faith and a good conscience. By rejecting this, some have made shipwreck of their faith, ²⁰among whom are Hymenaeus and Alexander, whom I have handed over to Satan that they may learn not to blaspheme.

8. Teaching False doctrine.

2 John 10–11 ¹⁰If anyone comes to you and does not bring this teaching, do not receive him into your house or give him any greeting, ¹¹for whoever greets him takes part in his wicked works.

Romans 16:17 ¹⁷I appeal to you, brothers, to watch out for those who cause divisions and create obstacles contrary to the doctrine that you have been taught; avoid them.

How?

1. Examine yourself for wrongdoing and a judgmental spirit confessed openly (Matt. 7:1-5).
2. Understand what the Bible teaches and follow it. Study carefully Matthew 18, 1 Corinthians 5, & Galatians 3 while assuming the best of everyone involved (1 Cor. 13).
3. Progressively starting with 1 on 1 (Mat 18:15).
4. With the goal of restoration as we saw above (2 Cor. 2:7-8, 7:8-11).
5. With a spirit of gentleness (Gal. 6:1)
6. With forgiveness available (Matt. 18:21-35)