Church Discipline, Part 2 - 1 Cor. 5

Introduction  The Corinthian church did exactly what most churches do as far as church discipline goes: NOTHING! As we saw last week, God has established three marks, three characteristics, that are essential for the existence and well-being of his Church: the faithful preaching of his Word, the proper observation of baptism and the Lord's Supper, and church discipline. Remove one of these marks and you no longer have a true church of the Lord Jesus Christ.  By refusing to practice church discipline, the church at Corinth was acting as not a church. It was also being cruel and unkind to the people who were overcome by sin. Notice that in our passage Paul does not spend a lot time correcting the man who had acted immorally toward his stepmother. As grievous and serious as that sin was, the fact that the church was doing nothing about it – even more, the fact that the church was proud about not doing anything about it – was much more serious.  I. A Brief Review: Why Is Church Discipline Important?  A. Because it preserves the honor of God in his Church and in the world.  B. Because it preserves the purity of the Church of Jesus Christ.  C. Because it restores a wayward Christian.  D. Because it restrains sin.  E. Because it establishes a clear line of demarcation between the Church and the world.  II. What Is Church Discipline?  A. It is the process by which the boundaries of the Visible Church are established.  B. Paul speaks about these boundaries when he teaches that there are those who are "inside" and those who are "outside," vv. 12-13.  C. We can re-word our definition of church discipline as the process of being admitted into and removed from the membership of the church.  III. What Should the Corinthian Church Have Done?  A. What they should have done and what we must do is clearly described by our Savior in Mt. 18:15-17.  B. The very first thing we must notice about this passage is that it introduces the theme of restoration, not condemnation.  C. Notice also that before it becomes an issue that the whole church is drawn in, it involves a much smaller circle or people.  D. This passage implies earnest pursuit.  E. What if the brother/sister refuses to listen to me? Enlist the help of one or two other Christians to come along with you.  F. If there is no repentance, the rest of the church must be involved.  IV. The Last Part of Our Lord's Instructions Brings Us back to 1 Cor. 5: Treat Him as a Heathen and Tax Collector.  A. Treating the one who was named a brother as a heathen and a tax collector is equivalent to handing him over to Satan, 5.  B. It is worth repeating that even at this point the goal is restoration – that his spirit may be saved.  C. This is an authoritative declaration – it is done in the name of Christ, 4.  D. It is a public declaration – when you are gathered, 4.  E. It is a binding declaration – it requires the whole church to act in a certain way, 11, 13.  V. A Word about Being Turned over to Satan Is Necessary at This Point.  A. The Bible speaks of the created moral order as divided into two kingdoms: the kingdom of Jesus and the kingdom of Satan.  B. When a person is turned over to Satan or placed outside of the church, this act does not cause eternal damnation or eternal salvation.  C. It does declare that the Visible Church has no reason to think that this person has credible profession of faith and that the person himself has no reason to think that his faith in Christ is genuine.  D. Being placed under Satan is a dangerous place to be.  Conclusion  Our God, who is jealous for his honor and the good of his church, has appointed this process. A painful process, to be sure, but one that drives us to Christ because it shows our insufficiency. We serve a Savior who loves to help us obey him in our weakness and who is purifying us every moment. Even church discipline is a loving instrument in our Redeemer's hand.

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