CHURCH DISCIPLINE (see Matthew 18:15-17; 1 Corinthians 5; Luke 17:3-4)
"Though the word discipline carries negative connotations,
the practice of church discipline ought to be motivated by a positive, loving
desire both to preserve the purity of the church (2 Cor. 7:1; cf, Acts 5:11; 1
Cor. 5:1-13; 2 Thess. 3:6-15; 1 Tim. 1:19-20; Titus 1:10-16) and to restore
sinning brothers and sisters to the fellowship (cf. Luke 15:3-8; Jude 23),
Church discipline should never be motivated out of self-righteous pride,
political agendas, a desire to exercise power in an unbiblical way, or an
intent to embarrass people. Rather, it
should be overseen by the elders who, as shepherds of the flock, sincerely long
to see wandering sheep repent, return, and be restored (cf. Gal. 6:1)
The process of church discipline is outlined by the Lord Jesus in Matthew 18:15-17; 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. But 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. If 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.
This passage delineates a four-step process for how churches
are to deal with sin among their members.
First, believers are to address sin on an individual level, approaching
the offending party with a spirit of gentleness and humility. If the sinning brother responds to that
private confrontation in repentance, the church discipline process comes to an
end. He is forgiven and restored (Matt.
18-15). But if he refuses to repent, the process moves to a second step, in
which one or two more believers join in confronting the sinning brother. These witnesses (cf. Num. 35:30; Deut. 17:6; 19-15;
John 8:17; 2 Cor. 13:1; 1 Tim. 5:19; Heb. 10:28) primarily confirm that the sin
was committed, and they also observe how the offending party responds after
being confronted a second time (Matt. 18:16).
It is hoped that the added weight of their rebuke will be enough to
prompt a change of heart in the sinning brother.
Should he still refuse to repent after being given adequate time, the process moves to a third step. In light of the sinning brother’s persistent hardheartedness, the witnesses are to bring the matter to the church (Matt 18; 17) by notifying the elders, who in turn communicate it to the congregation. Because of the public nature of this step, the elders must perform due diligence to confirm the facts of the situation—that the church member has sinned, has been confronted, and has refused to repent—before announcing it to the entire congregation. The purpose of alerting the church is twofold; to remind other members of the seriousness of sin (cf. 1Tim. 5:20) and to encourage them to confront the sinning brother in the hopes that he will repent and be restored.
If the confronted
brother still refuses to repent, the final step of church discipline is to formally
separate and to ostracize him from the fellowship. The unrepentant person is no longer to be
treated as a brother but as “a Gentile and a tax-collector” (Matt.
18-17)—meaning as an outsider to whom the benefits and blessings of church
membership are no longer extended. The
motivation is not to punish the person but to see him yet come to his senses
and repent (cf. 2 Thess. 3:11-15).
Consequently, the only contact with such individuals should be for the
purpose of admonishing them and calling them to repentance. In the early church, believers were not even
to share a meal with those who persisted in unrepentant sin (1 Cor. 5:11; cf. 2
Thess. 3:6, 14). Putting them out of the church protects the purity of the
remaining members (1 Cor. 5:6) and safeguards the congregations’s testimony in
the eyes of the world.
The authority to practice church discipline in this manner comes from the Lord Jesus himself. Immediately after outlining the discipline process, Jesus explained, Truly, I say to you, whatever you bind on earth shall be bound in heaven, and whatever you loose on earth shall be loosed in heaven. Again I say to you, if two of you agree on earth about anything they ask, it will be done for them by my Father in heaven. For where two or three are gathered in my name, there am I among them. (Matt. 18:18-20). The phrases “bound in heaven” and “loosed in heaven” were rabbinical expressions that spoke, respectively, of actions either forbidden or permitted in light of God’s truth. In this context, the Lord’s meaning is clear. When the church follows the biblical procedure for church discipline, its verdict stands in harmony with God’s revealed will. Consequently, churches that excommunicate unrepentant members after following the proper process for discipline can rest in knowing that their actions meet with God’s authoritative approval. Church discipline is therefore an earthly expression of heaven’s holiness.
UNITY AND PURITY
The New Testament emphasis on fellowship underscores the
biblical call to pursue love and spiritual unity in the church. As Jesus told his disciples, “A new
commandment I give to you, that you love one another: just as I have loved you,
you also are to love one another. By
this all people will know that you are my disciples, if you have love for one
another” (John 13:34-35). At the same time,
the Lord’s instructions for church discipline in Matthew 18:15-20) remind
believers that he desires his church to be pure, both in doctrine and in
practice. Both of these qualities, unity
and purity, must be maintained as believers consider how to relate to other
professing Christians.
On the one hand, the New Testament repeatedly calls believers to live in harmony with one another (Rom. 12:16; 15:5; Col. 3:14). They are to “have unity of mind” (1 Pet. 3:8) as they eagerly seek “to maintain the unity of the Spirit in the bond of peace” (Eph. 4:3). Believers are commanded to love one another (Rom. 12:10; 13:8; 1 Thess. 3:12; 4:9; 2 Thess. 1:3; 1 Pet. 1:22; 4:8; 1 John 3:11; 23; 4:7, 11-12), 2 John 5), following the selfless and sacrificial example of Christ by showing preference to others (Phil 2:5).
Thus Paul told the Philippians, If there is any encouragement in Christ, any comfort from love, any participation in the Spirit, any affection and sympathy, complete my joy by being of the same mind, having the same love, being in full accord and of one mind. Do nothing from selfish ambition or conceit, but in humility count others more significant than yourselves. Let each of you look not only to his own interests, but also to the interests of others. (Phil. 2:1-4)
Those who cause divisions in the church are to be confronted
(cf, Rom. 16:17; 1 Cor. 1:10) and disciplined if they do not repent (Titus
3:10-11; cf. James 3:14-18).
On the other hand,
the New Testament also instructs believers to guard the truth (1 Tim. 6:20; 2
Tim. 1:14), to contend earnestly for the purity of the faith (Jude 3), and to
watch their life and doctrine closely (1 Tim. 4:16). Scripture repeatedly warns Christians to be
on the alert against sin (Eph. 6:10-18); 1 Pet. 5:8; 1 John 2:15-17) and error
(2 Tim. 3:1-9; 2 Pet. 2:1-2; 1 John 4:1-3).
They are not to associate with immoral people (1 Cor. 5:9; Eph. 5:11; 2
Thess. 3:6, 14) or those who propagate error (2 John 10; cf. Gal. 1:8-9; Titus
3:10). In fact, the New Testament reserves its harshest condemnations for false
teachers who would seek to undermine sound doctrine and promote immoral
behavior (cf. 2 Pet. 2:1-3). Such purveyors of error are variously condemned as
“ravenous wolves” (Matt. 7:15; Acts 20-29), “ dogs” who return to their own
vomit (2 Pet. 2:22; cf. Phil. 3:2), “blots and blemishes” (2 Pet. 2:13),
“accursed children” (2 Pet 2:14), “slaves of corruption” (2 Pet. 2:19), pigs
that return “ to wallow in the mire” ( 2Pet 2:22 ), “unreasoning animals” ( Jude 10; cf. 2 Pet.
2:12 ), “hidden reefs” (Jude 12), “waterless clouds” (Jude 12; cf. 2 Pet.
2:17), “fruitless trees” (Jude 12), “wild waves of the sea” that “[cast] up the
foam of their own shame: (Jude 13), and “loud-mouthed boasters” (Jude 16).
By contrast, the
church ought to be a place where righteousness and truth are championed and never
compromised. Thus Paul describes “the
church of the living God” as “a pillar and buttress of the truth” (1 Tim. 3:15). Its leaders are to give instruction in sound
doctrine and also to rebuke those who contradict it” (Titus 1:9). And in the face of falsehood, believers are
to use the truth to “destroy arguments and every lofty opinion raised against
the knowledge of God, and take every thought captive to obey Christ” (2 Cor.
10:5).
When biblical
calls for unity are considered alongside commands for purity and truth, it
becomes clear that the unity described in Scripture is not a superficial unity
that turns a blind eye to fundamental doctrinal or moral issues. Rather, true unity is grounded in a shared
commitment to the lordship of Christ and the truth of his gospel. The New Testament rejects any so-called unity
that dilutes doctrinal or moral purity. When
believers separate from apostates and false teachers, they are not being
divisive; they are following a divine mandate.
As Paul explained to the Corinthians,
Do not be unequally yoked with unbelievers. For what partnership has righteousness with
lawlessness? Or what fellowship has light with darkness? What accord has Christ
with Belial? Or what portion does a believer share with an unbeliever? What
agreement has the temple of God with idols? For we are the temple of the living
God; as God said,
“I will make my dwelling among them and walk among them, and I will be their God and they shall be my people. Therefore go out from their midst, and be separate from them, says the Lord, and touch no unclean thing; then I will welcome you, and I will be a father to you, and you shall be sons and daughters to me, says the Lord Almighty.” (2 Cor. 6:14-18)
Given the modern climate of ecumenism and political correctness, church leaders face the temptation to ignore fundamental doctrinal deviations and moral perversions for the sake of “unity” and “love.” Yet Christ-honoring love “does not rejoice at wrongdoing but rejoices with the truth” (1 Cor. 13:6), and true unity is grounded in sound doctrine (cf. 1 Tim. 6:3-4; 2 Tim. 4:3-4). At a local church-level, this commitment to purity is primarily evidenced through the faithful preaching of the Word (where sin is addressed and confronted) and through the practice of church discipline (cf. Matt. 18:15-20; 2 Thess. 3:6-14). Outside a local church context, church leaders should recognize that they cannot partner with organizations or institutions that have abandoned their commitment to sound doctrine or to biblical standards of morality. Though believers can certainly link arms in ministry with fellow Christians who uphold and exemplify the purity of the gospel, they should not partner with groups or individuals who undermine gospel truth in any way."
Except taken from Biblical Doctrine textbook, edited by Dr. MacArthur and Dr. Mayhue.
