Monday, July 31, 2017
Church Discipline
"Expel the wicked man from among you." (1 Cor. 5:13b)
Our church family is working through the New Testament and today's reading is 1 Corinthians 5 which tells about the man having an incestuous relationship with his stepmother. There seems to be a lot of confusion about church discipline. Churches seem to go from one extreme to another. Either they don't do it at all, and anything and everything goes. Or it becomes abusive because it is applied when it should not have been.
A few things stood out to me as I was reading this passage and I observed two main purposes in putting someone out of the church fellowship:
1. To restore the one who is the offender. Verse 5 states, "Hand this man over to Satan, so that his sinful nature may be destroyed and his spirit saved on the day of the Lord." The purpose here is that hopefully by putting him out of the fellowship it would cause him to repent. In 2 Corinthians 2: 5-11 (assuming it's the same person) when the man does repent Paul says to bring him back in to the fellowship.
The second reason is to keep the church body from being infected.
Verse 6 in chapter 5 says, "Your boasting is not good. Don't you know that a little yeast works through the whole batch of dough?" This man's sin had become an infection that was harming the rest of the body. It says they were boasting and in an earlier verse it says they had become proud.
So it appears that two purposes are to hopefully bring the immoral brother to repentance while at the same time protecting the rest of the fellowship.
When should a person be disfellowshipped?
Matthew 17:15-17 gives a pattern of going to the person privately first, then take one or two witnesses. If that doesn't work take it to the church. The last part of verse 17 says, "If he refuses to listen even to the church, treat him as you would a pagan or tax collector." It is to be done only when all else has failed. It is NOT to be done to someone who is struggling with a stronghold in his life. It is when he REFUSES to listen.
I'm going to go out on a limb here somewhat but I DO NOT believe that this applies to criminal activity. I have personally experienced where a church used excommunication to deal with a child molester. If it is criminal activity it needs to be dealt with by the governing authorities. Romans 13:4 says that those in authority are there by God's design; (vs. 4b) "He is God's servant, an agent of wrath to bring punishment on the wrongdoer." A church body does not have any authority to deal with criminal activity. And if they attempt to do so, they could be charged with harboring a criminal or being an accomplice -- or forcing others into that position. Obviously, putting a criminal out of fellowship likely would be fitting but then bring in the governing authorities appropriately.
These are my thoughts on this subject. I hope it makes sense and I hope you all have a very blessed day.
The True Source of Our Sin
James 1: 14-15, "But each one is tempted when, by his own evil desire, he is dragged away and enticed. Then after desire has conceived, it gives birth to sin; and sin, when it is full grown, gives birth to death."
We all know that gasoline is extremely flammable. If you take a bucket and fill it with gas, place it in an open room and throw a lit match at it, it will literally explode in flames. But here's the thing. without a flame, spark or some kind of trigger, that bucket full of gasoline will sit there harmlessly.
In many ways, that's how the sinful nature is. As long as we can keep the triggers away we can behave pretty well. We see that in the narrative of David and Bathsheba. David was going along doing pretty well until he saw this woman bathing on her rooftop. That was the trigger. She didn't cause him to sin. she was the trigger that brought out the sinful nature that was already in David.
Now let's imagine that we empty the gas out of the bucket, clean it out, and fill it with water. What happens when we throw the match at it now? Nothing. And if the match lands in the water, it will put the match out.
That's what God is doing in the process of sanctification. He is emptying the gasoline out, cleaning out the residue, and replacing it with water.
Now imagine for a moment that David didn't have any of the lustful sin nature within him. What happens when he sees Bathsheba bathing? It's like throwing a lit match at a bucket of water. Nothing is going to happen. Because the new nature doesn't respond to sinful stimuli.
Now the fact remains that our sanctification is a process that will never be completed until our savior takes us to be with him. So in many ways, we will always be somewhat flammable. Because of that, it is necessary to make sure that we keep the open flames and sparks of temptation away. Put the blocking software on your internet devices and unplug the TV if need be. Do what we need to to keep from acting out or sinfulness. But I wonder if sometimes we stop there, without going to the real issue, and that is, in my fallen nature, I am a bucket full of gasoline.
We need to go to 1 John 1:9, "If we confess our sins, he is faithful and just and will forgive us our sins and purify us from all unrighteousness."
I need to confess that I am a bucket full of flammable liquid and ask him to clean it out of me. That is the real heart of the issue. We need God to give us the new nature.
God bless you all.
We all know that gasoline is extremely flammable. If you take a bucket and fill it with gas, place it in an open room and throw a lit match at it, it will literally explode in flames. But here's the thing. without a flame, spark or some kind of trigger, that bucket full of gasoline will sit there harmlessly.
In many ways, that's how the sinful nature is. As long as we can keep the triggers away we can behave pretty well. We see that in the narrative of David and Bathsheba. David was going along doing pretty well until he saw this woman bathing on her rooftop. That was the trigger. She didn't cause him to sin. she was the trigger that brought out the sinful nature that was already in David.
Now let's imagine that we empty the gas out of the bucket, clean it out, and fill it with water. What happens when we throw the match at it now? Nothing. And if the match lands in the water, it will put the match out.
That's what God is doing in the process of sanctification. He is emptying the gasoline out, cleaning out the residue, and replacing it with water.
Now imagine for a moment that David didn't have any of the lustful sin nature within him. What happens when he sees Bathsheba bathing? It's like throwing a lit match at a bucket of water. Nothing is going to happen. Because the new nature doesn't respond to sinful stimuli.
Now the fact remains that our sanctification is a process that will never be completed until our savior takes us to be with him. So in many ways, we will always be somewhat flammable. Because of that, it is necessary to make sure that we keep the open flames and sparks of temptation away. Put the blocking software on your internet devices and unplug the TV if need be. Do what we need to to keep from acting out or sinfulness. But I wonder if sometimes we stop there, without going to the real issue, and that is, in my fallen nature, I am a bucket full of gasoline.
We need to go to 1 John 1:9, "If we confess our sins, he is faithful and just and will forgive us our sins and purify us from all unrighteousness."
I need to confess that I am a bucket full of flammable liquid and ask him to clean it out of me. That is the real heart of the issue. We need God to give us the new nature.
God bless you all.
Judgment is Coming
Rev. 20: 12, "And I saw the dead, great and small, standing before the throne, and books were opened. Another book was opened, which is the book of life. The dead were judged according to what they had done as recorded in the books."
I realize that I am a "day late and a dollar short", but there is something that has been gnawing on me about, both the book and the movie, The Shack. This issue has been brought up but it keeps bugging me that it's a much more important issue than has been made of it. That is the part about Mac, as a boy, murdering (or at least, attempting to) his father by lacing his dad's liquor with poison.
In the book, it was one short sentence. The movie, however accentuated and dramatized it as the opening scene. It is never brought up again and Mac is never required to deal with what he had done.
The thing is, that scene could have been left out entirely and it wouldn't have made any difference. Just leave it that Mac ran away from home to escape his abusive, alcoholic father. It would have made sense to omit that part because after the book came out, some of the detractors made mention of it as a problem. But rather than remove the scene, the producers highlighted it.
WHY??
I'm convinced that it was left in on purpose even though it really had nothing to do with the actual story because it sends a very clear message:
THERE IS NO COMING JUDGMENT.
Therefore, there is no need for us to repent of our sins.
This is all too common in modern evangelical Christianity today. We've abandoned the true gospel and adopted a "therapeutic deism", where salvation means that God sent his son to die for us to remove our pain and suffering. In other words, we are victims; not villains.
Now some might say, "But that wasn't what The Shack was about. it was about dealing with incredible pain and grief" I agree. So why was that part in there if not to promote that philosophical view of the gospel? It would have taken nothing away from the issues of pain and grief to leave it out.
Another might say, "Well people won't respond to the gospel if we talk about the negative aspects like judgment and the need to repent of sin. That sounds so harsh, unloving, and uncompassionate". That's, no doubt true. But if it is the truth, shouldn't we tell people the truth, regardless? What would you think of the weatherman on the radio if he KNEW that all the computer models showed that by tomorrow, we were going to have a very strong storm system coming through which could produce some of the worst, severe weather we'd had in recent memory. But in the interest of not alarming people and wanting to give a "positive, uplifting" forecast, decided to predict a beautiful day full of sunshine. People would be outraged. And he would undoubtedly be fired. When it comes to the weather, we want to know the truth so we can be prepared. Doesn't it seem that when it comes to people's eternal future, that the most loving thing we can do is tell people the truth?
The message the early apostles preached contained a lot of warning, Acts 2:40, "With many other words he warned them; and he pleaded with them, 'Save yourselves from this corrupt generation' ". As Dr. Martin Lloyd Jones said, "The gospel has only one message for the unrepentant sinner:
JUDGMENT IS COMING!" (my caps)
Sadly, we've come to the time that Paul spoke about in 2 Timothy 4:3-4, "For the time will come when men will not put up with sound doctrine. Instead, to suit their own desires, they will gather around them a great number of teachers to say what their itching ears want to hear. They will turn their ears away from the truth and turn aside to myths".
I read The Shack and I saw the movie. I enjoyed both. But some things in it are a serious problem. And even though this is a work of fiction, too often these are the views that are coming from pulpits. And it is easy to fill a church up with this type of message. Yes, God intends to heal and great wholeness is found in following him. But man has a FAR greater problem that the hurts, grief and pain he experiences in this life. We are condemned (John 3:18) before we come to saving faith in Jesus Christ. Having all of the other things restored won't do us any good if ultimately we are going to face judgment and be lost for eternity anyway. And preaching the "therapeutic" gospel message that leaves out the all important parts about judgment and repenting of works that lead to death (Heb. 6:1), while sounding kind and loving, is actually the most hateful thing anyone can do.
Well, I'm finished, and I don't have a nice, neat way to conclude this so, because I am done, I'll stop.
May God bless you all.
I realize that I am a "day late and a dollar short", but there is something that has been gnawing on me about, both the book and the movie, The Shack. This issue has been brought up but it keeps bugging me that it's a much more important issue than has been made of it. That is the part about Mac, as a boy, murdering (or at least, attempting to) his father by lacing his dad's liquor with poison.
In the book, it was one short sentence. The movie, however accentuated and dramatized it as the opening scene. It is never brought up again and Mac is never required to deal with what he had done.
The thing is, that scene could have been left out entirely and it wouldn't have made any difference. Just leave it that Mac ran away from home to escape his abusive, alcoholic father. It would have made sense to omit that part because after the book came out, some of the detractors made mention of it as a problem. But rather than remove the scene, the producers highlighted it.
WHY??
I'm convinced that it was left in on purpose even though it really had nothing to do with the actual story because it sends a very clear message:
THERE IS NO COMING JUDGMENT.
Therefore, there is no need for us to repent of our sins.
This is all too common in modern evangelical Christianity today. We've abandoned the true gospel and adopted a "therapeutic deism", where salvation means that God sent his son to die for us to remove our pain and suffering. In other words, we are victims; not villains.
Now some might say, "But that wasn't what The Shack was about. it was about dealing with incredible pain and grief" I agree. So why was that part in there if not to promote that philosophical view of the gospel? It would have taken nothing away from the issues of pain and grief to leave it out.
Another might say, "Well people won't respond to the gospel if we talk about the negative aspects like judgment and the need to repent of sin. That sounds so harsh, unloving, and uncompassionate". That's, no doubt true. But if it is the truth, shouldn't we tell people the truth, regardless? What would you think of the weatherman on the radio if he KNEW that all the computer models showed that by tomorrow, we were going to have a very strong storm system coming through which could produce some of the worst, severe weather we'd had in recent memory. But in the interest of not alarming people and wanting to give a "positive, uplifting" forecast, decided to predict a beautiful day full of sunshine. People would be outraged. And he would undoubtedly be fired. When it comes to the weather, we want to know the truth so we can be prepared. Doesn't it seem that when it comes to people's eternal future, that the most loving thing we can do is tell people the truth?
The message the early apostles preached contained a lot of warning, Acts 2:40, "With many other words he warned them; and he pleaded with them, 'Save yourselves from this corrupt generation' ". As Dr. Martin Lloyd Jones said, "The gospel has only one message for the unrepentant sinner:
JUDGMENT IS COMING!" (my caps)
Sadly, we've come to the time that Paul spoke about in 2 Timothy 4:3-4, "For the time will come when men will not put up with sound doctrine. Instead, to suit their own desires, they will gather around them a great number of teachers to say what their itching ears want to hear. They will turn their ears away from the truth and turn aside to myths".
I read The Shack and I saw the movie. I enjoyed both. But some things in it are a serious problem. And even though this is a work of fiction, too often these are the views that are coming from pulpits. And it is easy to fill a church up with this type of message. Yes, God intends to heal and great wholeness is found in following him. But man has a FAR greater problem that the hurts, grief and pain he experiences in this life. We are condemned (John 3:18) before we come to saving faith in Jesus Christ. Having all of the other things restored won't do us any good if ultimately we are going to face judgment and be lost for eternity anyway. And preaching the "therapeutic" gospel message that leaves out the all important parts about judgment and repenting of works that lead to death (Heb. 6:1), while sounding kind and loving, is actually the most hateful thing anyone can do.
Well, I'm finished, and I don't have a nice, neat way to conclude this so, because I am done, I'll stop.
May God bless you all.
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