CHURCH DISCIPLINE

WHAT IS THE PURPOSE OF CHURCH DISCIPLINE?

Proverbs 3:11-12 . . . My child, don’t ignore it when the Lord disciplines you, and don’t be discouraged when he corrects you. For the Lord corrects those he loves, just as a father corrects a child in whom he delights.

Proverbs 29:15 . . . To discipline and reprimand a child produces wisdom, but a mother is disgraced by an undisciplined child.

Deuteronomy 8:5 . . . You should realize that just as a parent disciplines a child, the Lord your God disciplines you to help you.

Church discipline is similar to God’s discipline or parental discipline. It should be done from our desire to restore rather than to condemn. “Discipline” and “discipling” are partners.

Matthew 18:15 . . . If another believer sins against you, go privately and point out the fault. If the other person listens and confesses it, you have won that person back.

James 5:20 . . . You can be sure that the one who brings that person back will save that sinner from death and bring about the forgiveness of many sins.

Church discipline is for the benefit of the one being disciplined. The act of discipline does not make either party feel joyful, but the fruit of discipline should make both parties feel satisfied.

Hebrews 12:15 . . . Look after each other so that none of you will miss out on the special favor of God. Watch out that no bitter root of unbelief rises up among you, for whenever it springs up, many are corrupted by its poison.

1 Corinthians 5:6 . . . How terrible that you should boast about your spirituality, and yet you let this sort of thing go on. Don’t you realize that if even one person is allowed to go on sinning, soon all will be affected?

Church discipline is for the benefit of the church body. Restoring one member heals the whole body, just as healing one member of our body restores a feeling of wholeness to our body.

WHY IS CHURCH DISCIPLINE NECESSARY?

Titus 1:13 . . . Rebuke them as sternly as necessary to make them strong in the faith.

Church discipline is necessary to maintain strong faith and sound doctrine. Faith neglected can become faith lost.

2 Thessalonians 3:6-15 . . . We hear that some of you are living idle lives, refusing to work and wasting time meddling in other people’s business. In the name of the Lord Jesus Christ, we appeal to such people-no, we command them: Settle down and get to work. Earn your own living.

And I say to the rest of you, dear brothers and sisters, never get tired of doing good. Take note of those who refuse to obey what we say in this letter. Stay away from them so they will be ashamed. Don’t think of them as enemies, but speak to them as you would to a Christian who needs to be warned.

Church discipline is necessary to correct disorder that comes from an undisciplined lifestyle. One dysfunctional member can disrupt the whole body.

1 Timothy 5:20 . . . Anyone who sins should be rebuked in front of the whole church so that others will have a proper fear of God.

Galatians 2:11 . . . When Peter came to Antioch, I had to oppose him publicly, speaking strongly against what he was doing, for it was very wrong.

Church discipline is necessary as a warning to others to live obediently and restore relationship to God and others. Discipline always warns about unpleasant consequences.

1 Corinthians 5:3-5, 13 . . . Concerning the one who has done this, I have already passed judgment in the name of the Lord Jesus. You are to call a meeting of the church, and I will be there in spirit, and the power of the Lord Jesus will be with you as you meet. Then you must cast this man out of the church and into Satan’s hands, so that his sinful nature will be destroyed and he himself will be saved when the Lord returns . . .God will judge those on the outside; but as the Scriptures say, “You must remove the evil person from among you.”

Church discipline is sometimes necessary to remove the cancer of wickedness. If a member is living in sin and refuses to repent and stop and turn away from that sin, that person must be removed from the congregation before the evil infects the whole body. Otherwise, the church would be endorsing sinful acts as a way of life. This is painful surgery, but most surgery is painful. It is important to note that this passage is speaking about those who willfully sin against the words of Scripture as a lifestyle. They refuse, over a period of time, to obey God’s Word. This is not talking about an individual act of sin where repentance is expected and comes quickly.

WHEN IS CHURCH DISCIPLINE APPROPRIATE?

1 Timothy 1:20 . . . Hymenaeus and Alexander are two examples of this. I turned them over to Satan so they would learn not to blaspheme God.

2 John 1:10-11 . . . If someone comes to your meeting and does not teach the truth about Christ, don’t invite him into your house or encourage him in any way. Anyone who encourages him becomes a partner in his evil work.

2 Thessalonians 3:14-15 . . . Take note of those who refuse to obey what we say in this letter. Stay away from them so they will be ashamed. Don’t think of them as enemies, but speak to them as you would to a Christian who needs to be warned.

Romans 16:17 . . . Now I make one more appeal, my dear brothers and sisters. Watch out for people who cause divisions and upset people’s faith by teaching things that are contrary to what you have been taught. Stay away from them.

Titus 3:10 . . . If anyone is causing divisions among you, give a first and second warning. After that, have nothing more to do with that person.

1 Corinthians 5:1 . . . I can hardly believe the report about the sexual immorality going on among you, something so evil that even the pagans don’t do it. I am told that you have a man in your church who is living in sin with his father’s wife.

2 Thessalonians 3:6-10 . . . Now, dear brothers and sisters, we give you this command with the authority of our Lord Jesus Christ: Stay away from any Christian who lives in idleness and doesn’t follow the tradition of hard work we gave you. For you know that you ought to follow our example. We were never lazy when we were with you. We never accepted food from anyone without paying for it. We worked hard day and night so that we would not be a burden to any of you. It wasn’t that we didn’t have the right to ask you to feed us, but we wanted to give you an example to follow. Even while we were with you, we gave you this rule: “Whoever does not work should not eat.”

2 Corinthians 13:1-2 . . . This is the third time I am coming to visit you. As the Scriptures say, “The facts of every case must be established by the testimony of two or three witnesses.” I have already warned those who had been sinning when I was there on my second visit. Now I again warn them and all others, just as I did before, that this next time I will not spare them.

The sins listed in these examples (blasphemy, heretical doctrine, disobedience, divisiveness, sexual immorality, laziness, and unruliness) are not meant to be a complete, definitive listing. The commonality among these examples, however, is that the sin is outwardly evident, the sin is dishonoring Christ publicly, the sin is being continually practiced over time, and the individual rebelliously refuses to respond in repentance after being verbally confronted. Church discipline for this person is essential.

HOW SHOULD CHURCH DISCIPLINE BE ADMINISTERED?

Matthew 18:19-20 . . . “I also tell you this: If two of you agree down here on earth concerning anything you ask, my Father in heaven will do it for you. For where two or three gather together because they are mine, I am there among them.”

1 Corinthians 5:4 . . . You are to call a meeting of the church, and I will be there in spirit, and the power of the Lord Jesus will be with you as you meet.

Church discipline should be administered seriously in the presence of the Lord, with the power of the Lord. Church discipline starts privately, hoping for repentance. As the problem person persists in his sin and refuses to repent, church discipline becomes more and more public to the whole church body.

2 Timothy 3:16 . . . All Scripture is inspired by God and is useful to teach us what is true and to make us realize what is wrong in our lives. It straightens us out and teaches us to do what is right.

Scripture should be the guideline and basis for determining areas requiring discipline.

Matthew 18:15-17 . . . If another believer sins against you, go privately and point out the fault. If the other person listens and confesses it, you have won that person back. But if you are unsuccessful, take one or two others with you and go back again, so that everything you say may be confirmed by two or three witnesses. If that person still refuses to listen, take your case to the church. If the church decides you are right, but the other person won’t accept it, treat that person as a pagan or a corrupt tax collector.

Church discipline is a patient, deliberate process. Intimate confrontation moves to more public confrontation only when the person at fault persists in sin, refusing to repent.

2 Corinthians 2:5-11 . . . I am not overstating it when I say that the man who caused all the trouble hurt your entire church more than he hurt me. He was punished enough when most of you were united in your judgment against him. Now it is time to forgive him and comfort him. Otherwise he may become so discouraged that he won’t be able to recover.

Now show him that you still love him. I wrote to you as I did to find out how far you would go in obeying me. When you forgive this man, I forgive him, too. And when I forgive him (for whatever is to be forgiven), I do so with Christ’s authority for your benefit, so that Satan will not outsmart us. For we are very familiar with his evil schemes.

Church discipline should not be too lenient, but must correct mistakes needing correction; nor should it be too harsh and not respond in forgiveness.

Ephesians 6:4 . . . Now a word to you fathers. Don’t make your children angry by the way you treat them. Rather, bring them up with the discipline and instruction approved by the Lord.

Galatians 6:1 . . . Dear friends, if a Christian is overcome by some sin, you who are godly should gently and humbly help that person back onto the right path. And be careful not to fall into the same temptation yourself.

2 Timothy 4:2 . . . Preach the word of God. Be persistent, whether the time is favorable or not. Patiently correct, rebuke, and encourage your people with good teaching.

Church discipline should be administered in love, not in anger, with gentleness, humility, patience and instruction. Our goal is not to punish but to restore.

WHAT IS THE BALANCE BETWEEN DISCIPLINE, FORGIVENESS AND RESTORATION?

Matthew 18:21-22 . . . Then Peter came to him and asked, “Lord, how often should I forgive someone who sins against me? Seven times?” “No!” Jesus replied, “seventy times seven!”

Discipline seeks forgiveness, restoration, and growth in Christ. It should be redemptive.

2 Corinthians 7:8-11 . . . I am no longer sorry that I sent that letter to you, though I was sorry for a time, for I know that it was painful to you for a little while. Now I am glad I sent it, not because it hurt you, but because the pain caused you to have remorse and change your ways . . . For God can use sorrow in our lives to help us turn away from sin and seek salvation. We will never regret that kind of sorrow. But sorrow without repentance is the kind that results in death. Just see what this godly sorrow produced in you! Such earnestness, such concern to clear yourselves, such indignation, such alarm, such longing to see me, such zeal, and such a readiness to punish the wrongdoer. You showed that you have done everything you could to make things right.

Church discipline is not motivated by vengeance, but is driven by a desire for restoration and healing. Church discipline is discipling, helping another learn to follow Jesus Christ.

1 Timothy 1:20 . . . Hymenaeus and Alexander are two examples of this. I turned them over to Satan so they would learn not to blaspheme God.

We are to maintain hope of repentance. But some people may need to be given over to Satan (in other words, we stop pursuing them with the discipline process). Their only hope of returning to God is to first fall fully into the hands of Satan and experience the tragic feelings and consequences of being a slave to sin. They cannot experience the freedom Christ gives until they experience the slavery of Satan.

2 Corinthians 2:7-8 . . . Now it is time to forgive him and comfort him. Otherwise he may become so discouraged that he won’t be able to recover. Now show him that you still love him.

We are always to offer forgiveness and comfort in love. The fruit of true discipline is true repentance and restoration on the part of the sinner, and forgiveness and comfort on the part of the one administering the discipline.

PROMISES FROM GOD:

Ephesians 4:1-3 . . . I, a prisoner for serving the Lord, beg you to lead a life worthy of your calling, for you have been called by God. Be humble and gentle. Be patient with each other, making allowance for each other’s faults because of your love. Always keep yourselves united in the Holy Spirit, and bind yourselves together with peace.

Jude 1:22-24 . . . Show mercy to those whose faith is wavering. Rescue others by snatching them from the flames of judgment. There are still others to whom you need to show mercy, but be careful that you aren’t contaminated by their sins. And now, all glory to God, who is able to keep you from stumbling, and who will bring you into his glorious presence innocent of sin and with great joy.

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