Healthy Church Discipline
Church discipline is that element of Church life with specific and complimentary objectives. Proper discipline serves to maintain/restore an individual to a Christ like walk and to maintain the purity of the Church.
Over the last couple of lessons, we have looked at Conversion and Church Membership. Conversion is where the Holy Spirit regenerates our dead spirit and we are enabled to accept the gift of God – faith unto salvation.
Then we looked at Church membership. Church membership comes after conversion. We strive to ensure those that we bring into membership are truly regenerated. Once accepted into membership, members enjoy the benefits and responsibilities of the covenant fellowship.
As we saw, among the responsibilities of membership is to encourage, edify, build up, and reprove fellow members. These responsibilities involve working alongside elders to protect the gospel and to protect the purity of the church.
This brings us to our study tonight - Church Discipline. You may recall from last week we saw where the membership, not just the eldership, is responsible to protect the gospel and the church by encouraging and calling to account transgressors.
Paul called out the Corinthian Church for such a failure. 1 Corinthians 5:1-5, It 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. 2 And you are arrogant! Ought you not rather to mourn? Let him who has done this be removed from among you. 3 For though absent in body, I am present in spirit; and as if present, I have already pronounced judgment on the one who did such a thing. 4 When you are assembled in the name of the Lord Jesus and my spirit is present, with the power of our Lord Jesus, 5 you 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.
There are too many churches today that do not take seriously the admonition to engage discipline that strengthens members, preserves the church and glorifies God.
What is Church discipline?
Many people think of church discipline in a negative light. As we will see in scripture and this lesson, it is not negative but positive as it is designed to bring us in alignment with God and to purify his church.
It is positive -Our most sincere desire for a church is that we glorify God – that is the aim of discipline.
There are two primary categories of discipline that take place in the church—formative and corrective.
Formative Discipline
“Formative discipline” is administered far more frequently. In fact, it should happen all the time with every church member. This is simply the process of bringing people to maturity in Christ through positive instruction and teaching—through formation.
When the Word is preached, taught, administered and we respond with conviction, or when Christians encourage each other, that is formative discipline. Ephesians 4: 11 And he gave the apostles, the prophets, the evangelists, the shepherds and teachers, 12 to equip the saints for the work of ministry, for building up the body of Christ, 13 until we all attain to the unity of the faith and of the knowledge of the Son of God, to mature manhood, to the measure of the stature of the fullness of Christ, 14 so that we may no longer be children, tossed to and fro by the waves and carried about by every wind of doctrine, by human cunning, by craftiness in deceitful schemes. 15 Rather, speaking the truth in love, we are to grow up in every way into him who is the head, into Christ,
Formative discipline is crucial because God uses it to prevent the sin that might require corrective discipline. The more the church is shaped by formative discipline, the less it will need corrective discipline.
We see that Paul’s example and the scripture itself testifies to formative discipline – 2 Timothy 3:16-17 16 All Scripture is breathed out by God and profitable for teaching, for reproof, for correction, and for training in righteousness, 17 that the man of God[ may be complete, equipped for every good work.
If members are not growing in grace, their affections are not on the things above (Colossians 3:2), are not loving fellow Christians, then maybe they are not regenerate.
Corrective Discipline
“Corrective discipline” is the specific admonishment or correction of a particular member for unrepentant sin. Formative is general to all members; corrective discipline is specific to a member.
Sometimes corrective discipline is informal, as when one member says to another, “Hey, Tom, I think you’re wrong.” Occasionally, it is formal, as when the entire congregation acts together by saying something like, “Sally, we know that you claim to be a Christian, but we must now treat you like a non-Christian because you continue to live in adultery.”
Church discipline is the work of correcting sin in the life of the body. On rare occasion, it can also include a final step of excluding a professing Christian from membership in the church and participation in the Lord’s Supper because of serious unrepentant sin.
Wait, what is this about not participating in the Lord Supper? Yes, a responsibility of the church is to “fence the table”. If we know a member has unrepented sin, it is our responsibility to suspend them from this ordnance until repentant. This protects them and purity of the ordnance. Paul wrote 1 Corinthians 11:26-27, 26 For as often as you eat this bread and drink the cup, you proclaim the Lord's death until he comes. 27 Whoever, therefore, eats the bread or drinks the cup of the Lord in an unworthy manner will be guilty concerning the body and blood of the Lord.
Where is it in the Bible?
The New Testament commands corrective discipline. As quoted in 1 Corinthians 5 above, discipline to the point of excommunication was commanded. The Lord in Matthew 18:15–17, 15 “Moreover if your brother sins against you, go and tell him his fault between you and him alone. If he hears you, you have gained your brother. 16 But if he will not hear, take with you one or two more, that ‘by the mouth of two or three witnesses every word may be established.’ 17 And if he refuses to hear them, tell it to the church. But if he refuses even to hear the church, let him be to you like a heathen and a tax collector.
Why is it important?
Hebrews 12: 5-11 tells us the God disciplines us as sons and that shows his love for us. Verse 7-9, 7 It is for discipline that you have to endure. God is treating you as sons. For what son is there whom his father does not discipline? 8 If you are left without discipline, in which all have participated, then you are illegitimate children and not sons.
Discipline shows God loves us – that is positive.
Paul often uses athletes as an analogy. Athletic training requires instructing and drilling. Sometimes, the coach must bench a player for attitude or nonperformance.
God disciplines his children for the sake of their life, growth, and health: “God disciplines us for our good, that we may share in his holiness”
No discipline seems pleasant at the time, but painful. Later, however, it produces a harvest of righteousness and peace for those who have been trained by it” (Heb. 12:11).
Church discipline ultimately leads to church growth, just as pruning a rose bush leads to more roses. Corrective church discipline is the process of correcting sin in the life of the congregation and its members.
Church discipline is not retributive
There is often a negative view of church discipline because it was not conducted properly or with the right spirit. Correcting sin is not retributive. It is not a punishment per se’ but a means of restoration reserved for unrepentant sin.
We are not enacting God’s justice. That is his purview alone. Our aim is to carry out the scripture with the goal of bringing the member to restoration.
It’s meant to help the individual Christian and the congregation grow in godliness and conforming to the image of Christ. (Romans 8:29)
If a member of the church is given to gossip or slander, another member should correct the sin so that the gossiper will stop gossiping and speak words of love instead.
Proper church discipline is prophetic in it shines the light of God’s truth onto error and sin. It exposes cancer in an individual’s or the body’s life, so that the cancer might be cut out.
As a warning in that church discipline is a loving way to say to an individual caught in sin, “Careful, an even greater penalty will result if you continue on this path. Please turn back now.” But how merciful God is to warn his people of the great judgment to come in comparatively small ways now!
Church discipline, is the church’s response when one of its own fails to represent God’s holiness, love, or unity by being disobedient to God.
When should a church practice discipline?
The short answer is when someone continues in sins- they have not responded to the private admonition, then corrective discipline could be in order.
Any sin, whether of a serious or non-serious nature, might elicit a private rebuke between two brothers or sisters. When we turn to the question of which sins require formal or church-wide corrective discipline, we need to tread a little more carefully.
The Congregationalist minister John Angell James said that five kinds of offenses should be disciplined:
(1) all scandalous vices and immoralities (1 Cor. 5:11–13).
(2) the denial of Christian doctrine (Gal. 1:8;2 Tim. 2:17–21; 1 Tim. 6:3–5.)
(3) the stirring up of division (Titus 3:10).
(4) the failure to provide for one’s near relatives when they are in need (1 Tim. 5:8).
(5) and unreconciled enmity (Matt. 18:7).
Each of the sins described are both serious and have an outward manifestation.
Outward, Serious, and Unrepentant
One way to summarize the biblical data is to say that that formal church discipline is required in cases of outward, serious, and unrepentant sin. A sin must have an outward manifestation - seen with the eyes or heard with the ears.
A special note – it must be a sin not a preference. We have been given liberty in Christ. We must not mistake our personal preference for sin in others. If we are to call out our brothers and sisters, it must be based on scripture.
A sin must be serious. For instance, we might observe a brother exaggerating the details of a story and then privately confront him over the matter. But even if he denies it, we probably wouldn’t draw him in front of the church.
Pursuing every tiny sin in a church’s life will probably induce paranoia and propel the congregation toward legalism. It would not be setting the loving tone established by Jesus in John 14. There clearly needs to be a place for love to “cover a multitude of sins” in a congregation’s life (1 Pet. 4:8). Not every sin should be pursued to the utmost.
Finally, unrepentant - formal church discipline is the appropriate course of action when sin is unrepentant.
How should a church practice discipline?
How should a church practice church discipline? Jesus provides the basic outline in Matthew 18:15–17. The offense starts between two brothers, and the response should extend no further than it needs to go in order to produce reconciliation.
Four Basic Steps
- If a sin problem can be resolved between the two people by themselves, then the case is closed.
- If it cannot be resolved, then the offended brother should bring two or three others so “that every charge may be established by the evidence of two or three witnesses”
Jesus takes this phrase from Deuteronomy 19, which in context is meant to protect people against false accusations. Deuteronomy in fact calls for a “thorough investigation” whenever there’s any doubt about the crime (Deut. 19:18).
Both this step and the prior step may occur over several meetings as needed.
- If the intervention of the two or three does not provide a solution, the offended party is then instructed to tell it to the church. This is such a serious step, where we should apply absolute wisdom.
Before we bring an offense to the entire congregation, we should seek the counsel of pastor/elders. This serves to provide another avenue to handle the offense to resolution without casting out the offender or causing disunity. It brings wisdom and balance.
Should it be necessary to go forth to the body, then there should be a brief description of the offense, describe why it is an offense to the body, and once more give the offender the opportunity to repent.
- The final step of church discipline is exclusion from the fellowship or membership of the church, which essentially means exclusion from the Lord’s Table: “And if he refuses to listen even to the church, let him be to you as a Gentile and a tax collector. He is to be treated as someone outside of God’s covenant people, someone who should not partake of Christ’s covenant meal.
That does not mean that we stop loving and caring. In fact, we need to make sure the offender knows we continue to want repentance, restoration and reconciliation. Our arms must be open as it would be to anyone outside the church.
Why Slow Down or Speed Up the Process?
Generally, the processes of discipline should move slowly, thoughtfully, with love and care for the individual. This is the case, for instance, when a sinner shows at least some interest in fighting against his sin. It’s not just the nature of the sin which needs to be considered, it’s the nature of the sinner himself.
Different sinners, to put it bluntly, require different strategies. As Paul instructs, “admonish the idle, encourage the fainthearted, help the weak, be patient with them all” (1 Thes. 5:14). Sometimes it’s not immediately apparent whether people are idle or indifferent toward their sin or if they’re genuinely weak. Sin is a trap and sometimes hard to escape.
Sometimes the processes of discipline need to speed up.
Two clear biblical warrants for speeding up the processes of discipline are (1) division in the church and (2) public scandal (i.e., sin that will misrepresent Christ in the community beyond the church).
Regarding the first category, Paul says, “As for a person who stirs up division, after warning him once and then twice, have nothing more to do with him” (Titus 3:10).
An even faster process is presented in 1 Corinthians 5, in which Paul calls upon the church to immediately remove an individual known to be engaged in a publicly scandalous sin, that is, a sin of which even the non-Christian community disapproves.
Therefore, the church should respond with an equally public statement before the world: “Not acceptable! Christians don’t do this!”
Attendance and Restoration
Church members often wonder whether a person who has been excluded from membership and the Lord’s Table can continue attending the church’s weekly gatherings, as well as how they should interact with him or her throughout the week.
Except for situations in which the unrepentant party’s presence is a physical threat to the congregation, a church should welcome the person’s attendance in the weekly gathering. There’s no better place for the person to be than sitting under the preaching of God’s Word.
The family members of a disciplined individual should certainly continue to fulfill the biblical obligations of family life (e.g. Eph. 6:1–3; 1 Tim. 5:8; 1 Pet. 3:1–2).
Continued interactions should be loving but not be characterized by casualness or friendliness but by deliberate conversations about repentance.
Once a church decides to restore a repenting individual to its fellowship and the Lord’s Table, there should be no talk of a probation period or second-class citizenship. Rather the church should publicly pronounce its forgiveness ( John 20:23), affirm its love for the repenting individual (2 Cor. 2:8), and celebrate (Luke 15:24).
Summary
As a church moves toward practicing church discipline, it will often find itself facing real-life situations that are complex and have no exact “case-study” in Scripture to help it sift through the various layers of circumstances.
As a congregation and its leaders work through these complex issues, they must remember that the church is called, above all else, to guard the name and glory of Christ.
Sins and circumstances of sin will vary tremendously, but this one question always needs to be in the forefront of our churches’ thoughts: “How will this sinner’s sin and our response to it reflect the holy love of Christ?”
After all, to care about the reputation of Christ is to care about the good of non-Christians. Also, to care about the reputation of Christ is to care about other members of the church.
Finally, to care about the reputation of Christ is to care about the individual caught in sin. In 1 Corinthians 5, Paul knew the most loving course of action was to exclude a man from the congregation “so that his spirit may be saved in the day of the Lord” (1 Cor. 5:5).
Why should a church practice discipline? For the good of the individual, the good of non-Christians, the good of the church, and the glory of Christ.