Bulletin Articles
THE LOCAL CHURCH AND CORRECTIVE DISCIPLINE
THE LOCAL CHURCH AND CORRECTIVE DISCIPLINE
Nearly every organization that exists has some kind of “disciplinary policy.” Business have them, police departments have them, civic clubs have them, and churches have them – or at least they should! The reason is that each of these organizations requires a certain “code of conduct” among their members. You cannot be part of an organization, while flaunting its very ideals! Our purpose in this article is to look at discipline in a local congregation. There are several passages relating to this topic (e.g., Mt.18:15-17; Ac.5:1-11; Rm.16:17-18; 1Cor.5:1-13; Ga.6:1; 2Th.3:6-15).
What is the purpose of discipline in a local church? First, to respect the authority of Jesus Christ (Lk.6:46). We are Christians – followers of Christ. If we fail to follow Him, we are flaunting His authority as our King. Further, if there is one among us who is flaunting Christ’s authority, and we do nothing to correct that, then we share in that rebellion against the authority of Christ (1Cor.5:1-5)! Second, we are trying to save a soul (Ga.6:1; Jm.5:19-20). If our brother or sister is living in sin, their soul is in danger. Therefore, it is incumbent upon us to reach out to that one and try to restore them to the Lord. Third, if we fail to exercise proper discipline among ourselves, it will have the effect of emboldening others to live in sin (1Cor.5:6-7). Notice Paul’s words: “Do you not know that a little leaven leavens the whole lump? Therefore, purge out the old leaven, that you may be a new lump.” In this context, “leaven” represents the influence of tolerated sin in the congregation. Finally, discipline in a local church will keep it pure and free from rampant sin – something Christ very much wants (Ep.5:25-27).
How is church discipline to be exercised? It should be done in love (1Cor.16:14). If we are incapable of showing love and compassion for a brother or sister who is caught up in sin, then we have no business trying to correct them! It should be done without partiality (1Cor.5:9-11; 2Th.3:6). “Anyone named a brother,” and “every brother who walks disorderly,” is what the Scripture says. It does not matter how much money they have, what the color of their skin is, or even if they have served as an elder (1Tm.5:19-22). Sin is sin, not matter who commits it. The idea of impartiality also includes the idea of consistency and regularity. Disciplined cannot be effective if it is only a “lick here and a lick there” – i.e., this one but not that one. At the same time, it should also be pointed out that every case of discipline is unique. This brings me to my next point…
The disciplinary process is geared to the nature of the transgression. It took me a long time to learn this, because I was not taught correctly in my early days as a Christian. This is not unique to me; I am confident that many Christians have the same misperception. I was led to believe that there was one “uniform code of church discipline” for all cases. Years of study and experience have taught me otherwise. This is easy to prove from Scripture. For instance, a brother who is wronged by another brother has a four-step process to follow (Mt.18:15-17). On the other hand, a brother who is divisive is given less leeway – there is only a three-step process (Tit.3:10-11). And, in 1 Corinthians 5, the church had been negligent is dealing with blatant, open sin. In this neglected case, there was only one step in the process: Deliver him over to Satan right now! This is no time for private talks, witnesses, or church hearings; the time for that has passed! (Study 1Cor.5 carefully). Knowing this is important because 1) it is the truth; and 2) it can explain why it sometimes “looks like” the elders are being negligent, when they are actually tempering the discipline to each specific situation. So, “do not judge according to appearance, but judge with righteous judgement” (Jn.7:24).
I hope the above article has given you some things to think about relative to this important topic. I know that there are times when people do not understand why such a distasteful thing must occur in a local church. But, as distasteful as it is, it is the will of Christ. Churches which do not practice any form of corrective discipline become safe-havens for sin, and endanger their own salvation in the process. Be thankful if you are a part of a church that recognizes the necessity of corrective discipline!
--Lanny Smith
