Church discipline I Corinthians 5.

Pause for thought

“God will not bend the rules” quote DR R.T. Kendal

The Corinthian church was not only guilty of overlooking sin in their ranks they seemed proud with themselves for tolerating sin. But it showed they had a false notion about God’s Grace 5:1-2

Freedom from sin and guilt, and freedom to enjoy all of God’s good gifts doesn’t mean that that we are allowed to do whatever we please. Don’t fall into the trap of believing that because Christ has forgiven us from all our sin that this means we may continue to live in it 5:2

This sinning brother was still a Christian but living worse than a pagan, he was to be delivered to satan so that his flesh would be destroyed bringing about a change of heart and action. This judgement was to be a mutual act by the whole fellowship and done in the name of the Lord Jesus, and in the knowledge that the Man would be saved at the return of the Lord 5:5.

This was an act of love not an act of punishment, it was to remind the whole church how easily sin can take control of an individual Christian and spread throughout the church like yeast spreads in dough or like the proverbial rotten apple in a basket of sound fruit 5:6.

While we must not gossip and criticise our fellow Christian’s sometimes as a body of believers it becomes our business to come together to judge situations in the local church. But note it is none of our business to judge unbelievers 5:12.

A verse to remember

It isn’t my responsibility to judge outsiders, but it certainly is your job to judge those inside the church who are sinning in these ways 1 Corinthians 5:12 N.L.T.

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