Along The Way: IX
Marks- Membership and Discipline in the Church
(Written By Kevin A. Hall
04.21.17)
Sound Doctrine saves. The Gospel saves (1 Peter 1:21). These
are things we preach. We must preach sound doctrine as it is the requirement
for salvation. Jesus called the Apostle Paul’s doctrine “testifying about me”
(Acts 23:11). The Great Commission instructs the church to “teach them to obey”
-obey what? Doctrine. Sound doctrine distinguishes between those living in
darkness and those in the light.
Sound doctrine is the proclamation about God
and our need for salvation. It is through sound doctrine that the church can
proclaim “Whoever calls upon the name of the Lord will be saved” (Romans
10:13). Sound doctrine is the hope for the entire world – “Whoever believes in
Him will not be disappointed” (Romans 10:11). The teaching of sound doctrine
conforms a person to Christ. It is therefore essential for evangelism,
discipleship, providing the framework for how we move to sanctification.
Church discipline is a tough job that most people would
rather stay away from, but it is necessary. It is protecting God’s call to
holiness and a righteous witness to the world. “The advantages of discipline
are obvious. It reclaims backsliders, detects hypocrites, circulates a salutary
awe through the church, adds a further incentive to watchfulness and prayer,
proves beyond question the fact and consequences of human frailty, and
moreover, publicly testifies against unrighteousness” (John/9Marks). There are
many instances of church discipline in the Bible, but two main texts addressing
the issue and giving guidance are Matthew 18:15-20 and 1 Corinthians 5, which
deals with disorder in the church. Unchecked sin can paralyze the church. We
have a moral responsibility to maintain God’s call to righteousness. Allowing
public sins affects everyone. Leaders in the church have a responsibility first
to God, to themselves and to everyone else not to turn a blind eye to
unrepentant sin.
McQuilkin(198) calls God “The Great Intolerance” when it
comes to sin. God expects holiness both individually and corporately (Heb.
12:14). Now because a little leaven affects the whole bowl of dough, when an
individual is unrepentant, there must be discipline. Discipline that leads to
excommunication is from unrepentant sinful behavior and the teaching of heresy.
At first, there must be attempts to address the guilty party in private
(according to the Matthew 18:15-20 principles). There are exceptions to this
principle. No two cases are the same, so we must employ wisdom and grace. The
aim should always be to restore the brother or sister. When we do not
discipline, we do disservice to the faithful members of our congregation, we
lose credibility to outsiders and we lose the authority to speak on the
subject. Should the party refuse to repent, after having made every attempt at
reconciliation, after applying the Matthew 18 principles, then the apostle Paul
rightly suggests “cutting ties”. He calls it “cleaning out the old leaven or
deliver such a one over to Satan” (1 Corinthians 5; 5,7). For the sake of all
involved, we may need to part ways.
Discipline’s goal is really an effort to restore. God
disciplines those He loves (Hebrews 12:6) and disciplines us for our good
(Hebrews 12:10). It is never an easy process, but the intent is to produce
righteousness (Hebrews 12:11). The exclusion from membership may include
restrictions on participating from the Lord’s table while still allowing the party
to attend the church in hopes of restoration. We may also suspend the privilege
of holding an office in the church. We should always correct in love and “if we
haven’t been given to prayer for the one in need, nor have examined our own
lives, then we are at that point disqualified to be God’s agent in discipline”
as we may not be as compassionate and graceful as the moment requires (McQuilkin, 201).
References:
McQuilkin, R. The Five Smooth Stones (USA: B&H, 2007)
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