利用者:MountLuna220
Church Discipline: Difficult, Painful and Necessary
In the more than 3 decades that I have been involved in ministry, I've took part in numerous situations coping with church discipline. Recently another has arisen. Though In my opinion this current case will result in restoration, it does not take away the difficulty, pain or demand for discipline.
Church discipline is difficult for several reasons. One is it constitutes a person involved keenly conscious of their own sin, yet requires discernment and judgment regarding the sin of some other person.
It is also difficult because many Christians (sometimes well-meaning) inquire such as: Don't we believe in mercy and forgiveness? Doesn't the Bible tell us not to judge? Are you currently so perfect that you could pronounce judgment on someone else? [There are answers to these questions but that's for another time]. Regardless of these questions, it is clear that the New Testament church both believed in and practiced church discipline [see, for instance, Matthew 18:15-20; Galatians 6:1; I Corinthians 5:1-5].
Church discipline is painful because it breaks our hearts to see a sister that has walked and worked with us for that kingdom of God throw it all aside to pursue some ungodly desire and select to reside openly in unrepentant sin.
It is also painful since the consequences of sin often spread everywhere affecting a lot more people compared to person who has sinned. Relationships, ministries, reputations, and many other activities could be destroyed in the wake of sin. Our hearts ache to determine this suffering and destruction.
Yet, in spite of these things, many would still state that church discipline should not be practiced. Let me suggest three reasons why I believe the church is called to rehearse discipline:
• The Glory of God: A person who lives in openly unrepentant sin yet maintains that he/she is a Christian brings dishonor instead of glory to God. The vindication from the honor and glory of Christ reaches stake.
• The Reclaiming of the Person: Church discipline is not primarily focused on retribution but on restoration. It's the hope that the one that has sinned will recognize that sin, repent, and return to god. I have personally seen this take place in several cases.
• The Purity from the Church: Though you can now observe that the church, as an organization filled with sinners, has many problems. However, it's still the bride of Christ called to purity and the edification of their members. The openly unrepentant person calls that quest for purity into question and may be a stumbling block towards the edification of fellow members from the church.