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The message you're about to hear was preached at Liberty Baptist
Church in Easton, MA. You can find out more about us
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message from God's Word will be a blessing to you.
And if you would turn your Bibles to 1st Corinthians
chapter #5 this evening? You'll remember that it was on
Sunday night a couple weeks ago before our missions conference,
we looked at a very difficult text in the Word of God that was
in Second Samuel chapter #13 dealing with Amnon and.
His issue with Tamar, and I don't mean to bring that up
tonight because I'm going to re preach that this evening, but
what I'm saying is we are going to another very difficult
passage of scripture. Now I understand that we have a
lot of young people in here this evening and so I would be very
careful in what I say. And very likely next week we'll
have them out of the room for the message because I do want to
go into the issue in more detail.
So we are going to look at First Corinthians chapter #5 Lord
willing, for the next three weeks as we look at several
different around it. But what we are looking is a
very sobering chapter of the Word of God.
And tonight the angle in which we are going to look at this
chapter deals with the issue of church discipline.
Church discipline, You might wonder what is that?
What is it not? What does it entail?
Perhaps when you think of the words church discipline,
immediately your mind goes back to those old Catholic days and
you think of the word excommunication.
That could be something that you were thinking.
It could be that your mind goes to a place like Lancaster, PA,
or somewhere around there where the Amish are.
And what do you find there? That they have something that's
similar in some ways that they call.
The shunning where some. One that has gone against the
group has to be shunned from the group.
But yet we ask ourselves this question tonight.
What is church discipline? What does it entail?
It's a very serious matter. It should be something that is
very rare within the body of believers, but it is something
that the Word of God talks about for us to understand this
evening. What is church discipline?
Well, if I was to give it a definition here tonight, very
quickly, it would be this. It is the last resort to turn
rebellion into repentance. It is the very last resort to
turn rebellion into repentance. It is not excommunication, it is
not shunning, and it may not be what you have seen in other
ministries in the past. You say, what do you mean,
pastor? Well, what I'm saying is tonight
we want to look at the biblical nature of what it is, why it was
used in the first place here as Paul talks about it in First
Corinthians chapter #5 and what it relates to us here tonight.
So why don't you read along with me?
We'll read all 13 verses. We'll do this the next several
weeks to give you the full context of what's going on, the
full gravity and seriousness of what's taking place here.
In First Corinthians chapter #5 it says this.
It is reported commonly that there is fornication among you,
and such fornication as it is not so much named among the
Gentiles that one should have his father's wife.
You're puffed up and have not rather mourned that he had done
this deed might be taken away from among you.
For I verily is absent in body, but present in spirit.
Have judged already as though I were present concerning him that
hath so done this deep in the name of our Lord Jesus Christ,
When you are gathered together, and my Spirit, with the power of
our Lord Jesus Christ, to deliver such an 1 unto Satan for
the destruction of the flesh, that the Spirit may be saved in
the day of the Lord Jesus. Your glorying is not good.
Know ye not that a little leaven leaveneth the whole lump?
Purge out there for the old leaven, that ye may be a new
lump as ye are unleavened. For even Christ.
Our Passover is sacrificed for us.
Therefore let us keep the feast, not with old leaven, neither
with the leaven of malice and wickedness, but with the
unleavened bread of sincerity and truth.
I wrote unto you an epistle not to company with fornicators, yet
not all together with the fornicators of this world, or
with the covetous, or extortioners, or with idolaters.
For then you mice needs go out of the world.
But now I have written unto you not to keep company.
If any man that is called a brother be a fornicator, or
covetous, or an idolater, or a railer, or a drunkard, or an
extortioner, with such an one know not to eat.
For what have I to do to judge them also that are without?
Do not you judge them that are within, but them that are
without? God judges therefore put away
from among yourselves that wicked person.
And although you may not see the phrase church discipline here in
First Corinthians chapter #5 there's no doubt in my mind that
the principle of it is found all throughout this chapter as deals
with this very, very difficult, very, very sinful situation that
has been allowed to take place in the Church of Corinth.
And has not just been allowed to take place in the Church of
Corinth, but they're actually proud of the fact that has taken
place within their own ranks. There was a Puritan preacher of
yesteryear named Daniel Cadre and Daniel Cadre said this.
If there were never so fair a garden planted and left without
a fence, its herbs and plants would soon be rooted up.
So it is in a. Church where?
Discipline. Is lacking.
What do we see? Well the church is a very
special place, isn't it? The church, not just Liberty
Baptist Church and I believe Liberty Baptist Church is a very
special place, but any church that names the name of Jesus
Christ, any church that preaches the truth of the word of God is
a very, very special place. Why?
Because Jesus Christ sacrificed himself for that church to be
able to be there. You say, well I thought it was
that Jesus died on the cross for our sins.
Well, that is true, but we also seen Ephesians chapter #5 that
Christ gave himself for the church, that it wasn't just that
He gave himself for us. Yes, that is very much true.
And if that alone is the truth, then that would be a blessed
truth. But even more beyond that is
that Jesus died not just so that you could be saved, but also
that you could be saved and be part of His institution, which
is called the church. Listen, church discipline isn't
palatable to many, and it's understandable.
Some of you might even be getting nervous here tonight.
You're clenching your bodies there wondering is, is this your
way of saying we're going to have church discipline at the
end of the service here tonight? And the answer is no, it is not.
It just happens to be the very next thing that we see here in
the Word of God. We've gone from chapter to
chapter, verse to verse. We're in First Corinthians
chapter #5 we're not going to skip over it because it's
something that is unpalatable to our senses because this is God's
church. We've said this before because
this is God's church. It's God's.
Rules that make up God's church. We don't get to decide what the
church is. We don't get to decide what the
rule book is, so to speak, of the church.
Listen, this is the rule book. This is what decides what takes
place and what does not take place within his church.
It's God's Word, it's God's church.
We are God's people. We must do what He says that we
are to do. We must not do the things He
says we are not to do. This is his church and not ours.
He is the one who tells us how to act.
He's the one who tells us how we are supposed to act.
Speaking of Ephesians. Chapter 5, right before that
verse I just mentioned. Verses 8 through 11 says this.
For ye were that word were is a verb.
What kind of verb? A verb in the past.
Ye. Were what sometimes darkness,
but now are ye light in the Lord walk as children of light for
the fruit of the Spirit is in all goodness and righteousness
and truth, proving what is acceptable into the Lord and
have no fellowship with the unfruitful works of darkness,
but rather reprove them. Meaning this don't approve
unfruitful works of darkness, but reprove them.
Rebuke them, say I don't want them to be part of my life.
And listen, we don't want them to be part of the church either,
Pastor. So what you're?
Saying is this church has got to be made-up of perfect people.
Listen, if this church is made-up of perfect people, this
building will be empty tonight. Do you understand that from the
pastor to everyone who's sitting here, we are not perfect.
You won't be perfect until you get to glory.
He's still working on us. But listen, that doesn't mean we
get to say, Oh well, I'm not perfect, I'll live however I
want. No, no, we are to reprove those
works of darkness. Listen that he saved us from
we're not to go back to the through of which we fed from
before like the prodigal who is eating of the slop.
No, no, we have a new father, we have a new master.
We have a new way of living. And he says don't live that way,
don't act that way. You're a child of the king.
But listen, it's not just. That God tells us how we're to
act. Listen, He tells pastors how
they're supposed to act, too. I don't get to be a free agent
as a pastor in the sense that I get to lead Liberty Baptist
Church in the way that I see fit.
Now, do I have some autonomy in places where the Word of God
does not? Speak yes, as long as I do not
violate the word of God. However, I got to do what the
word of God says. I'm going to preach the Word.
I've got to make sure I oversee the flock properly.
It says in Acts 2028. Take heed therefore unto
yourselves and to all the flock over which the Holy Ghost has
made you overseers. Paul's talking to a group of the
elders in Acts chapter 20. He's in Ephesus.
He's never going to come back again.
He knows in his heart he's about to go bound in the Spirit to
Jerusalem. He's never going to see these
men again. And he says this.
Understand that you are overseers of the Church of God,
the Holy Spirit here. It has made you the overseer.
And he says to feed the Church of God, which he had purchased
with his own blood. His blood was shed for you, His
blood was shed for the church. So I must, as an overseer, do
what I must do to be the overseer that God wants me to
be. So as we look at this issue of
church discipline, there's several things I want us to look
at. You can write these down in your
prayer bulletin. The first is this.
I want us to see the reasons for church discipline.
The reasons for church discipline.
Verse #1 says this. It is reported commonly.
What does that word commonly mean?
This is a very public matter what is being discussed.
And again, I'm going to be very careful in how I discussed this
this evening. If you're not sure exactly
what's going on here, we'll explain it more specificity next
week when I don't necessarily have to talk in the way I am
tonight with the young people here.
But I think as an adult here this evening, you can read this
and say this isn't good. This is not activity which
should be taking place inside of a church.
And not only is an activity that is taking place inside of the
church with a man and a woman, it is the issue of the fact that
it is commonly reported. Everybody knows about it.
They are talking about it. It is a subject of conversation
within the church that there is this impurity among you.
And then it says this, and it's not so much as named among the
Gentiles. Now understand this, the
Gentiles were very sinful people.
The Gentiles were very much involved with the sins of the
flesh. I have quotes here tonight.
I will save them for next week. But I will tell you this, that
the Greeks, the Gentiles, the Romans, of course, Greeks and
Romans fall under the umbrella of Gentiles, but specifically
those of the Greek and Roman cultures of which Corinth was a
mixture of both of those being in Greece.
But yet under the Roman occupation that there was no
problem in Corinth to be able to do whatever you wanted to
physically. There was no thought about it.
In fact, there was really no stigma whatsoever.
Remember that there was that great temple to Diana and that
there was that great temple that was there.
And in that temple, I'm sorry, not to Diana, to Aphrodite,
there was that great temple that was there.
Diana was in Ephesus and there and in that were all of these
temple prostitutes and people from all over the world, men,
sailors from all over the world, where they would come to Corinth
to be able to indulge themselves.
And this was commonplace. But here's what Paul's saying.
Even the Gentiles would say what you're doing is wrong.
What you are tolerating within the church.
Even the Gentiles who have no problem with this such thing
would say this is a bridge too far.
Paul says, don't you understand what's going on among you?
And here's the problem. It's not just the fact that this
gentleman is engaged in this activity.
By the way, he was no gentleman, but he was engaged in this
activity with a woman that seems to be not part of the church
from how this is phrased here in this chapter.
But it was the fact that they were puffed up about it.
Look at verse #2 ye are puffed up and not have rather mourned.
Look at what it says in verse 6. Your glorying is not good.
They were puffed up about it. They were glorying in it.
What were they doing? Well, they had to have been of
this nature that they were saying something along these
lines. Aren't we a really open minded
people? Isn't it great that we are so
tolerant? Does that sound familiar to
anybody's culture today? Isn't it just great to be
tolerant? Isn't it just great to just,
hey, whoever you want to love, however you want to love him?
Listen, it's completely and totally up to you.
Now again, I want to be very careful how I say this tonight
so it doesn't come across as being insensitive, but I have to
be clear about what the Word of God says tonight.
God is the one who decides what love is, not man.
God has decided in His Word what is love and what is lust.
We looked at 2nd Samuel 13 a few weeks ago.
There's this man Amnon who was vexed.
This man Amnon who had this burning desire within him.
He called it love. The Bible called it lust, He
called it love. The Bible called it absolute and
utter grotesqueness that there was nothing loving about it.
No, mankind does not get to decide for itself, for himself
what love is, just as much as this is His church and He
decides what activity is here and not.
We don't get to decide what love is.
Listen, He decides, has decided, He has shown it to us.
Greater love hath no man than this man lay down his life for
his friends. Romans chapter 5.
He is the living example of love.
We cannot sully love by trying to put our own definition or our
own spin on it. And we expect the world to do
that. But here's the problem.
It's happening right here in the church, and they're proud of it.
They're proud of it. This is a problem.
What are we going to do? Well, it's just about being
tolerant. Pastor, let me ask you this.
Should you be tolerant of an infection?
Would you ever be tolerant of cancer?
Well, I know the cancer cells are within me, but I'm just
really a tolerant person. That's foolishness.
That's falling. Sin is the infection.
Sin is cancerous, You say? Well, why would you make that
assumption? Well, because the Word of God
says it. Your glory is not good.
Know ye not that a little leaven leaveneth the whole lump?
Now, I don't know if you've ever made bread before.
I I love Kaylee making bread. I love Diane making bread.
I really love eating bread. If I ever had to go gluten free,
like if I end up having a gluten intolerance, I'll be just like,
Lord, take me now. I don't know what I would do.
I really don't know what I would do.
But it's amazing to me how you can have just that little ball
of dough and put just a little leaven inside of it and what
happens? Put in a dark place, a little
bit warm, and over a period of just a few minutes, what it do?
It'll rise up, won't it? You punch it down, you cover it
up, and it does it again, over and over again.
Do you know why we can't be tolerant of sin in a church
setting? Why?
Why can't we just be tolerant? Just let everybody do what they
want to do as long as they believe in Jesus?
Do you know why a little leaven leaveneth the whole lump when
it's allowed to remain unchecked?
Nobody is unscathed. By the way, that may be true to
church. That's true to life as well.
Well, I mean, pastor, it's not really a big deal.
It's a it's a small sin. Listen, we don't register sins
by how small or how big they are.
Sin is a transgression against God.
And little sins don't just turn into big sins.
Little sins unconfessed can turn into any sin.
Did you get that? Little sins unconfessed can turn
into any sin. People don't typically go to do
some of the things that an Amnon and a Tamar or an Amnon did with
Tamar rather or this man did here in First Corinthians
chapter 5. They don't do that without.
Their going through a lot of speed bumps and going through a
lot of barriers that God tries to put in their place.
And instead of slowing down and repenting, what do they do?
They hit the gas. So when you have an unrepentant
heart, what happens? There's really no barrier.
Well, I wouldn't go that far. Well, if you're unrepentant,
don't say how far you wouldn't go, because you don't know the
total depravity of your flesh and what you will be do and what
you will be willing to do if you refuse to repent.
So there's some reasons for church discipline.
What is it that there is a sin? That has been allowed to fester
within the church. It's publicly known.
Now you say this little pastor, that means if everyone sins in
the church, everyone has to be brought before the church and
church discipline. And the answer to that is
absolutely not for several reasons.
One, this is not a private. Sin.
Typically, private sins are handled privately.
Public sins are handled publicly because if they are not
acknowledged, again, not in a way that is just trying to get a
pound of flesh from someone, not trying to make a spectacle of
someone, but just so the church knows that sin cannot be
tolerated in a very public way. And by the way, may I remind you
again, this is not the first thing that's done.
It is the last resort to turn rebellion into repentance.
It is the very last thing to be done.
Not the very first thing. We'll see that in just a moment.
By the way, when it comes to pastors, the standard's a little
bit different. When it comes to pastors, the
standard's a little bit higher. What does that mean?
Well, they're going to be private things within my own
life that if I was a violation of first Timothy chapter #3
Titus chapter one, that it would be likely that I would have to
go before the church. And to be able to tell someone
that I was disqualified from being a pastor, say, well, if
it's private, it needs rare. But I wouldn't be able to stand
behind this desk and preach the word of God.
I'm not saying that would be something that would take place
forever, but it would have to be something that would be dealt
with. And so pastorally, there is a
little bit of a different issue because of the very specific
requirements of First Timothy chapter 3 and Titus chapter one
in the life of a pastor. But typically private sins are
dealt with privately and public sins, things that were done in
front of all that would be done, dealt with publicly if it could
not be dealt with any other way. So what's the road map for
church discipline? Well, that's number two this
evening, the road map for church discipline.
It's a very serious thing. What is it not?
Well, as I mentioned a few moments ago, it's not almost
shunning. There was a woman from the
Western Michigan University named Jessica Sullivan who said
this about Amish shunning. Shunning in Amish society is a
type of solitary confinement from friends and family in an
attempt to purify and preserve the Amish faith.
Shunning is often applied then to members of the community who
refused to join the church through baptism, which is
interpreted as a rejection of the community.
It may also be applied to those who have been baptized into the
church but lost their way. Also at risk are those that do
not respect the decision to shun others which are most often
immediate family members of a shunned individuals.
So understand this that if someone is shunned in the Amisha
community, no one can do business with them, no one can
talk to them, no one can have them in their home.
And if that is your family member who has been shunned by
the community and you have. Harbored them in any way, shape
or form, then you will also be shunned as well.
Can I tell you that while the Amish would look at that and say
that that is biblical and that is the way that things should be
done, there is nothing biblical about Amish shunning.
While certainly it is important that there is some place, some
things that are in place, and we'll look at these in just a
moment, but Amish shunning is not what we're talking about.
When the Bible talks about church discipline.
It's not excommunication. I mentioned this a few moments
ago as well. Well, why is it not
excommunication? Excommunication is when someone
has been withheld of the sacraments.
If you're excommunicated, that doesn't just mean you cannot
come to church anymore. It literally means this.
You can no longer receive the sacraments.
You can no longer have the Lord's Supper.
You can no longer go to confession.
Well, what does that mean? Literally, the Catholic Church
is withholding salvation from you.
You'll understand that's what's being done because if you can't
have the sacraments, remember we don't call baptism in the Lord's
Supper sacraments as Baptist. We call them ordinances because
they are not salvation giving ordinances.
What are they? They're just simply an
ordinance. There's something that we do in
the church that we've been commanded to do, but they don't
give salvation. If you are being withheld from
those things, what is it saying? You cannot be saved until you
bow the knee, not to God, but to the Catholic Church.
That was never so vivid as it was in 1077, when, during the
Investiture Controversy, Pope Gregory the 7th excommunicated
King Henry the 4th for defying papal authority over appointing
bishops to have the excommunication lifted.
King Henry the 4th famously traveled in winter to Canosa
Castle in northern Italy, where the Pope was staying.
The Pope had him stand outside, barefoot in the snow.
For three days, dressed in penitential clothing, seeking
forgiveness. It was only at that time that
Gregory eventually lifted the excommunication.
Say, why would someone stand in the snow for three days?
Well, if you thought you were going to lose your chance at
eternal life, you do it too. Church discipline is not.
Text communication. Remember, church discipline is
the true last resort to turn rebellion into repentance.
It's not worth holding eternal life.
It's not meant to be punitive or hurting someone for the
satisfaction of hurting someone just to get your pound of flesh.
As I mentioned a few minutes ago, it's not to hold someone up
in front of the church and point at them and laugh at them and
mock at them. Listen, it's something that is
done with a heavy heart. Can it be done the wrong way?
Absolutely. Can disciplining a child be done
the wrong way? You better believe.
It. But does that mean a child
shouldn't be disciplined? Can church discipline be done
wrong? It can, It has, and some of you
may even have witnessed it in the past.
But that doesn't. Mean it's wrong if it's done
with the right heart. Warren Weirsby said this about
church discipline. Church discipline is not a group
of pious policemen out to catch a criminal.
Rather, it's a group of broken hearted brothers and sisters
seeking to restore an erring member of the family.
See, the issue is not this. It's not about how quick can we
get them out the door. The issue is this.
How quick can we see that we can try to do everything we can to
get them right with God? Not how quick can we get them
out the door and hope we never see him again, but how quick can
we try to help them to get them right with God?
Now, what does it look like? Well, Matthew 18 gives us the
procedure to follow. We turn to Matthew chapter 18
very quickly. Matthew chapter 18, we'll look
at verse 15. It's heavy stuff tonight.
I understand that I don't have a Tennessee accent.
You know, I don't have any of that.
All right, that's I'll throw one of those in there tonight.
You know, I can't do any of that stuff.
Actually, AJ is not in here right now.
So we're good. All right, one time I was
sitting in the back with him. I don't get to sit with my
family during church very often, but it was nice to be able to
sit with my family during missions conferences last week.
And there was one time Brother Abel said something along the
lines of, you know, Bream Baptist Church has painted 36
churches over the years, the 60 years they've been there.
And AJ, unrelated, just made a lot of noise.
I don't know what he was doing, but unrelated, he said 36 years,
you know, 36 churches and and he's sitting in the back goes
like that, like big deal. You know, it's like, I mean,
that is a big deal. All right, we missing something.
There's a battery going. All right, Matthew chapter 18 is
where we are. Let's just get right back to it.
Matthew 18, look at verse #15 here's what we see.
Moreover. If thy brother shall trespass
against thee, go and tell him his fault between thee and him
alone. If he shall hear thee, thou hast
came to brother. If someone is found to be within
a fault, what do you do? You go to them personally and
you go to them privately and you say this is something that I've
seen in your life. This is something that that I've
noticed and as a brother in Christ, as a sister in Christ.
Who? Loves you who just wants to
bring this to your attention, not as being a pious policeman
as Weirsby said, but just as someone who loves you.
James Chapter 5 trying to restore a brother.
This is what I see in you and you pray that that will be it.
And by the way, 90% of times I have found in church life that
step #1 handles everything if you're willing to go to someone
with humility. And by the way, you kind of had
to step out of your comfort zone a little bit to do that, don't
you? But to be able to do that takes
care of it. But if that doesn't work, going
to them separately #2 you got to go to them with some support.
Look at what it says. But if he will not hear thee,
then take with thee one or two more then the mouth of two or
three witnesses. Every word may be established
and that were every word being established is important goes
all the way back to the Old Testament.
It's why they tried to find 2 witnesses to be able to talk
against Jesus Christ and say that he was blaspheming because
of this idea of the Jewish law of having two or three
witnesses. But the idea here is this.
Jesus says if you go to him and that doesn't work, bring some
guys along with you, bring someone else and talk to you,
say pastor. If you've ever had to do this
before, unfortunately I have. There have been times in the
past where having a conversation with someone is a pastor was
ineffective. And I brought the trustees or I
brought some trusted men to be able to talk to that man, to be
able to talk to that family. And in those situations, you
pray that whatever it is is able to be resolved.
But first you go to them separate, then you go to them
with support. But if that doesn't work, the
number three, look at this. And if we shall neglect, if he
shall neglect to hear them, tell it unto the Church.
But if he neglect to hear the church, let him be unto thee as
a heathen man and a public and meaning this there may be a
point for his own sake. You have to bring this before
the body and if he doesn't listen to the body.
If a church again, not saying we're accusing you this.
This is we're pressing charges against you.
We want to find you guilty so we can get you out saying we want
to tell you we're begging you. We want you to get right.
We're begging you. We want you to make this right.
And if they still rebel against the love of the church, then the
Bible says that they are to be removed from the body.
Now what happens? It says, verse #18 verily I say
unto you, whatsoever you shall bind on earth shall be bound in
heaven, and whatsoever you shall loose on earth shall be loosed
in heaven. Listen what that saying is.
God has given His church authority to make these
decisions. As long as they follow His
precepts and principles, they cannot go rogue.
They cannot go their own way. As long as they follow what God
says in His Word, then yes, the church has the authority to be
able to do this. Listen, you say I don't think
this is right, Pastor. Well, understand this is
something that doesn't take place often.
By God's grace, we pray it never takes place at Liberty Baptist
Church. In 12 years, it has never taken
place at Liberty Baptist Church. We've gone to people with step
number one. We've gone to people with step
#2 but often times really this, these kind of issues can only be
handled 3 different ways. One, we pray for repentance.
We pray for repentance. We want that person to get
right. This is not an opportunity for
the pastor to say, you know, I never wanted that person around
here anyway. This is not a vehicle for the
pastor to be able to kick people out of the church.
We pray for repentance. Second, it could lead to
resignation. Several times I've talked with
people in step #2 and they refuse to be able to get right.
And they say this, I don't want to go before the church.
I'm not going to listen to the church, so I don't want to be
part of your church anymore. And they willingly and
voluntarily resign their membership.
Or third, they have to be brought before the church and to
be removed. Can I be honest with you?
I hope I never have to go to step three.
I pray that in my ministry I never have to be able to see.
But I will say this have to be willing to follow what God says
if the situation arises and not to do what man does, which is
just to run. We don't want to deal with it,
but. You say well.
I don't feel like this is right, Pastor.
I don't feel like this is something.
That we should be a part of. But understand if you are a
member of something, there are always rules and rights and
responsibilities. There always are.
If you're a member of a church, there are rules, there are
rights and their responsibilities.
Listen, we know this in life. If you're a member of a gym.
There are rules. You can't just go in and do
whatever you want. I'm, I'm a member of Planet
Fitness. I went there once, I think like
6 or 8 months ago. I'm a member of Planet Fitness.
You know what you can't do? You can't yell and scream when
you are trying to lift the weights.
There's an alarm that will go off inside if you yell too much
inside the gym. Now, that's no, the only time
I'd be yelling is if I hurt myself.
All right? But listen, there's rules,
there's rights. I can use any equipment I want.
There's responsibilities I need to clean up after myself.
We understand that when it comes to the gym, there are rules and
rights and responsibilities. If you're a member of a club, we
know this. If you're a member of a board,
there's rules, there's rights and responsibilities.
Listen, if you if you go to the library, there's rules and
rights and responsibilities. You know how I know that?
Because it seems like every few months we have fines at the
library because we either lose. Books.
Or bring them late or whatever it is.
There's responsibilities. Why is it that there are people
who think that every facet of this world has rules and rights
and responsibilities, but you can do or say or act however you
want within God's church? For that's crazy.
That is absolutely insane that someone would think that they
could run roughshod over God's church.
Well, I'll act how I want. The Bible says judge not.
Well, listen, the Bible says judge not if you want to take a
big red marker and just do this all over the Bible because it
also says this judge, righteous judgment.
Paul says this. I'm not even with you right now,
but what do you say? I'm judging.
Where I'm at, I got to judge this.
Where I'm at, you have not used your judgment.
You're puffed up. I've got to judge and you got to
take care of it when you get there.
Listen, if you don't judge between what's sin and what's
righteousness, you're a fool. I'm not trying to talk tough.
I'm really just trying to be serious.
Well, I'm not going to judge between what's righteous and
unrighteous. I'm just going to live my life.
That's foolish talk, and we've got to be the.
Same way in the church. Now listen, you better whatever
effort you put in looking what other people are doing.
What does the Bible say? You better be putting equal,
greater effort into your own life.
For every finger that's pointing out, three fingers are pointing
back. Remember, unless you're doing
this and then you can point to people however you want.
But but what I'm saying is that typically, what do we know?
Listen, whatever you do, you better judge righteous judgment,
which means your. Heart's got to be right that
it's not about I'm going to take this guy out, we're going to
take this woman out. It's and my heart breaks.
I want them to get right with God.
We're going to do everything we can to make sure that they do.
What's the church's reaction to discipline?
Let's look at this. Even if it seems unpalatable,
it's important as a church that we're willing to participate.
What's the reaction? Well, first of all, what's the
reaction of the church? There's three things that the
church needs to do. You can write these down.
They're not in your outline, but you write these down.
First of all, there needs to be participation in church
discipline being this. Who's involved with that?
The church. Well, pastor, you take care of
it. You can you see by.
The third part, the separate supported and then shared the
pastor's already been through the 1st 2.
It's the church that needs to gather together.
It's the church that the one that says we're not going to be
puffed up. In fact, what did say you were
puffed up and you're not mourning what?
What's our heart position? We're mourning over this.
Our hearts hurt. Our hearts are so heavy over
what this is. What should the church do?
They need to participate in church discipline.
Secondly, pray for the one who is disciplined.
That person ought to move right up to near the top of your
prayer list. Pray for them daily.
Pray for them whenever they come to mind.
Pray for them that they would listen to what the Lord is doing
in their life. You say, well, why do we have to
remove them? Because they need to have every
safety net removed for them. In fact, it says, if you go back
to First Corinthians chapter #5 it says that you do so because
they are being delivered their flesh to Satan.
Basically the idea is this. You are on your own.
So they realize I don't want. To be on my own, I need the
Lord, I need his church so that that person can be saved.
Not that they were going to fall away and lose their salvation,
but the idea is, is as they can get back into a right
relationship with God, we're to participate, we're to pray, but
also we're to persuade the one who's disciplined.
Listen, I've seen churches, when someone's in a church
discipline, the pastor says this, don't talk to him.
Don't have them over to your house.
Don't fellowship with him. And then if someone does, the
pastor will put the same curse, if you will, on the people who
decided to fellowship with them. First Corinthians chapter 5 says
this near the end of the chapter.
It says it says not to eat with them.
But I will say this. I believe that's really talking
about in First Corinthians chapter #11 the Lord's Supper.
It says don't keep company with them.
It says that twice for that company means this, to be mixed
together mean this, that if they're going to persuade you,
you need to cut off ties. But if you see them at the
grocery store, don't pretend you didn't see them.
Don't. If they're your family member,
have them over for supper. Don't cut them out of your life.
Listen. They need somebody who's willing
to be strong in their life to be able to do so.
Now listen. If they're your best friend,
there's going to be a string. There's going to be, but that
doesn't mean you never talked to him again.
The Bible does make clear that we need to cut ties in certain
ways, but that doesn't mean that we just pretend like they don't
exist. Listen, if they want to get
right with the Lord, they need to know they can find you.
They need to know that you were the one that would be able to
help them to that which is good and right for the gym sitting in
the back here tonight. And he knows this because he is
the one who does all the cards, the birthday cards.
You all thought that was me, right?
But but the handwriting forensic analysis says Jim Weatherby is
the one who does it. He's asked me here and there
about people who've left the church, sometimes angry.
And he'll say not during church discipline, but just the idea
they've got left and it's not great.
He says, should we still send them a card?
And I said, send them till they say return to sender.
Let them know we're still here. They still have birthdays, they
still have anniversaries. It's OK if they throw it away.
Then we just wasted 4950. I don't remember how much the
stamp is anymore. What time is it?
OK. It keeps changing.
But I do know this. It's OK if you see someone just
out and about. It's OK.
Believe it or not, your pastor sees people who have left the
church at Walmart, at Shaw's. And you know what I do?
You say you yell at him. Yeah, yeah.
Curse him out in Jesus name. Of course, right?
You know, you just go down another aisle because you don't
want to see him. And what I like to do is do the
exact opposite what they expect me to do, which is walk up to
them, smile, shake their hand. And as I'm walking up to them,
praying to the Lord that I'm not being fake or trying to prove a
point, just that, hey, it's good to see, you know why?
Because someday that person might have someone in their
family that dies. Someday that person might be in
the hospital. And if they call me, do you know
what I'm going to do? I'm going to go check on them.
They say, but but they didn't, they didn't treat you right.
They didn't treat the church right.
Well, this might be the way that they are able to come back to
the Lord. If they're not right with the
Lord, there's a responsibility laid on us all.
Get don't make them your best friend when they're gone, but
don't cut them out of your life. If there's a way that you can be
a persuasive element for that which is right, do so, but be
careful. But what's the job of the
offender? Well, the job of the offender is
to be removed and to get right, and it's the prayer of the
church that they are to be repentant.
Their isolation should help them realize their need to get right
with God. Their support system of people
affirming their behavior disappears.
They should come to realize their need to return to Christ.
It is an act of love if it's done properly.
It's an act of love if it's done properly, just as much as
discipline to a child as an act of love is done properly.
Then we just read Hebrews chapter 12 a few weeks ago on a
Sunday morning. What is that?
That's God chastising us when we need it.
In the end, we're to mourn the sin, judge the sin, and purge
the sin. This is church discipline.
Now. I'm going to give you just a
couple more moments and then we're done.
Pastor, have you ever seen church discipline?
Once I was saved and I was baptized and I was in Westgate
Baptist Church for two weeks. I've never been, I don't know
that I've ever been to a Sunday night service.
I've been to very few Sunday night services.
If I had in the Sunday night, Pastor Turn says it's gonna be a
little bit of a different service tonight.
And boy, was he right. There was a gentleman, and I'm
going to withhold the name because this gentleman is still
alive, but there's a gentleman who over a long period of time
had been stealing from the church offerings.
The ushers had been all taking the offerings to one man who
then deposited in the safe. One problem with that, that one
man had total access to the funds before it went in the
safe. There's a reason we always have
two people with the offerings here at Liberty Baptist Church
that any organization would do well to do so.
What this gentleman did not realize was that after a period
of time where there's some some suspicion, a small camera was
placed near the safe. He was called in the pastor's
office. Pastor Turner says, calls him by
name. I know you've been stealing the
offerings. I need you to admit it now, He
says. It's not true.
I can't even imagine why you would say that.
And he slid over Avhs cassette. That's the time frame we're
talking about. He slid over VHS cassette.
And he says this tape says you have been.
And he said, well, looks like you caught me.
Totally rebellious, brought before the deacons, rebellious.
The next and final step was to bring him before the church.
There had to be an accounting. And for some reason he decided
he was willing to go before the church.
He went before the church that night.
I think the reason I think he did so was to try to save face.
He was brought before the church in a very loving manner, but was
brought forth for discipline. He said he repented, he got
right, the church came around him and gathered around him and
prayed. Now it was clear that he had to
make restitution down to the penny, but the church prayed for
him and it was a beautiful scene for an 18 year old to see.
The problem was that he wasn't truly repentant, never paid a
penny back, and a few weeks later it skipped town and was
gone. I saw church discipline, you
say? Well, it didn't work, pastor.
It did in the sense that it protected the church from
further damage. It worked.
Not the way we wanted it to, but it worked.
Don't you kind of wish you knew what happened to this guy?
I mean, what he did was bad. You can read it was bad.
Don't you wish you knew what happened to him?
We've got good news, the Bible tells us.
Second Corinthians chapter #2 and then we're done.
I can't, I can't skip over this part. 2nd Corinthians, chapter
number two, obviously, Second Corinthians chapter.
Second Corinthians, second letter.
Paul writes back to them after First Corinthians.
Who it says, But I determined this with myself, that I would
not come again to you in heaviness.
For if I made you sorry, who is he then that maketh me glad, but
the same which is made sorry by me.
And I wrote the same unto you, lest when I came, I should have
sorrow from them of whom I ought to rejoice, having confidence in
you all, that my joy is the joy of you all.
For out of much affliction and anguish of heart I wrote unto
you with many tears. So what was Paul saying before?
I was saddened, I had tears, I had anguish over what was taking
place, But that you might know the love which I have more
abundantly unto you. But if any have caused grief, he
has not grieved me, but in part that I might not overcharge you.
All sufficient to such a man is this punishment which was
inflicted of many. Hold on a second, what is he
saying? There's an issue that took place
before it sorrowed my heart, but it was done in love.
And it was an issue of someone who an affliction, A punishment
was inflicted upon this person by many people.
Well, who was it? The only answer to that is the
man from First Corinthians chapter 5 who the church had
removed. Well, what happened?
So that contrary wise you might, you ought rather to forgive him
and comfort him, lest perhaps such an one should be swallowed
up with over much sorrow. Wherefore, I beseech you, that
you would confirm your love toward us.
What is Paul saying here? He says this man's in a place
that now he needs to know we're going to rally around him.
I believe it makes clear here this man got right with the
Lord. This man was restored to
fellowship within the church. And he said this, make sure he
knows that you love him. And until I get back, make sure
he knows that I love him too. 2nd Thessalonians for chapter 3,
verse 14 and 15. If any man obey not our word by
this epistle, note that man have no company with him.
There's that word company again, that mixing, that he may be
ashamed. Yet count him not as an enemy,
but admonish him as a brother. Say, pastor, what does all this
have to do with me tonight? I'm not even under church
discipline. You said no one's here under
church discipline tonight. So what does it have to do with
me? And I remind you what I said at
the very beginning. Small sins don't just lead to
big sins. Small sins unconfessed can lead
to any sin. We're looking at the last
resort. What should be our first option
to get our knees every time we sin and get right with the Lord.
We have a rule at our house that Diane instituted a while ago for
the kids. If it takes less than 60 seconds
to pick it up, then pick it up. If it takes longer than that, we
can do it later. So there's a pile of clothes, 60
seconds, more than 60 seconds, we'll do that later.
If there's a toy that's in the wrong place under 60 seconds,
you got time to put it away, you know?
I think it. Ought to be something similar
for us in our Christian life. Not that we need to wait until
later, but boy doesn't it get harder the longer we wait to get
right with the Lord? How much easier would it be to
say, well, instead of just confessing my sins once a day or
once a week, how about now when it's small in the sense that
it's just this one, Let me get it right with the Lord right
now. Lord, I shouldn't have cussed.
Will you forgive me? Lord, I knew I popped off of
that guy, will you forgive me? Lord, I knew I told tell a
little white lie, but it's still a lie.
Will you forgive me? Lord, I knew I shouldn't have
got angry at the kids like I did.
Will you forgive me, Church discipline?
Listen, for most of us, that's a faraway thing.
But where are we today? Well, we need to make sure we
confess our sins on a daily basis because He's faithful and
just to forgive our sins and to cleanse us from all
unrighteousness. And that's what church
discipline is all about. Let's take care of it far before
any of us ever have to see that within our own lives or anywhere
here within Liberty Baptist Church.
Thank you for listening to the sermon from the pulpit of
Liberty Baptist Church. If this message was a blessing
to you, or if there's any way we can serve you, please let us
know by contacting us at info@mylibertybaptist.org.
Or you can visit us this Sunday at 800 Washington St. in Easton,
MA. May the Lord bless you as you
grow in His Word.