Church Discipline – Spanking Ourselves So God Doesn’t Have To – Part 3

Review

I. Elements of Church Discipline - Part One

A. The Place of Discipline - The place of discipline is the assembly of believers-- the church (Mat. 18:17).

B. The Purpose of Discipline

1.) Prevention – The fear of sinning

2.) The other purpose for church discipline is restoration.

C. The Person of Discipline

Discipline is not just for church officials; it’s for everyone, including those who lead in the church.

In fact Galatians 6:1 tells us exactly who should do it: “Brethren, if a man be overtaken in a fault, ye who are spiritual restore such an one.” Those who are walking in the Spirit, who are obeying the Word, and who are in fellowship should restore the fallen brother or sister.

D. The Provocation of Discipline

When does discipline start?

It starts every day as one goes before the Lord in prayer and during the study of the Scriptures.

2.) Discipline also starts when we sin against a brother or sister or a brother or sister sins against us.

There are two ways a fellow believer’s sin can affect you—directly and indirectly.

II. Elements of Church Discipline - Part Two

A. The Process of Discipline

Step One - Examine Yourself. (Self-Discipline)

The self-controlled Christian is someone who knows when to seek help himself rather than waiting for others to offer it. He is self-disciplined and, as a result, self-controlled even in that.

To be self-controlled does not do away with the strength and wisdom the Spirit gives through His Word. Self-control is the fruit of the Spirit (i.e., the result of the Spirit's work) in a believer.

It is the Spirit’s work to make the Christian a sturdy, dependable person to who others turn for encouragement and help.

As was mentioned in part one, self-discipline or self-examination is accomplished as one goes before the Lord in prayer and meditation of the Scriptures and adjusts or conforms his life to the precepts of the Word of God.

Step Two - Tell Him His Sin Alone. (One-on-One)

In step one--self-discipline, no one else is involved; the believer deals with his sin alone before God.

If, for example, he has sinful thoughts relating to another person, he doesn’t reveal them to that person (“I’ve been lusting after your car” “I’ve been wanting to knock you upside your head.”) he handles them in confession and repentance before God alone.

With step two we begin to consider the ways in which a Christian seeks help through the use of discipline. This begins the first of those stages of church discipline in which others participate. It is the stage where one believer confronts another about what he believes to be the other's sin.

Mat 18:15 "And if your brother sins, go and reprove him in private; if he listens to you, you have won your brother.

The offended party at this point may be wondering, "Why do I have to go? I wasn't the one who did the damage, I was the one that was hurt." There are two answers to this question:

(1) The first being that the offender may not obey Matthew 5:23-24 and cause further tension between himself and his brother.

Mat 5:23 "If therefore you are presenting your offering at the altar, and there remember that your brother has something against you,

Mat 5:24 leave your offering there before the altar, and go your way; first be reconciled to your brother, and then come and present your offering.

(2) The second reason is that the offending brother may not even realize that he offended anyone.

Step Three - Take Some Witnesses (One or Two Others)

Mat 18:16 "But if he does not listen to you, take one or two more with you, so that BY THE MOUTH OF TWO OR THREE WITNESSES EVERY FACT MAY BE CONFIRMED.

How often should an offended person go to another person before moving on to step 3 in the disciplinary process? Is it a matter of the length of time, or the number of times? Neither. In Matthew 18:16 the operative phrase is "if he won't listen to you."

Notice similar commands in verse 17:

Mat 18:17 "And if he refuses to listen to them, tell it to the church; and if he refuses to listen even to the church, let him be to you as a Gentile and a tax-gatherer.

This does not imply that you have been to him but once and, upon his refusal to listen, you move on.

No. The refusal must be a genuine one. This means that if, in the heat of the battle, he will not listen to reason, you will wait until he has had time to cool off and then try again. Perhaps you will want to try several times before stepping up the process.