Church Discipline – Spanking Ourselves So God Doesn’t Have To – Part 4

My first experience with church discipline…

My first experience with church discipline came in the mid 1980’s when my family and I were members of a church where we were asked to pray for a sister who had left her husband and young daughter to live with her lover.

Each month during communion we were given an update concerning this woman and any other members who were under church discipline—there were only a few.

Evidentially, members of the church had gone to this sister according to the steps outlined in Matthew chapter 18 and she had not repented. Finally, the church was informed and was not only asked to pray for her but to pursue her in love—telling her “the truth in love.”

When this didn’t “win” our sister, the elders followed the example of the Apostle Paul in the Scriptures and “delivered this sister to Satan for the destruction of her flesh, that her spirit may be saved in the day of the Lord Jesus.”

If my memory serves me correctly, it was a Sunday evening several months after the first announcement when we were informed that “Joan” had repented of her sin and desired to be reconciled with her husband. However, the man she was living with did not want her to return so easily.

The elders stood before the church and communicated a plan for rescuing our sister. The plan was for the brothers and sisters in the church to arrive at the place where Joan was staying with cars, vans and trucks to move her belongings back to their rightful place with her family. And that is exactly what we did.

We all arrived at the apartment complex at the appointed time and worked together for about a half hour and loaded this woman’s belongings into our vehicles and left.

Church discipline works—if it is implemented. This sister was restored to her husband and daughter as well as to the fellowship of believers.

Review

I. Elements of Church Discipline

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.

We also saw there were two ways a fellow believer’s sin can affect you—directly and indirectly.

E. The Process of Discipline

Step One - Examine Yourself. (Self-Discipline)

The Bible calls the Christian to regular self-examination and self-discipline.

“Examine yourselves as to whether you are in the faith. Test yourselves. Do you not know yourselves, that Jesus Christ is in you?...” (2 Corinthians 13:5)

The self-controlled Christian is someone who knows when to seek help himself rather than waiting for others to offer it.

The self-controlled person seeks discipline through 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.

When you examine yourself regularly and deal with sin as the Holy Spirit reveals it to you, there is no need for anyone to confront you about it.

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 jealous of you” or “I’ve been tempted to steal your car.”

No, he handles them by confessing and repenting before God alone.

Step Two begins the first of those stages of church discipline in which others participate. It is the stage where one believer confronts another believer about what he understands to be the other's sin.

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

In this verse, Jesus says, "If you brother sins against you, go"