LORD’S DAY MORNING, MAY 28
1 Corinthians 5:3-6
Acts 5:1-11

"…a little leaven leaveneth
the whole lump."

WHY CHURCH DISCIPLINE? – (II)

The second reason for church discipline is to defend the purity of the church. Note that the sentence of excommunication was delivered in public when the congregation was gathered together (1 Cor 5:4). A public sin demands a public rebuke. When the congregation gathers together, it is done in the name and in the power of Christ. "For where two or three are gathered together in my name, there am I in the midst of them" (Matt 18:20). Excommunication is thus "an ordinance of God, and not of men" (Calvin). The sentence of excommunication is thus a work of Christ and rests in the power of God.

Considering that excommunication is a sentence pronounced by God, it serves to strike the fear of the Lord in the congregation and steers them away from the pathway of sin. This effect can be seen in the account of Ananias and Sapphira in Acts 5:1-11. When it was determined that they lied to the Holy Ghost, the Lord struck them dead. The result is recorded for us in Acts 5:11: "And great fear came upon all the church, and upon as many as heard these things."

What will happen if the church fails to exercise the necessary church discipline and instead sweeps sin under the carpet? Paul answered with an illustration: "Know ye not that a little leaven leaveneth the whole lump?" (1 Cor 5:6b). The leaven is used here as a symbol of sin. If one adds just a little leaven to a lump of unleavened dough, the effect of the leaven will soon pervade the entire lump. Another analogy would be to put a bad apple into a carton of good apples. That bad apple will soon cause the other apples to turn bad. Therefore, if a church fails to exercise church discipline, she is encouraging sin to pervade the congregation. There must be church discipline to ensure the purity and holiness of the congregation. Otherwise, our churches will be no different from the world.

THOUGHT: Sin is a grave matter and must be handled gravely.
PRAYER: Lord, keep me in Thy strait and narrow path.