THE CHURCH DISCIPLINE

THE CHURCH DISCIPLINE

 INTRODUCTION

In the early life of the church, the church was conquering the world but in this time, the world is conquering the church. Once, the church was persecuted by others but now it became persecuting others. The reason for this situation is, there is no discipline in the churches as was in the New Testament Church.

Reasons for the Present Study

The great commandment of the church is to carry His revelation for the people who are living in darkness. The church should have such burden to evangelize the souls, perishing in sins. To fulfill this, every pastor and the believer of the church should change their lives according to His word. They should recognize that why the church disciplines are so important today. As they apply the Word of God in their practical lives, the church would have disciplines. For that, the church needs fully dedicated persons to achieve God’s will on this earth. The main reason for the present study of this paper is that present day church should be reformed as the early church.

Statement of the Problem

The church discipline is very difficult area of doctrine to practice in today’s churches. Though it rests upon the divine authority of scriptures, the Christians neglect the doctrine of church discipline. It is often said by people that discipline in the church is punishment. They forget to remember that it is not punishment, but is discipline, and is designed to train and restore the guilty person.

“The purpose of church discipline is to confront sin  so that believers can be corrected, purified and the sinning member restored to fellowship.” But many forgot this concept and still now is neglecting the church discipline, thus have led to a weak, sinfilled church. The subject of the church discipline is for the purpose of training in righteousness. The basic purpose of discipline is to maintain the church pure by purging from sin. But it is very sad to say that the Christians of this time, ignored about these all the things, because it is not pleasant to administer and, abused because it is misunderstood.

Throughout the past years, when apostasies and heresies arose in the world, many began to teach and preach their own ideas so the disciplines of the church had overshadowed. The people, who were leading the church, were giving priority to their own doctrines, because of the lack of preaching in the church. Many arose to minister in the church as pastors not for preaching His word but for earning the money. As the conditions of the church went on these situations, people who are newly saved were ignored about the zeal and disciplines of the church. The main problem of this statement is lack of preaching and lack of training in righteousness. If there is a sound doctrine in the church, there will be disciplines also.

Method of Study

The church discipline is very important thing in God’s ministry. All the people who are redeemed by God are joined together in the body of Christ. So the church should be holy. To be holy, discipline is needed. For the clarification of the church discipline, the author gives various methods. First, he moves to explain the teachings of church discipline in the biblical perspective. He clarifies that the purpose, practice, reasons for the church discipline on the basis of New Testament church disciplines. He also explains the teachings of the church disciplines through some biblical passages. Finally, the author clarifies that why the church discipline is so important and with concluding session.

Limitations of the Present Study

There are many things to study in church discipline. But in this subject, how the church should be governed with disciplines is indicated. The background of the New Testament church disciplines are exemplified to the present day church situations. The disciplines of the church are explained through only a few passages of the scriptures. There are many passages in the Bible about the church discipline, but only a few important areas are covered for practicing the church disciplines. The process or procedures of church disciplines are not much explained in this paper. The discipline of church leaders and the results of disciplines are not mentioned in this paper.

Statement of this Paper

God-glorifying activities are much important in the ministry of the Church. So the church should be encouraged to live a holy life. Church discipline is a means by which the purity of the church is advanced and holiness of life is encouraged through practicing God's Word accurately. The church discipline is confrontive and corrective measures taken by the church concerning the matter of sin in the life of believer. The responsibility of the church is not only involving in the ministry of reconciliation but also in the ministry of nurturing. The ministry of nurturing includes discipline. It is basically set upon evangelism and edification. So the church discipline as a part of edification process ministers to those within the church who are caught in sin so they can be restored through fellowship with Christ.

THE NEW TESTAMENT CHURCH DISCIPLINE

The activity of church discipline is to produce a holy character because God’s purpose for the church is to be holy[1] (Eph 5:26-27). The church discipline aims at promoting the spiritual edification of the members of the church by securing their obedience to the laws of Christ.[2] They should comprehend that “the discipline of the church rests upon the fact that God Himself disciplines His children”[3] (Heb 12:6). So the church should always remember that primary consideration of the discipline is the maintenance of holiness of the church.[4] “The removal of sin restores the honor of God and enables the testimony of the church to shine brightly in the world.”[5] Failure to discipline evidences a lack of awareness of the holy character of God because it has to be witness to the world.[6] If the church is failure in exercising this ministry of discipline, it can only lead to weaker (though probably larger) churches.[7] So the church should exercise the Ministry of discipline as was in the New Testament.

The purpose of the Church Discipline

The purpose of the church discipline is not to throw the people out of the church, but to restore a sinning believer to holiness and bring him back into a pure relationship within the assembly. It is for gaining back of something of value that is lost like an erring one. The valuable treasure which is lost (It means when a believer astray) should be recovered and restored, and such is the purpose of discipline.

The primary purpose of church discipline is to pursue the twofold goal of restoration and reconciliation. Thus encourages the offended one to get the right behavior and fellowship between the believers, and with God.[8] The purpose of discipline is also to keep the sin from spreading to others otherwise it would spread to many others who were not awareness about sinning[9] (Heb 12:15, 1 Tim 5:20). Such discipline brings honor to Christ by protecting the purity of the church. If the church is failed in maintaining her purity, will result dishonor to Christ and blaspheme God’s name among non-believers[10] (Rom 2:24; 1 Cor 6:6).

Discipline is needed doctrine for the church to uphold the purity and good name of the church. “It was to serve as a warning to others and to demonstrate that the church regards such sinful behavior as contrary to its nature and therefore completely unacceptable.”[11]

Ø Discipline is needed for restoring, healing and building up sinning believers (Mtt 18:15; Gal 6:1-2; I Thess 3:14-15).

Ø Discipline is necessary for producing a healthy faith, one sound in doctrine (Tit 1:13; 1 Tim 1:19-20).

Ø Discipline is much important for winning a soul to Christ, if the sinning person is only a professing Christian (2 Tim 2:24-26).

Ø Discipline is needed to set an example for the rest of the body and promote godly fear (1 Tim 5:20).

Ø Discipline is to silence false teachers and their influence in the church (Tit 1:10-11).

Ø Discipline is necessary because it brings the glory to God and enhances the testimony of the flock.

The examples of sins subject to church discipline in the New Testament are extremely diverse: divisiveness (Rom 16:17; Tit 3:10), incest (1 Cor 5:1), laziness and refusing to work (2 Thess 3:6-10), disobeying what Paul writes (2 Thess 3:14-15), blasphemy (1 Tim 1:20), and teaching heretical doctrine (2 Jn 10-11). The discipline should be taken at the present churches when the believer astray from God’s Word.

The practice of Church Discipline

New Testament church practiced the church discipline. It is disciplined for the purity of the church. It must be practiced with great care. Paul affirms that the practice of discipline should be in the cases of covetousness, idolatry, abusive speech, drunkedness, and swindling (1 Cori 5:11). 1 Cori 6:9-10 adds more sins for which discipline is needed such as adultery, effeminate – perversion, homosexuality, theft.

So, when such sin appears, the church ought to do its duty in summoning the sinner and correcting him according to his fault. In the ancient church, discipline applied to all offenders. For if any one had committed a crime that caused offense, he was ordered first to abstain from partaking of the sacred supper, then to humble himself before God and witness his repentance before the church. Because, Paul not only rebuked the Corinthian in words but banished the erring one from the church, and chided the Corinthians for bearing with him so long (1 Cori 5:1-7).

If the guilty one is not repent, the church is to apply the procedures of excommunication as directed in Matthew 18:17. The New Testament church believers were to be gathered together in order to take action against the offending brother (1 Cori 5:4-5; Rom 16:17; 2 Thess 3:6-15).

Ø Discipline must be done in a spirit of humility, gentleness and patience, lest no one be tempted (Gal 6:1-2; 2 Tim 2:24-25).

Ø Discipline must be done without partiality (I Tim 5:21).

Ø Discipline must be done by the spiritual people for restoring the erring one (Gal 6:1).

Ø The disorderly walk must be admonished, warned and appealed to in love by the person who is spirit controlled and spiritually minded (Gal 6:1; 1 Thess 5:14-15; 2 Tim 4:2).

Ø The discipline should be practised with forgiveness when the person repents. The congregation of the church must eager to forgive, comfort, and reaffirm their love to the sinning person (2 Cori 2:6-8).

Ø Discipline must be practised as told in Matthew 18:17 to create the fear among the rest of the believers as warning against sin (1 Tim 5:20).

The Reasons for Church Disciplines

“Discipline concerns those who clearly have a harmful effect upon the congregation in one way or another.”[12]

Ø Discipline is to remove the defilement and leaving influence that sin brings (1 Cori 5:6-8).

Ø Discipline is to protect other believers from sinning and challenge them to godliness (Gal 6:1; 1 Tim 5:20).

Ø Discipline is to produce soundness in faith (Tit 1:13).

Ø Discipline is to reclaim and restore the erring brother (2 Cori 2:5-11).

True fellowship within the local church also involves discipline. Discipline promotes the spiritual welfare of the church. So therefore, Disorderly conduct (2 Thess 3:6-15) must be disciplined. Divisiveness (Rom 16:17-18; Tit 3:9-10) – Divisions contrary to biblical doctrine demand discipline. Gross sins must be disciplined (1 Cori 5:1-13; 1 Tim 5:20).

While disciplining the guilty one, the church should not be hasty but with deliberate steps (Matt 18:15-20), there should not be any partiality (1 Tim 5:21). It has to be exercised with the goal of correction and eventual restoration (2 Cori 2:6-8).[13] The church must be protected from moral decay and impure doctrinal influences. Discipline should be taken when the purity is lost, because there must be difference between the church and the secular world in attitudes, values, morals and life style. J. Carl Laney divides the sins necessitating church discipline into four categories.

(1) Violations of Christian love. This includes private offences against a brother or sister (Matt 5:23-24). (2) Violations of Christian unity. This includes divisive actions which disrupt the meaning of the local church (Rom 16:17; Tit 3:10). (3) Violations of Christian law or morality. This is breaking the ethical codes or sin lists of the Old Testament and New Testament. (4) Violations of Christian truth. This is the rejection of the essential doctrines of the faith, heresy, etc. (1 Tim 6:3-5; Tit 3:10; 2 Jn 7-11).[14]

The church also should have these attitudes while disciplining. (a) Meekness (Gal 6:1), (b) Uncompromising stand against sin (Tit 1:13), (c) Love (2 Thess 3:9-15), (d) Forgiving spirit at repentance (2 Cori 2:5-11).

Biblical expositions about Church Disciplines

The discipline of the church is a neglected doctrine in the church. When the church followed false doctrine on disorderly walk or immorality, she needs discipline.

“The basis of discipline of a local church is the holiness of God.”[15] It should be practiced in the church. “To discipline is to penalize an individual for breaking the laws of a unit of society to which he belongs with the view of restoring him back to those laws.”[16] The discipline of the church is to take the believer back to “obedience to the Word of God”[17] and “removal of the defilement of sin”[18] or “restoring the erring brother.”[19]

There should be sound doctrines in the church. The church should be faithful to God.[20] The undisciplined people who disobey or deny the great doctrines of the faith, having an immoral life, should be disciplined by the church.

While disciplining the church, her attitude should not be vengeance and arrogance. She should look the individual as an erring person not a bitter enemy. If the person comes to repentance, the church should be ready to forgive him. The person should be approached with sorrow not sarcasm by the church.

The church should remain that the discipline is to maintain the standards of the church to a watching world. It should help the guilty person to find a right way back to God. The discipline should be maintained to keep the sin from spreading throughout the church. To come back to God, the guilty person should ask question “what have I done wrong?” if he or she examines with this question and finds the answer biblically, thus will help to draw near God.

Matthew 18:15-17

Discipline needs the person when he sins. “The responsibility to seek reconciliation rests with the offened, not the offender.”[21] Here, the passage talks about the guilty person “is to be refused fellowship until he repents of his sin and gives evidence of his subjection the Word of God.”[22] Gal 1; Jam 5:19, 20 indicates the same procedure. The discipline of the church should be handled prayerfully, carefully, justly.

The very first step is to be taken to the guilty one who sins against God and offences contrary to the doctrine is a private meeting with him. The believer should try “to get the offender to see his sin for what he is.”[23] This is not to punish “but with the attempt to rescue a ‘brother’ whose sin has put him in danger.”[24] It is for “the spiritual restoration of fallen members and the consequent strengthening of the church and glorifying the Lord.”[25]

The second step is “if he will not hear you, take with you one or two more…” V. 16 (NKJV). This implies that the goal of the discipline is not to throw the people out of the church. So “by the mouth of two or three witnesses every word may be established” (V. 16 NKJV). “It is not only to confirm that the sin was committed but, in addition, to confirm that the sinning believer was properly rebuked and that he or she has not repented”.[26] And also this step is for his or her restoration and they “must have the same spiritual characteristics.”[27]

The third step is to tell it the church. It should be followed when the first two steps of disciplines process fails to bring repentance. “This is the ultimate level of persuasion to lead to repentance.”[28]

If the guilty person fails to repent in this process, then, the Bible tells about the fourth stage that he will be like “a heathen and a tax collector.” (V. 17 NASB). “The fourth step in the discipline process is therefore to put out and to call back – keep the sinning brother out of fellowship until he repents, but also to keep calling him back in the hope that he will.”[29]

1 Corinthians 5 and 6 Chapters

The Chapter five talks about sexual immorality. Here the occasion is an act of impurity. “Immorality is the Greek porneia, from which we get pornography, and refers to any illicit sexual activity.”[30] Here Paul warns about a man who had such sexual relationship with his father’s wife (step mother). It implies such sexual relations in the same category as relations between him and natural mother.[31]

Paul affirms that sexual immorality should be judged. In Chapter 6, there was the problem of litigation before Heathen judges. And also he wrote the problem of the fornication. “It is a sin that affects the man’s own personality; it destroys the holy, supernatural union between him and Christ.”[32] Fornication is the immoral thing which makes the members of Christ as the members of harlot.[33] “Fornication involves the Christian in a degrading physical solidarity, incompatible with the believer’s spiritual solidarity with Christ.”[34] So, the believers should be very careful about sexual matters. Because immorality is declared to demand reproof and refusal of fellowship as long as the sin is continued or unconfessed.

For this the method of discipline which is explained in Matt. 18:15-17, should be practiced by believers. 1 Corinthians 6 and 7 Chapters implies that the believers should not be mean with the immoral people of this world or with the covetous and swindlers, or with idolaters, revilers, drunkards, thieves, adulterers, fornicators. For they should remind that they are washed, sanctified, and separated from the world by God. The church discipline should be implemented over such cases very carefully and biblically.

Hebrews 10:25

Neglecting the church discipline is despising the church. “Assembly and fellowship are two evidences of vital faith.”[35] The absence of one believer discourages others “to careless ways.”[36] The believers should not neglect the church for the worship meetings. The assemblies of Christians are to have fellowship and encourage one another. They are to strengthen and stimulate one another.[37]

But “the vast majority of professing Christians wishes to be petted and flattered, rather than exhorted and cautioned.”[38] Such Christians should be taught with biblical doctrines and should be disciplined by the church. Unhesitatingly and courageously when believers encourage one another, the faith and witness will more vigorously flourish in the fellowship of Christianity.[39]

If the Christians are neglecting the general assemblies of the church more than four months, they should be excommunicated by the church. If the pastors, deacons or deaconess are not qualified biblically, they should not be in such positions. The Christians should be with full submission and dedication to the glorious ministry. They should have the zeal, passion and burden heart to lead the congregation spiritually unto God, and to teach the congregation with sound doctrines.

Unless clergy or laity teaches the sound doctrine, how they will realize the church discipline? The discipline will be in the church when the church know, that the Bible is only the supreme authority over everything. If there is sound doctrine in the church, she will be separated from the world and false doctrines. There the discipline will be implemented.

Is Excommunication corrective?

Excommunication is much important in discipline. Paul shows when he not only chastises the incestuous Corinthian with words but punishes him with excommunication, as soon as he has been apprised of the crime (1 Cori 5:3). In excommunication, the intent is to lead the sinner to repentance and to remove bad examples from the midst, lest either Christ’s name be maligned or others be provoked to imitate them. So therefore, the final step of excommunication is still with hope that repentance will result.[40]

Matt 18:15-20 clearly states that the procedure and authority for the church to practice “excommunication”. ‘Excommunication is the removal of an individual (offended person) from the membership of the church, and also to be separated from that individual for a period of time’. It instructs that the ultimate goal of the excommunication/discipline is for the restoration of the individual to full fellowship with both God and co-believers. So the church should know that excommunication is to be done in love toward the individual with godly fear in the church for the sake of others. Of course, many times when the disciplinary action has done in the churches of this time with love and correct manner, it is not successful in bringing the guilty one to the genuine repentance. Nevertheless it should be followed by the churches because it is commanded in God’s Word. Hopefully the disciplinary action of the church is successful in bringing about godly sorrow and genuine repentance. If this happens, the repentant sinner can be restored to the fellowship. Paul encouraged to be restored to fellowship in the church (2 Cori 2:5-8).

The purpose of excommunication is not to throw the offended ones out of the church, so the Bible says that such people should be warned, rebuked, excommunicated and restored for a wide variety of offenses. The concept of discipline which implies the authority over individual members, because the church needs clearly defined ideas of faith and conduct which must be applied.

CONCLUSION

So, what’s been lost? The discipline of the early church and their practices. The early church was practiced with the disciplines. They battled with the world doctrinely and successed. Despite many persecutions they brought the good news everywhere and maintained disciplines. Afterwards, Roman Empire got the authority over the church and it became more and more institutionalized, less and less dependant on God. The church became a persecutor for others. The disciplines became indiscipline, still it continuing in the world. After the reformation also the Protestant Popes lead the church to indiscipline. “Charismatic have never done anything but strip suckers of their money.”[41]

So, the church needs discipline today. For that the “pastors and leaders of other ministries must resolve to be consistent with scripture in separating from false doctrines and false teachers.”[42] If they separated from the false doctrines, then the believers also will be separated like them. Because the “pastor and people are bound together by spiritualities”[43] as members of the body of Christ.

As was the disciplines of the early church, the church now should be practiced. It is very sad to see the state of today’s church and its destination. The high charismatic non conformist teachings of the radical groups of this century should be condemned with pure doctrine.

The purpose of all truly scriptural discipline is the correction of errors and sins and the restoration of the offenders. The discipline accordingly cannot be punitive, but must always be loving and redemptive. The church should consider true discipline as one of the marks of the true church. The goal of church discipline is thus the restoration of erring believers to the way of discipleship the realization of a sanctified church, and the enhancement of the church’s witness in the world. So, Is the church discipline corrective / confrontive? Or punitive / redemptive? For the resolution of the discipline of the church, the writer simply tells that it is corrective not a confrontive, and redemptive not a punitive. It must be implemented in the churches of this age, until her rapture. It can be only by committing to the New Testament church disciplines.

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[1] Charles C. Ryrie, Basic Theology, (England: Victor, 1994), p. 433.

[2] L. Berkhof, Systematic Theology (Grand Rapids: Eerdmans, 1969), p. 599.

[3] Robert L. Saucy, The Church in God’s Program, (Chicago: Moody, 1972), p. 119.

[4] Berkhof, Systematic Theology, p. 599.

[5] Saucy, The Church in God’s Program, p. 126.

[6] Ibid, p. 120.

[7] Ryrie, Basic Theology, p. 435.

[8] Grudem, Systematic Theology, Pp. 894-895.

[9] Ibid, p. 895.

[10] Ibid., Pp. 895-896.

[11] Rolland D. McCune, Systematic Theology III, (Class notes, Detroit Baptist Theological Seminary, Fall, 1998), p. 168.

[12] Saucy, The Church in God’s Program, Pp. 120-121.

[13] Ryrie, Basic Theology, p. 433.

[14] J. Carl Laney, A Guide to Church Discipline, (Bethany, 1985), p. 47, quoted in Rolland D. McCune, Systematic Theology III, (Class notes, Detroit Baptist Theological Seminary, 1998), Pp. 169-170.

[15] Ibid, p. 201.

[16] Ibid, p. 201.

[17] Paul R. Jackson, The Doctrine and Administration of the Church, (Illinois: Regular Baptist Press, 1975), p. 77.

[18] Ibid, p. 77.

[19] Ibid, p. 78.

[20] Ibid, p. 81.

[21] Jackson, The Doctrine and Administration of the Church, p. 80.

[22] Ibid, p. 75.

[23] Leon Morris, The Gospel according to Matthew, (Grand Rapids: Eerdmans, 1992), p. 467.

[24] R.T. France, Tyndale New Testament Commentaries, Matthew, (Grand Rapids: Eerdmans, 1999), p. 247.

[25] John MacArthur, The MacArthur New Testament Commentary, Matthew 16-23, (Chicago: Moody Press, 2002), p. 132.

[26] Ibid, p. 133.

[27] Arno C. Caebelein, The Gospel of Matthew, (New Jersey: Loizeaux Brothers, 1961), p. 386.

[28] France, Matthew, p. 275.

[29] MacArthur, Matthew 16-23, p. 136.

[30] MacArthur, 1 Corinthians, p. 123.

[31] Ibid, p. 123.

[32] Thomas Charles Edwards, A Commentary on the First Epistle to the Corinthians, (Minnesota: Klock and Klock, 1979), p. 148.

[33] Edwards, First Epistle to the Corinthians, p. 148.

[34] F. Godet, Commentary on the First Epistle of St. Paul to the Corinthians, Trans. Rev. A Cusin, Vol. 1, Ch. 1-8, (Grand Rapids: Zondervan, 1957), p. 315.

[35] Charles F. Pfeiffer and Everett F. Harrison, The Wycliffe Bible Commentary, (Chicago: Moody Press, 1971), p. 1420.

[36] J.C. Macaulay, Devotional Studies in the Epistle to the Hebrews, (Grand Rapids: Eerdmans, 1949), p. 164.

[37] Donald Guthrie, Tyndale New Testament Commentaries, Hebrews, (Grand Rapids: Eerdmans, 1999), p. 216.

[38] Arthur W. Pink, An exposition of Hebrews, (Grand Rapids: Baker, 1989), p. 608.

[39] F.F. Bruce, The epistle to the Hebrews, Rev. ed., (Grand Rapids: Eerdmans, 1990), p. 256.

[40] Gradum, Systematic Theology, p. 894.

[41] Peter S. Ruckman, The Local Church, (Pensacola: BB Book Store, 1989), p. 23.

[42] Fred Moritz, Be Holy, (South Carolina: Bob Jones University Press, 1994), p. 101.

[43] Ernest Pickering, For the Hurting Pastor, (Illinois: Regular Baptist Press, 1987), p. 46.