by Pastor Patrick Cho
The practice of church discipline in its specifics will probably differ some from church to church. The leadership of each church needs to determine the exact process by which a member who falls into unrepentant sin is removed from fellowship in accordance with biblical guidelines. Many object to the practice of church discipline because they see it as unloving or cruel, but the Bible offers the exact opposite description. Church discipline is a necessary practice if a church truly loves and cares for its members, and seeks to uphold the name of Christ and the purity of the church.
Jesus gives some basic instructions in Matthew 18:15-17. Before looking at the passage, it is worth noting that this is the second mention of the church in the book of Matthew. The first was in Matthew 16:18, where Jesus tells Peter that He would build His church. There He announces the coming birth of the church, and the very next mention of the church in chapter 18 has to do with the greatest threat to the church, which is sin. Jesus knew the danger of people falling into unrepentant sin. He not only proclaimed the establishment of the church, but also provided instructions for the protection of the church.
Going back to the text of Matthew 18, the first step in dealing with an erring brother is private, personal confrontation (v. 15). Jesus says that if you see your brother in sin, you go and confront him alone. The text is emphatic that you are not to bring in anyone else. If you have seen the fault, you go and make it known – between you and him alone. You do not go and talk to the pastor. You don’t consult your friends. You talk to them alone. One reason for this private confrontation is that there might have been a misunderstanding. It would be unwise to involve other people and bring undue shame upon an individual if the accusations were false. If the brother has committed some sin, you are to go and plead with him to repent and turn back to Christ.
The second step in dealing with the brother in sin is to take one or two witnesses with you (v. 16). If you have done all you can to correct an erring brother and he still refuses to repent, it is necessary to bring in others to assist you. These others help not only by serving as witnesses “that every charge may be established,” but also to aid in the pleading for repentance. This is why the next verse indicates, “if he refuses to listen to them.” The small group appeals to the sinning brother to see his wickedness before God and repent. The witnesses also serve to confirm the accusations to prove that it isn’t just a misunderstanding or a false accusation.
The third step is to take it to the church (v. 17). This comes after the previous attempts to win this brother over. If you feel like your personal confrontation is not getting anywhere, you bring in one or two witnesses to help in the appeal. If they do all they can but still have the brother refuses to repent, you then take the matter to the final authority, which is the church. The church then becomes the last line of defense for the individual, and seeks to call the brother to repentance. In all three stages, this is obviously a loving appeal, but one can see how the pressure increases with each stage as more and more are brought into the situation.
It is essential to see that the goal of this process is restoration and reconciliation. The goal is not to kick the brother out of fellowship, but to win him back and help him turn from his sin. The motivation behind it all is love! If you really care about a brother who has fallen into sin, you wouldn’t want him to continue in that sin. His sin does damage to his relationship with God and others, and you want those relationships to be good. You wouldn’t want his life to be offensive to God, but pleasing. This is why you go through this process. It isn’t just to show someone how lame they are or to get back at them for hurting you. The motivation is love.
Next time, we’ll take a look at what happens if they persist in their sin, how this process was exemplified in the early church, and how specifically we apply this at LBC.