Sins that defile God’s people…

It is actually reported that there is sexual immorality among you, and of a kind that is not tolerated even among pagans, for a man has his father’s wife. And you are arrogant! Ought you not rather to mourn? Let him who has done this be removed from among you. For though absent in body, I am present in spirit; and as if present, I have already pronounced judgment on the one who did such a thing. When you are assembled in the name of the Lord Jesus and my spirit is present, with the power of our Lord Jesus, you are to deliver this man to Satan for the destruction of the flesh, so that his spirit may be saved in the day of the Lord. Your boasting is not good. Do you not know that a little leaven leavens the whole lump? Cleanse out the old leaven that you may be a new lump, as you really are unleavened. For Christ, our Passover lamb, has been sacrificed. Let us therefore celebrate the festival, not with the old leaven, the leaven of malice and evil, but with the unleavened bread of sincerity and truth. I wrote to you in my letter not to associate with sexually immoral people— not at all meaning the sexually immoral of this world, or the greedy and swindlers, or idolaters, since then you would need to go out of the world. But now I am writing to you not to associate with anyone who bears the name of brother if he is guilty of sexual immorality or greed, or is an idolater, reviler, drunkard, or swindler—not even to eat with such a one. For what have I to do with judging outsiders? Is it not those inside the church whom you are to judge? God judges those outside. “Purge the evil person from among you.” (1 Corinthians 5:1–13)

This passage seems to focus on only one sin, yet the instructions to rid the church covers more than those involved in sexual sin. The list includes: greed, idolatry, reviler (those who slander others), drunkards, and swindlers. While all of us are sinners, these are particularly evil and harmful to God's people and if any who claim to be Christians are involved in such things, they need to be disciplined rather than tolerated.

We attend a particularly incredible assembly of several hundred believers. I’m aware of only one person guilty of one of the sins included in this passage. I don’t know if he was told to leave but he did. Those related to him have stayed and been comforted and cared for as they hope for repentance.

The church at Corinth thought it was spiritual to forgive their sinner, but there is no mention of repentance or that he quit this particular sin. Instead, they were rebuked for not dealing with him. The last lines say we are to judge those in the church, guarding the purity of Christ’s body. 

However, it also says we are not to judge those outside the body. This isn’t about overlooking the sin in the world but about realizing that those without Christ have no power to be godly. Without Jesus, we were the same — helpless and hopeless. Those who have Christ are not. He has given us new life in Him and we have all we need to do His will and say NO to evil.

Lord Jesus, I know that Your forgiveness and faith in You changes lives. While sin is powerful, and while the enemy is strong with his deception, You tell us that “No temptation has overtaken you that is not common to man. God is faithful, and he will not let you be tempted beyond your ability, but with the temptation he will also provide the way of escape, that you may be able to endure it.” (1 Corinthians 10:13) While it is easy to excuse sin, there is no excuse for it. You provide. Enable me and all Your children to say NO to temptation and rely on You to keep us in Your will. Thank You for salvation from sin and the power of the Holy Spirit.

No lumps under the rug

This two-month focus on the church uses key verses that express unity and solidarity . . .  

“So then you are no longer strangers and aliens, but you are fellow citizens with the saints and members of the household of God, built on the foundation of the apostles and prophets, Christ Jesus himself being the cornerstone, in whom the whole structure, being joined together, grows into a holy temple in the Lord.” (Ephesians 2:19–21)

Sometimes people in the church attempt to create the atmosphere of spirituality or super-niceness by avoiding problems rather than dealing with them. Issues get swept them under the carpet out of a strong aversion against confrontation or fear of rejection. They might tell themselves to “mind my own business” rather than doing the unpleasant.

In the beginning of the church, the first recorded problem was Greek Christians protesting that their widows were not in on the daily care given to the Hebrew Christians. The twelve apostles held a general meeting and said, “It is not right that we should give up preaching the word of God to serve tables. Therefore, brothers, pick out from among you seven men of good repute, full of the Spirit and of wisdom, whom we will appoint to this duty. But we will devote ourselves to prayer and to the ministry of the word.”

That pleased everyone and they found the seven men. At that, “the word of God continued to increase, and the number of the disciples multiplied greatly in Jerusalem, and a great many of the priests became obedient to the faith.” (Acts 6:1–7)

Dealing with strife is difficult, but what stirs it up in the first place? In that case, it seemed to be a reaction to unfair treatment. The book of Proverbs offers several verses that add a few more motivations. None of them are very noble . . .

“Hatred stirs up strife, but love covers all offenses.” (Proverbs 10:12) “A hot-tempered man stirs up strife, but he who is slow to anger quiets contention.” (Proverbs 15:18) “A dishonest man spreads strife, and a whisperer separates close friends.” (Proverbs 16:28) “A greedy man stirs up strife, but the one who trusts in the Lord will be enriched.” (Proverbs 28:25) “A man of wrath stirs up strife, and one given to anger causes much transgression.” (Proverbs 29:22)

From this, I can see the following issues: hate, inability to deal with anger, dishonesty, gossip, greed, failure to trust God, and vengefulness, but I can think of others. I’ve sometimes felt like picking a fight over being insulted, misunderstood, neglected (like those widows), or simply not heard or respected. It is almost always about the sins of the other guy (as if I have none of my own).

God is gracious. He knows that I can be the cause of the problem, but not always. He gives instruction for how to handle situations like that . . .

“If your brother sins against you, go and tell him his fault, between you and him alone. If he listens to you, you have gained your brother. But if he does not listen, take one or two others along with you, that every charge may be established by the evidence of two or three witnesses. 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 collector.” (Matthew 18:15–17)

This is called “church discipline” and it is not a popular topic or a common practice in most churches today. However, if ignored, that lump under the carpet can grow large and begin tripping people before a congregation does anything. Sadly, some never do and the injured people as well as those causing the problem find no resolution. This creates coldness that lasts for years, or even causes church splits.

If someone sins against me, I’m to talk to that person. If I don’t, I’m more likely to talk to someone else and soon create rifts by wanting people to take up my side of the problem.

Otherwise, I might talk to God in my frustration, but He passes the ball back to me. I’m to go to the one who offended me and get it settled, not letting the sun go down on any anger. And if I cannot do that, then I’m supposed to get over it. Forgiveness isn’t easy, but infighting has ruined relationships and destroyed the power and testimony of many congregations.

At this moment, I cannot think of anyone on my “this person hurt me” list, but people being people, it can and will happen. If I’m the cause of it, I need to deal with my sin. If someone else sins, I need grace to respond the right way, and not create any lumps under the rug. 

Listen to the Boss

An article in Sunshine Magazine shows the difference between a leader and a boss using a comparison made by a successful owner of large department stores. He claims that . . .

The boss drives his men — the leader coaches them.
The boss depends upon authority — the leader on good will.
The boss inspires fear — the leader inspires enthusiasm.
The boss says “I” — the leader, “we.”
The boss fixes the blame for the breakdown — the leader fixes the breakdown.
The boss knows how it is done — the leader shows how.
The boss says “Go” — the leader says “Let’s go!”

As I read this list, I’m thinking of the leadership style of Jesus Christ. He certainly coaches His disciples and is with them in every task and project. As the branch must abide in the vine, we also cannot do anything apart from Him. He also inspires us, fixes the messes we make, and shows us how to do what He asks. He is right there, no matter what He wants me to do.

Yet as my leader, Jesus must also have authority as well as ability. What good is a leader who cannot be or do anything that He asks of his followers? What good is a leader who cannot have any influence to bring the work done to a successful end? I could not follow Him if He had no clout, but of course He does have clout. He said:

“All authority has been given to Me in heaven and on earth.” (Matthew 28:18)

His authority covers everything that affects me. While He was on earth, He demonstrated authority over the weather, sickness and death, and all spiritual entities. He had the authority to forgive sins and judge all men. While He submitted to events, the Bible says that He now is sovereign over all. At the end of His time here, He also proved that He had the authority to lay down His life and take it up again. He is in charge of the world and all that happens in it. I may not understand what He is doing all the time, but I do know that He is the Boss.

Authority is important. While the world works toward “equality for all” this concept so easily backfires into anarchy. From youth who say, “Who are you to tell me what to do?” to adults who pay little attention to road signs and speed limits, anyone can observe the effects when people have little or no respect for authority. We need leaders, and we need to be able to recognize our leaders and follow them.

Authority is also important in the church. While we are all members of the body of Christ and “each member is as important as the others,” Jesus also gives authority to some who are leaders in the church. This has many important implications. One is that leadership provides a system of accountability that authorizes discipline when church members fall into sin and refuse to get out of it. The Bible says:

Obey your leaders and submit to their authority. They keep watch over you as men who must give an account. Obey them so that their work will be a joy, not a burden, for that would be of no advantage to you. (Hebrews 13:17)

If Christians find themselves in spiritual trouble because they have fallen into sin, they might go to a psychologist or counselor rather than their pastor. There, they may get good advice (unfortunately, not always), but an independent counselor cannot claim any spiritual authority over them or hold them accountable to obey biblical principles. The relationship is more clinical than personal so even if their counselor was another Christian, there is less likelihood that person would exhort a sinful client to confess and repent.

Christians are told to be accountable to those in authority over them and those who are spiritual are told to restore those overtaken in sin (Galatians 6). These are examples of the value of authority.

As for the practical part of this, I need leadership; running my own life gets me into trouble. Whether it is Jesus Himself, or someone He has authorized to take charge, I need someone to say “stop it” or “start it” and someone to show me how and cheer me on.

Just as the department store owner says, I need the “we” aspect of Jesus’ leadership. Whether I’m trying to keep my life straight, or am trying to obey His commands, I need my leaders.

I also need Jesus, and I am so glad that He is right here with me. The verse from Matthew, in its context, continues; after Jesus says He has all authority and gives His followers the command to make disciples, He finishes with, “and lo, I am with you always, even to the end of the age.”