Deliverance in Church Discipline
A church is departing from the faith and our loving Father disciplines them, not to punish but to get them to see their error and return to fellowship with Him. In doing so the church is restored, individuals regain their freedom in Christ and the Father is glorified. What does the Bible say about the individual’s role and their hope, even if the ideal outcome is not realized and the church continues in disobedience?
The good news is that you as a believer are viewed by God as an individual, you are not judged or rewarded based on the actions of the church body you are a part of; it is according to your own actions. We see this taught in Revelation where the Lord Jesus condemns the church at Sardis but states there are a few pure souls who will escape judgment. In another example Paul chastises the church at Corinth for tolerating sin in their midst, again the individual and church are dealt with distinctly and separately.
The church at Sardis was dead but contained a few who were faithful, and these were dealt with separately by Jesus. In Revelation 3:1 Jesus states to the church through the Apostle John “I know thy works, that thou hast a name that thou livest, and art dead.” Strong words from The Son of God declaring a whole church dead. He continues on with specific examples of what is wrong, but … there is hope for the church and there are a few faithful people. In verse 4 we find that “Thou hast a few names even in Sardis which have not defiled their garments; and they shall walk with me in white: for they are worthy.” So even though the church was judged harshly by our Lord He recognized and encouraged the few people who were faithful. This gives us a great hope too, if the church body we are a part of is in sin, rebellion, or following false teachers we can know God will judge us according to our actions and attitudes and not condemn us for the actions of the group. This means that after we are saved in Jesus Christ, we are judged individually and not as a group. In 2 Corinthians 5 and verse 10 it is clear we shall “all appear before the judgment seat of Christ; that every one may receive the things [done] in [his] body, according to that he hath done, whether [it be] good or bad.” This is clearly to the individual believer. So take heart, if your church is rebelling or sinning against God, stand firm in your beliefs and actions before God as you search out scripture to know your beliefs align with His Word.
Remember though that God deals with individuals and bodies with justice and righteousness. We see in the book of 1 Corinthians in chapter 5 a situation where sin existed in the body of the church and the church boasted of their love and tolerance. Read how the Apostle Paul chastised the church and told them they were wrong to allow such horrible sin. The church was being chastised (disciplined) to correct their behavior, and he used strong words to make the point very clear. But Paul was also concerned for the individual and his advice was meant to show this man how wrong his sin was. Paul told the church to cast the individual out of their congregation. The Holy Spirit through Paul was making it very clear the church (that is each church member and particularly the elders who held this overly tolerant view) would be held accountable for their actions just as the individual in sin would be. Paul spoke in his letter with the intent of bringing both back to God! And it appeared to work, in 2 Corinthians 2:6-11 Paul speaks about receiving a man back into their congregation. He speaks about the church needing to forgive this man. Many commentators believe the man they are to forgive is the same one in 1 Corinthians 5. Please note the love of God at work here; when sin abounded the Spirit chastised with the hope of restored relationship and when repentance occurred the Spirit commanded forgiveness. Now this man appears to have been completely forgiven by God, it was the church that was being stubborn and not forgiving the man. Again it is clear that each is held accountable for their actions; the individual believer and the body are responsible separately; the individual condemned for his own actions but the church was chastised for not purifying itself and placing love and tolerance above all else and not being a pure member of Christ.
Keep in mind one other point; in neither of these cases did the Father bring physical discipline to the church. In the letter to Sardis the believers were exhorted to change their ways, the consequence for not doing so was His unexpected return and a loss of reward in Heaven when standing before the Judgment Seat of Christ. For the church at Corinth it was exhortation with the hope of change given by Paul. We don’t know what else Paul may have done had the church not followed his advice. But in neither case was physical discipline mentioned as having happened or was the threat of physical discipline even alluded to. So if your church is not undergoing physical discipline, do NOT take this as a sign that everything is going well within the church. Just as God allowed each of these churches to continue in their ways after being warned, He will today speak words of correction to a church without bringing physical discipline. Be attentive to what God is speaking through the scripture and how the churches actions align with this and do not take physical circumstances as confirmation of His good will nor of His displeasure.
Summary: You are not evaluated by the actions or beliefs of your church, the preaching and culture of the church may influence you, but your walk is your own and it can be just and true and rewarded whether the rest of the church is faithful like Philadelphia or whether it is corrupt like Sardis. Just remember it is the heart and attitude God judges, His view is not based on appearances or what we perceive our circumstances to be but on doctrine and attitudes as well as actions.
Updated January 1. 2012
The good news is that you as a believer are viewed by God as an individual, you are not judged or rewarded based on the actions of the church body you are a part of; it is according to your own actions. We see this taught in Revelation where the Lord Jesus condemns the church at Sardis but states there are a few pure souls who will escape judgment. In another example Paul chastises the church at Corinth for tolerating sin in their midst, again the individual and church are dealt with distinctly and separately.
The church at Sardis was dead but contained a few who were faithful, and these were dealt with separately by Jesus. In Revelation 3:1 Jesus states to the church through the Apostle John “I know thy works, that thou hast a name that thou livest, and art dead.” Strong words from The Son of God declaring a whole church dead. He continues on with specific examples of what is wrong, but … there is hope for the church and there are a few faithful people. In verse 4 we find that “Thou hast a few names even in Sardis which have not defiled their garments; and they shall walk with me in white: for they are worthy.” So even though the church was judged harshly by our Lord He recognized and encouraged the few people who were faithful. This gives us a great hope too, if the church body we are a part of is in sin, rebellion, or following false teachers we can know God will judge us according to our actions and attitudes and not condemn us for the actions of the group. This means that after we are saved in Jesus Christ, we are judged individually and not as a group. In 2 Corinthians 5 and verse 10 it is clear we shall “all appear before the judgment seat of Christ; that every one may receive the things [done] in [his] body, according to that he hath done, whether [it be] good or bad.” This is clearly to the individual believer. So take heart, if your church is rebelling or sinning against God, stand firm in your beliefs and actions before God as you search out scripture to know your beliefs align with His Word.
Remember though that God deals with individuals and bodies with justice and righteousness. We see in the book of 1 Corinthians in chapter 5 a situation where sin existed in the body of the church and the church boasted of their love and tolerance. Read how the Apostle Paul chastised the church and told them they were wrong to allow such horrible sin. The church was being chastised (disciplined) to correct their behavior, and he used strong words to make the point very clear. But Paul was also concerned for the individual and his advice was meant to show this man how wrong his sin was. Paul told the church to cast the individual out of their congregation. The Holy Spirit through Paul was making it very clear the church (that is each church member and particularly the elders who held this overly tolerant view) would be held accountable for their actions just as the individual in sin would be. Paul spoke in his letter with the intent of bringing both back to God! And it appeared to work, in 2 Corinthians 2:6-11 Paul speaks about receiving a man back into their congregation. He speaks about the church needing to forgive this man. Many commentators believe the man they are to forgive is the same one in 1 Corinthians 5. Please note the love of God at work here; when sin abounded the Spirit chastised with the hope of restored relationship and when repentance occurred the Spirit commanded forgiveness. Now this man appears to have been completely forgiven by God, it was the church that was being stubborn and not forgiving the man. Again it is clear that each is held accountable for their actions; the individual believer and the body are responsible separately; the individual condemned for his own actions but the church was chastised for not purifying itself and placing love and tolerance above all else and not being a pure member of Christ.
Keep in mind one other point; in neither of these cases did the Father bring physical discipline to the church. In the letter to Sardis the believers were exhorted to change their ways, the consequence for not doing so was His unexpected return and a loss of reward in Heaven when standing before the Judgment Seat of Christ. For the church at Corinth it was exhortation with the hope of change given by Paul. We don’t know what else Paul may have done had the church not followed his advice. But in neither case was physical discipline mentioned as having happened or was the threat of physical discipline even alluded to. So if your church is not undergoing physical discipline, do NOT take this as a sign that everything is going well within the church. Just as God allowed each of these churches to continue in their ways after being warned, He will today speak words of correction to a church without bringing physical discipline. Be attentive to what God is speaking through the scripture and how the churches actions align with this and do not take physical circumstances as confirmation of His good will nor of His displeasure.
Summary: You are not evaluated by the actions or beliefs of your church, the preaching and culture of the church may influence you, but your walk is your own and it can be just and true and rewarded whether the rest of the church is faithful like Philadelphia or whether it is corrupt like Sardis. Just remember it is the heart and attitude God judges, His view is not based on appearances or what we perceive our circumstances to be but on doctrine and attitudes as well as actions.
Updated January 1. 2012
