Church Reconciliation And The Sinner: Even More Dangerous Than You Presumed It Was
Last weekend I had the great luck to hear an excellent sermon using Paul's letter to the Galatian church. Galatians is one of my all-time favorite books because it is about living the Christian life by means of the Holy Spirit. As a former "fundamentalist" I am an authority on living life by means of ordinances and regulations, and I am profoundly mindful of the spiritual death that results. The sinner and church reconciliation was a widespread topic of conversation, not to say debate, in those circles. Prepare yourself for some rough news!
The preacher began his analysis by sharing Paul's first instruction to the church in chapter 6: "Brethren, if anyone is discovered in any sin, those of you who are spiritual, reestablish such a one in a spirit of gentleness; each of you looking to himself, so that you too will not be tempted." We are aware that Paul is speaking of Christians who are "caught...in...sin" in view of the fact that he demands that they be restored, and Paul would not have considered non-Christians to have anything to be restored to.
The main reason that dealing with the sinner among Christians is so challenging is that everything that is biblically required of us is avoided by to the flesh. The flesh is not comfortable with confrontation and, in its presence, calls up "fight or flight" reactions. Biblical principles, conversely, require us to stay engaged and be humble. Here are three specifics from Galatians 6:1 to think about:
1. Ignoring the offender is not an option. "if anyone is trapped in any sin... restore such a one." This is an imperative. We cannot overlook and we may not banish, except as a last recourse.
2. The purpose of addressing sin is restoration. "...restore such a one." Even Matthew 18:15-18, which terminates in possible excommunication from the church, has restoration as its preferred intent: The initial stage of confrontation finishes: "...if he listens to you, you have won your brother." The subsequent measures provided for are clearly intended to have the same end results. Even when the church is constrained to "let him be to you as a Gentile and a person who collects taxes," we must presume that the intent is to reveal to the sinning Christian what he is losing by refusing to confess his sin. If and when he does so the church will initiate the plan of restoration that is the opposite of the process that contributed to his removal. Similarly, Paul tells the Corinthian church that there is a particular person among them whose sin is so blatant that "I have opted to present such a one to Satan for the destruction of the body, in order that his spirit may be saved in the day of the Lord Jesus." Note that Paul's purpose is that the particular person in time be "saved."
3. You must have the right motives to be eligible to challenge. "... you who are spiritual, reestablish such a one in a spirit of gentleness." Fear and anxiety are poor motives for church reconciliation and wholeness.
Each time we find ourselves reacting to Christian sin within the church with anger, self-righteousness, agitation or dread, we should immediately recognize that the people or church involved are in hazard from both the sin and the reaction to the sin. We are not qualified to even get started with talking about the sin until we have dealt with our reactions to it. We have to pray and surrender to the control of to the Holy Spirit until we can without a doubt say that we are prepared to fight the sin but reconcile the sinner.
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