Do the words ‘love’ and ‘church discipline’ sound like an oxymoron?
It’s true, church discipline can be unloving. Yet if your church is a loving church, it will practice church discipline.
Michael’s story
My church loved Michael through church discipline. Maybe it didn’t feel that way at the time. Had you been sitting there, watching the decision to remove Michael from membership, you might have initially wondered if the act was loving.
Michael had been homeless and addicted to drugs. He became a Christian through the church’s evangelism. He was involved in the life of the church. But somewhere along the way Michael began lying and stealing from members to support his drug addiction. And he refused to repentant when confronted. After much pleading and pursuing, the church forbad him from the Lord’s Table and removed him from membership.
What do you think? Was the church unloving by doing this?
To talk about discipline is to talk about discipleship. Discipleship involves teaching and correcting, like a maths lesson or a football practice. And discipline is the correcting half. It begins with private warnings. It ends, when necessary, with removing someone from church membership and the Lord’s Table. The person remains free to attend public gatherings, but he or she is no longer a member. The church will no longer affirm the person as part of the ‘one body’ (Matt. 18:15-17; 1 Cor. 5; 10:17).
Love in the modern era
Culture today struggles with any act of discipline or exclusion because we have a sentimentalised view of love: love as being made to feel special. Or a romanticised view of love: love as discovering and expressing yourself. Or a consumeristic view: love as finding the perfect fit for you.
But that’s not love in the Bible. Love in the Bible is holy. It makes demands. It yields obedience. It doesn’t delight in evil but rejoices in the truth (1 Cor. 13:6). It keeps the commands of the One whom it loves (John 15:10).
Scripture even tells us that discipline shows us God’s love (Heb. 12:6).
Church discipline, specifically, shows love to the person caught in sin, that they might be brought to repentance (1 Cor. 5:5). It shows love for the weaker sheep, lest a little bit of yeast work through the whole batch of dough (v. 6). It shows love for non-Christian neighbours, because it keeps the church’s witness bright and attractive (v.1; also Matt. 5:13-16). And it shows love for Christ, that his reputation might be protected.
Michael eventually repented. Praise God! My friend Charles had spent time with him, working through the addictions and reading the Bible.
Then one day Michael wanted to confess his sin before the whole church.
Here’s what I remember: Michael standing in front of the church. Michael reading a confession, or really, preaching it. Michael exhorting the church. Michael, through tears, explaining the mercy of God in the gospel. ‘Do you, family, understand how good God is?!’ The congregation sucking in its breath. The congregation cheering and embracing Michael.
What wondrous love is this! Given to sinners like Michael and you and me.
