The One Year Bible Club with Teaching
Commentary by Nick Boork
August 9
1 Corinthians 5:1-13
Commentary by Nick Boork
August 9
1 Corinthians 5:1-13
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August 9 – 1 Corinthians 5:1-13
It is actually reported that there is sexual immorality among you, and such sexual immorality as is not even named among the Gentiles—that a man has his father’s wife! 2 And you are puffed up, and have not rather mourned, that he who has done this deed might be taken away from among you. 3 For I indeed, as absent in body but present in spirit, have already judged (as though I were present) him who has so done this deed. 4 In the name of our Lord Jesus Christ, when you are gathered together, along with my spirit, with the power of our Lord Jesus Christ, 5 deliver such a one to Satan for the destruction of the flesh, that his spirit may be saved in the day of the Lord Jesus. 6 Your glorying is not good. Do you not know that a little leaven leavens the whole lump? 7 Therefore purge out the old leaven, that you may be a new lump, since you truly are unleavened. For indeed Christ, our Passover, was sacrificed for us. 8 Therefore let us keep the feast, not with old leaven, nor with the leaven of malice and wickedness, but with the unleavened bread of sincerity and truth. 9 I wrote to you in my epistle not to keep company with sexually immoral people. 10 Yet I certainly did not mean with the sexually immoral people of this world, or with the covetous, or extortioners, or idolaters, since then you would need to go out of the world. 11 But now I have written to you not to keep company with anyone named a brother, who is sexually immoral, or covetous, or an idolater, or a reviler, or a drunkard, or an extortioner—not even to eat with such a person. 12 For what have I to do with judging those also who are outside? Do you not judge those who are inside? 13 But those who are outside God judges. Therefore “put away from yourselves the evil person.”
OKAY, HERE’S MY TEACHING COMMENTARY
Now Paul deals with the issue of sexual immorality in the church. It became known that a grown son and mother were in an incestuous relationship which is described as a sin that brought violators in the ancient Israel community death. We read this in Leviticus 20:11-12 “The man who lies with his father’s wife has uncovered his father’s nakedness; both of them shall surely be put to death. Their blood shall be upon them. If a man lies with his daughter-in-law, both of them shall surely be put to death.”
Paul emphasizes that even among the Gentiles (anyone not a Jew without the Mosaic Law) this sin is noted as a wicked taboo. He tells the congregation that this person must be officially put out of the church fellowship. Apparently, the man was a confessing a Christian but not the mother. Otherwise, Paul would have instructed that both be put out of the church. Obviously some of the leaders of this newly planted church had tried to reason with the young man but apparently he didn’t want to listen and repent from this gross immoral sexual sin. Paul instructs these leaders on how to handle the situation. It was always with the goal of restoring this man to Christ that the act of church discipline was carried out.
What was the discipline that the man was to receive? Was it being locked up in prison or stretched on a rack and tortured to the point of repentance? No, not at all. The Bible teaches that when a believer falls in sin we are to restore them with a spirit of gentleness. Galatians 6:1 Brethren, if a man is overtaken in any trespass, you who are spiritual restore such a one in a spirit of gentleness…The process of restoration had to begin by confronting the man and giving him an opportunity to make things right but if that did not work these church leaders needed to formally tell him that since he had chosen to not repent he would need to be removed from the church. This man had back-slidden and hardened to a point of defiance and rebellion. So, after pleading with the brother to deal with his sin to no avail he was to be asked to leave the church.
What!
Wait a minute!!!
I thought that sinners were supposed to be loved and welcomed at church?
As a matter of fact they are but after someone becomes a Christian they are expected to change and bring forth the fruits of repentance. Jesus taught that we should always try to work out issues whenever someone is offended and be reconciled in our relationships. However, some people become trouble makers and can do real damage to a church by their behavior, even corrupting other believers sin left unchecked can spread in a church like gangrene. When offenders refuse to hear church leadership to resolve issues of blatant sexual immorality the final step was excommunication. Jesus said in Matthew 18:17-18 But if he refuses even to hear the church, let him be to you like a heathen and a tax collector. “Assuredly, I say to you, whatever you bind on earth will be bound in heaven, and whatever you loose on earth will be loosed in heaven.
This is what the apostle Paul was instructing these leaders to do. Officially putting the man out of the fellowship of the church would remove him from God’s protection and cause him to feel socially rejected and come to his senses realizing he was wrong which would hopefully lead him to repent and be restored to both the Lord and his people in the local church. This kind of church discipline had two goals. One spiritual and the other social.
First it was to teach this man that he could not continue living in this sin without consequences which would cause him to see his error and lead him to repent and be restored to Christ and the church. This is what Paul meant when he said that he was to be turned over to Satan for the destruction of his flesh that his spirit may be saved on the day of our Lord Jesus. The idea here is that a believer would be removed from the special protection of the Lord and be subject to the attacks of the devil.
Remember the story of Job? The devil could not touch him because God was protecting him. The evil one had to get permission and even then it was not because Job sinned or did anything wrong. Job suffered the loss of his children, his finances and his health. However, in the end, God restored everything Job lost with twice as much. In the case of this man the attacks of the devil could have the effect of causing him to repent realising that it’s better to obey God and live under his protection and blessing.
Socially speaking, being removed from the fellowship of a church that you are connected to can bring a sense of emptiness because once you have experienced the love and fellowship of a church family nothing can substitute for it. True fellowship with other believers in Christ, also known as “Koinonia” is only found in the presence of the people of God. Being removed from this divine fellowship because of his sin was designed to cause the brother to repent and be restored which is exactly what happened as we will read about in Paul’s second letter to the Corinthians.
WHAT’S THE BOTTOM LINE?
1) No Church is perfect because people make up the church. God has an abundance of love, mercy and patience with all his children.
2) Sexual immorality is unacceptable among God’s people and absolutely needs to be dealt with and not allowed to go unchallenged as a normal Christian behavior.
3) Always try to reason with believers that are overcome by sin. Pray for them. Give them time to repent. Never be mean or harsh to anyone.
4) If you are a pastor or elder at a church it’s your responsibility to bring church discipline among members when necessary with the ultimate goal of restoring them to Christ and his Church.
5) God is not into throwing people out of his church to destroy them and send them to hell. No, Christ came to save sinners not condemn them. People make their own choices.
6) Excommunication is always done as a last option and leaves the door wide open for people that come to their senses and repent to be totally restored to the fellowship of the local church.
LETS PRAY
It is actually reported that there is sexual immorality among you, and such sexual immorality as is not even named among the Gentiles—that a man has his father’s wife! 2 And you are puffed up, and have not rather mourned, that he who has done this deed might be taken away from among you. 3 For I indeed, as absent in body but present in spirit, have already judged (as though I were present) him who has so done this deed. 4 In the name of our Lord Jesus Christ, when you are gathered together, along with my spirit, with the power of our Lord Jesus Christ, 5 deliver such a one to Satan for the destruction of the flesh, that his spirit may be saved in the day of the Lord Jesus. 6 Your glorying is not good. Do you not know that a little leaven leavens the whole lump? 7 Therefore purge out the old leaven, that you may be a new lump, since you truly are unleavened. For indeed Christ, our Passover, was sacrificed for us. 8 Therefore let us keep the feast, not with old leaven, nor with the leaven of malice and wickedness, but with the unleavened bread of sincerity and truth. 9 I wrote to you in my epistle not to keep company with sexually immoral people. 10 Yet I certainly did not mean with the sexually immoral people of this world, or with the covetous, or extortioners, or idolaters, since then you would need to go out of the world. 11 But now I have written to you not to keep company with anyone named a brother, who is sexually immoral, or covetous, or an idolater, or a reviler, or a drunkard, or an extortioner—not even to eat with such a person. 12 For what have I to do with judging those also who are outside? Do you not judge those who are inside? 13 But those who are outside God judges. Therefore “put away from yourselves the evil person.”
OKAY, HERE’S MY TEACHING COMMENTARY
Now Paul deals with the issue of sexual immorality in the church. It became known that a grown son and mother were in an incestuous relationship which is described as a sin that brought violators in the ancient Israel community death. We read this in Leviticus 20:11-12 “The man who lies with his father’s wife has uncovered his father’s nakedness; both of them shall surely be put to death. Their blood shall be upon them. If a man lies with his daughter-in-law, both of them shall surely be put to death.”
Paul emphasizes that even among the Gentiles (anyone not a Jew without the Mosaic Law) this sin is noted as a wicked taboo. He tells the congregation that this person must be officially put out of the church fellowship. Apparently, the man was a confessing a Christian but not the mother. Otherwise, Paul would have instructed that both be put out of the church. Obviously some of the leaders of this newly planted church had tried to reason with the young man but apparently he didn’t want to listen and repent from this gross immoral sexual sin. Paul instructs these leaders on how to handle the situation. It was always with the goal of restoring this man to Christ that the act of church discipline was carried out.
What was the discipline that the man was to receive? Was it being locked up in prison or stretched on a rack and tortured to the point of repentance? No, not at all. The Bible teaches that when a believer falls in sin we are to restore them with a spirit of gentleness. Galatians 6:1 Brethren, if a man is overtaken in any trespass, you who are spiritual restore such a one in a spirit of gentleness…The process of restoration had to begin by confronting the man and giving him an opportunity to make things right but if that did not work these church leaders needed to formally tell him that since he had chosen to not repent he would need to be removed from the church. This man had back-slidden and hardened to a point of defiance and rebellion. So, after pleading with the brother to deal with his sin to no avail he was to be asked to leave the church.
What!
Wait a minute!!!
I thought that sinners were supposed to be loved and welcomed at church?
As a matter of fact they are but after someone becomes a Christian they are expected to change and bring forth the fruits of repentance. Jesus taught that we should always try to work out issues whenever someone is offended and be reconciled in our relationships. However, some people become trouble makers and can do real damage to a church by their behavior, even corrupting other believers sin left unchecked can spread in a church like gangrene. When offenders refuse to hear church leadership to resolve issues of blatant sexual immorality the final step was excommunication. Jesus said in Matthew 18:17-18 But if he refuses even to hear the church, let him be to you like a heathen and a tax collector. “Assuredly, I say to you, whatever you bind on earth will be bound in heaven, and whatever you loose on earth will be loosed in heaven.
This is what the apostle Paul was instructing these leaders to do. Officially putting the man out of the fellowship of the church would remove him from God’s protection and cause him to feel socially rejected and come to his senses realizing he was wrong which would hopefully lead him to repent and be restored to both the Lord and his people in the local church. This kind of church discipline had two goals. One spiritual and the other social.
First it was to teach this man that he could not continue living in this sin without consequences which would cause him to see his error and lead him to repent and be restored to Christ and the church. This is what Paul meant when he said that he was to be turned over to Satan for the destruction of his flesh that his spirit may be saved on the day of our Lord Jesus. The idea here is that a believer would be removed from the special protection of the Lord and be subject to the attacks of the devil.
Remember the story of Job? The devil could not touch him because God was protecting him. The evil one had to get permission and even then it was not because Job sinned or did anything wrong. Job suffered the loss of his children, his finances and his health. However, in the end, God restored everything Job lost with twice as much. In the case of this man the attacks of the devil could have the effect of causing him to repent realising that it’s better to obey God and live under his protection and blessing.
Socially speaking, being removed from the fellowship of a church that you are connected to can bring a sense of emptiness because once you have experienced the love and fellowship of a church family nothing can substitute for it. True fellowship with other believers in Christ, also known as “Koinonia” is only found in the presence of the people of God. Being removed from this divine fellowship because of his sin was designed to cause the brother to repent and be restored which is exactly what happened as we will read about in Paul’s second letter to the Corinthians.
WHAT’S THE BOTTOM LINE?
1) No Church is perfect because people make up the church. God has an abundance of love, mercy and patience with all his children.
2) Sexual immorality is unacceptable among God’s people and absolutely needs to be dealt with and not allowed to go unchallenged as a normal Christian behavior.
3) Always try to reason with believers that are overcome by sin. Pray for them. Give them time to repent. Never be mean or harsh to anyone.
4) If you are a pastor or elder at a church it’s your responsibility to bring church discipline among members when necessary with the ultimate goal of restoring them to Christ and his Church.
5) God is not into throwing people out of his church to destroy them and send them to hell. No, Christ came to save sinners not condemn them. People make their own choices.
6) Excommunication is always done as a last option and leaves the door wide open for people that come to their senses and repent to be totally restored to the fellowship of the local church.
LETS PRAY
ORDINATION
Remember, if you’re looking for Ministry Credentials and Ordination visit our website Diamond Institute to apply! http://www.diamondinstitute.org/ordination
ONLINE COURSES
For more Bible courses and ministry resources see our online school Diamond Institute. Enroll free today and get access to our free and pay as you go courses. http://www.diamondinstitute.org/enroll
Remember, if you’re looking for Ministry Credentials and Ordination visit our website Diamond Institute to apply! http://www.diamondinstitute.org/ordination
ONLINE COURSES
For more Bible courses and ministry resources see our online school Diamond Institute. Enroll free today and get access to our free and pay as you go courses. http://www.diamondinstitute.org/enroll