1 Corinthians 5

It's great to feel free to write what God puts on our hearts as I did yesterday, but I am also excited to get back in the Word with you and all of my other faithful readers. I know you're out there! Anywho, time to stop kidding myself. Onto 1 Corinthians 5!

This one's nice and short. Just 13 verses! I have a feeling they are going to be intense though, since Paul is specifically addressing the immorality in the church. Verse 1 starts with Paul bringing up the fact that the sexual immorality going on among some of the members is hideously gross, and that not even the pagan's practice such things. Beyond that, they brag about it! They think they're so great that they can do these horrible things. Paul counsels that they need to be sent out of the church (ie. Excommunicated!). I've never heard of anyone getting excommunicated before, at least when people mess up they know it and leave on their own. Paul says some harsh words that might almost sound like condemnation to hell, but a closer look says they are not. Verse 4 reads: "deliever such a one [an immoral person] to Satan for the destruction of the flesh*, that his spirit may be saved in the day of the Lord Jesus." Paul takes sin so seriously, that he instructs the church to cast this person (and these kinds of people) out into the world - away from the blessings of God. He reasons that in this manner, even if they might die, they will realize their error and his soul shall be saved. It would actually be more beneficial and more productive if he learned the life outside God's protection.

It would be good for that man and the church as well. Paul uses the analogy of leaven and bread to symbolize the effects of even the smallest tolerance of sin on a congregation. If even one person's sin is tolerated, that one person could single handedly bring down the entire collection of believers simply because his sin was not taken seriously. He urges them to "purge out the old leaven, that [they] may become a new lump" (v.7). If they repent, they can start anew once more, and if they remove the people in sin who are unwilling to repent, they can once again call themselves God's people. He wants them to start over again "not with old leaven [past sins], nor with the leaven of malice and wickedness, but with the unleavened bread** of sincerity and truth" (v.8). It's never to late to be forgiven, as long as we are willing to come back to Christ broken and open with our sins, ready to turn from them using whatever means necessary.

Verses 9-11 are very straightforward and easy to understand. How easily accepted are they, though, is the question. In these verses, Paul clarifies what he wrote in an earlier epistle to the Corinthians. He instructed them not to associate with immoral people. What he intended was that they not associate with immoral people who profess to be Christian. He could not say they shouldn't associate with immoral people outside the church, because they wouldn't be able to do anything with anybody - including evangelize! That would be bad. We are commanded to evangelize those who have not yet found Christ, but if a brother should be habitually committing these sins of sexual immorality and idolatry, we are not even to eat with them! We need to be radical when dealing with sin and show each other in it that what they are doing is not ok!

Paul explains himself in the last two verses. Our job is not to judge those outside the sphere of believers. There is no reason for them to stop sinning! Trying to make them a better person ultimately will not help them. We are to share the gospel with them, and if they believe it, then we can talk about seeking God and repenting from sin. Our job is to examine those on the inside (especially ourselves) and keep them accountable for seeking the Lord. If someone is not willing to change, that is probably a sign that they do not have Christ is them, and they should be cast out before the can have a negative effect on the rest of the members.

Perhaps you didn't, but I thought that was intense! I love the radical nature of so many Biblical passages. It's inspiring. Some of these are hard words that even some pastors have a tough time swallowing. Dismissing people from the fellowship is probably not an especially enjoyable activity, but clearly - and sadly - it is necessary for healthy church development. I can only wonder what I would do were I in that position.

*Emphasis added
**Not in original text