Church Discipline

A Biblical Perspective

The church is called to purity and unity and is directed to diligently preserve the unity of the body in the bond of peace (Ephesians 3:4). Sinful actions, divisiveness, and sins committed by one member against another threatens the purity and unity of the church. God's program for his church includes the process of church discipline by which evil is purged and the unity and purity of His church is preserved.

While the term "church discipline" does not appear in Scripture, numerous references speak of separation from a sinning brother. Paul speaks clearly of this separation in 1 Corinthians 5:13 by directing, "Remove the wicked man from among yourselves." Other descriptions of this separation include treating the person as a "sinner and tax gatherer" (Matthew 18:17), turning away from the person (Romans 16:17), rejecting the person (Titus 3:9-10), handing the person over to Satan (1 Timothy 1:20), and not associating with the person (2 Thessalonians 3:14).

Church discipline is not presented in Scripture as optional, but rather as a command to be carried out. Unresponsiveness to situations that demand church discipline is a sign of failure on the part of the church (1 Corinthians 5:2). The process is particularly binding on the elders of the church in their role as those who keep watch over the souls of church members (Hebrews 13:17).

The Purpose of Church Discipline

The purpose of church discipline is to preserve the purity and unity of the body by confronting sin in order that the sin might be removed through repentance and restoration of a sinning member or by consequent removal of the sinning member from the church.

As it relates to the church, church discipline is God's means for preserving the purity and unity of the body by removing sin from the church, restraining the spread of sin in the body, and protecting the body from damage to the faith of its members. The process is to preserve the church from the "leaven" of sin, which acting unchecked, will permeate the whole body and damage the faith of others (1 Corinthians 5:6; 2 Timothy 2:16-18).

Church discipline, as it relates to a sinning member, is God's means for restoring the sinning member to fellowship with God and the church. The purpose of church discipline toward the sinning member is remedial, and not punitive. The process purposes to result in repentance and restoration of the sinning member to fellowship. Even the ultimate result of disfellowship is remedial; the discipline should result in ultimate change and growth in the sinning member (1 Timothy 1:20; Galatians 6:1; 2 Thessalonians 3:14).

The Authority of Church Discipline

Matthew 18:15-20 is the primary Scripture dealing with church discipline. The passage reveals heaven's view the church discipline process in verses 18-20. When the church administers church discipline according to the biblical pattern, it can act in confidence knowing that it acts with the authority and blessing of heaven. The conclusions reached are recognized in heaven. The initiatives introduced for purifying the sin will be carried out by the Father. Further, when two or three have gathered together to faithfully carry out either the disfellowship of a sinning member or the restoration of fellowship, Christ Himself is present in the proceedings.

Reasons for Initiating Church Discipline

While not providing a definitive statement on sins which merit church discipline, the examples of Scripture help us understand the principle by which the decision to exercise church discipline may be made. Those examples are:

• ongoing immorality — 1 Corinthians 5:1-13
• unwillingness to repent of sin — Matthew 18:15-17
• a disorderly life, particularly by an unwillingness to work — 1 Thessalonians 3:6-15
• divisiveness in the church — Romans 16:17-18; Titus 3:9-10
• false teaching — 1 Timothy 1:18-20; 2 Timothy 2:17-18
• a pattern of sinful conduct inappropriate for a believer (e.g. an immoral person, or covetous, or an idolater, or a reviler, or a drunkard, or a swindler) — 1 Corinthians 5:11; Galatians 6:1

These examples suggest four general categories of sins that merit church discipline: The church discipline process is to be initiated when a member of the church either (1) destroys the testimony of the church, (2) threatens the unity of the church, (3) denies the truth of the church, or (4) is involved in a sin from which he or she cannot or will not extricate themselves.

The Process of Church Discipline

Our Lord Jesus presented an outline of the church discipline process in Matthew 18:15-17). The process involves four successive stages of confrontation of the sin in which a member is involved.

The succession of stages, each stage encompassing a wider circle of individuals that are made aware of the sin suggests an overarching principle of confidentiality: The sin is to be kept to the smallest circle of individuals possible by which reconciliation may be accomplished.

Each stage is separated by the phrase "If he refuses to listen…" This phrase suggests that there is not a defined length of time or number of attempts before moving to the subsequent stage, but rather when the point is arrived at which it is apparent that the sinning member has unquestionably chosen to reject the appeals of that stage to bring reconciliation.

Stage 1: Go and show him his fault in private. The first stage of dealing with sin in the church is not simply the responsibility of church officials, but of every member. This stage is one in which the sinning member is confronted in private by another individual in the church. All members of the church are under obligation to reprove a sinning member (i.e., expose his action as sin and provide biblical correction). Often, it is right and appropriate to overlook a sin of a personal nature committed by one member against another (Proverbs 10:12; Proverbs 19:11). However, if there is a sinful pattern in a member that is detrimental to his spiritual life and witness, it is an act of love to confront him (Proverbs 27:6).

Bringing a member's sin to light is an act of love, just as our Father disciplines those He loves (Hebrews 12:6). If as a result, the sinning member confesses and repents, no further discipline is necessary and the matter should not be brought to the attention of others. Through his repentance, the errant member has been restored to fellowship with the body and its head, the Lord Jesus.

Stage 2: Confront him with his sin in the presence of one or two others. The presence of multiple witnesses guards the accused against unjust accusations, establishes the weight and seriousness of the accusation on the witness of two or three, and provides a means by which the words of the accused and the accuser may be confirmed if the process proceeds to later stages. This stage may be accomplished by two or more members of the church, or it may be brought to the attention of the elders, who will implement the confrontation.

If as a result, the sinning member confesses and repents, no further discipline is necessary and the matter should not be brought to the attention of others. The errant member has been restored to fellowship with the body and its head, the Lord Jesus.

Stage 3: Tell it to the church. The third stage moves from informal to formal, from a private arena to a public one in the church. The church is to be informed that the member has been brought under discipline and the sin for which the discipline is instigated. The church is brought into the circle of the informed for the same purpose as in stage 2; to bring about a concerted effort to win the sinning member back to fellowship through repentance. The church is asked to corporately appeal to the member to turn from his sin in repentance and restore his fellowship with the church and with the head of the church, Jesus Christ.

This attempt to gain the repentance of the sinning member may include steps such as numerous warnings (Titus 3:10) or a conditional disassociation in order to put the member to shame while at the same time exhort him as a brother to repent (2 Thessalonians3:14-15).

Stage 4: Relate to him as one would relate to an unbeliever. The last court of appeal is the church itself. If the sinning member is unresponsive to even the efforts of the church to facilitate repentance and restoration, he is to be considered "as a Gentile and a tax collector" (Matthew 18:17). Gentiles were excluded from the covenant life in Israel by reason of birth. Tax collectors were viewed as traitors to Israel, shunned because of their choice. This would suggest that the sinning member is to be regarded as an outsider and an unbeliever; one who by his actions has removed himself from the covenant family. This step of disfellowship may be done publicly when the church is assembled (1 Corinthians 5:4).

The examples of church discipline provided in Scripture range from sins that were open to public view (1 Corinthians 5:1, 11) to those that were restricted in view to the church body (Romans 16:17-18, et al), to those that were generally hidden from view (Matthew 18:15-17). While the four stage process of Matthew 18:15-17 deals particularly with a sin that is not open to public view, it provides a general framework for dealing with sins that are more open to public scrutiny as well. However, the example of 1 Corinthians 5 also reveals an immediate and public response to a sin that is publicly known and overtly harmful to the purity and witness of the church. In cases where the sin is publicly known, the elders may deem it appropriate to proceed directly to stage 3 if all efforts to gain an audience with the sinning member are spurned..

Voluntary Termination of Membership by the Sinning Member

Scripture does not recognize an official membership, as is the modern day practice. Therefore, it does not provide instruction regarding the actions of the church when a sinning member voluntarily terminates their membership with the church while in the process of church discipline. It is the practice of this church that the process of church discipline stops at such point that the sinning member removes himself from the fellowship of the body. The act of removing oneself from fellowship in effect accomplishes the same purpose as disfellowship. In such cases, the elders may or may not inform the church of the reasons behind the voluntary termination of membership, depending upon the stage to which the process had progressed and the degree to which the offense is publicly known.

Restoration of a Sinning Member

The goal of church discipline is the restoration of a sinning member. Repentance by the sinning member at any point in the process of church discipline concludes the discipline process and the church is to welcome the member back into fellowship. However, the elders may require the sinning member to meet certain conditions as a part of the restoration process (cf. Titus 3:10; 2 Thessalonians 3:12), including a confession of the sin to the appropriate circle of the informed (James 5:16).

If repentance takes place after disfellowship, the sinning member should be forgiven and restored to fellowship so that the member is not overcome by sorrow (2 Corinthians 2:5-8; 2 Thessalonians 3:14-15).

Church Discipline Directed at Elders (Special Considerations)

In order to protect an elder of the church against false or vindictive accusations, an accusation against an elder is not the be received except on the basis of two or three witnesses. An elder who is confirmed to be in a pattern of sin, and who continues in the sin even after he has been confronted is to be rebuked for the sin in the presence of the church. This is to produce a sense of fear and seriousness about sin in the body (1 Timothy 5:19-20).