Scripture: Matthew 18:15-20, “The Process of Restoration”
INTRODUCTION
The following message has to do with the process of restoration, how Christians are responsible for one another. It is like the anti-drug commercials of a few years ago that said: “If your friend were in trouble, you’d help him, wouldn’t you? One of them shows a boy on a bike who has fallen in the middle of the road. A big truck is coming around the curve, and the boy is about to be crushed. But his buddy just stands there looking at him, not making any attempt to help. As cruel as that would be, the point of the advertisement is that indifference, leads to destruction. Howard Kriebel wrote of the Schwenkfelder practice of restoration, said: “The very object of the organization included the idea of discipline and the members would have been grossly derelict in their professed purposes as a society if they had paid no attention to the faults of their erring brethren.”
Matthew 18 is an interesting chapter. Verses 6-9 tell us about stumbling blocks and the importance of conscientious behavior. Verses 10-14 tell us of God’s love, how it is a pursuant love. Verses 15 to 20 tell us of how that love is to operate in the restoration process. The restoration process? That would imply that some of us need to be restored! Yes, you guessed it. I don’t believe in human perfection. New Testament scholar H.L. Ellison writes of the importance of reading verses 10-14 and 15-20 together. He states: “This section should always be read in the light of verses 10-14. We are dealing with the human counterpart of divine love.”
So let’s study what Jesus had to say about moral indifference in the Christian community. Speaking on the responsibility of the church for its members, notice verse 15 and following. Jesus said: "And if your brother sins, go and reprove him in private; if he listens to you, you have won your brother. 16 "But if he does not listen to you, take one or two more with you, so that by the mouth of two or three witnesses every fact may be confirmed. 17 "And if he refuses to listen to them, tell it to the church; and if he refuses to listen even to the church, let him be to you as a Gentile and a tax-gatherer.” This brings up the subject of church discipline which is defined as the process by which the church, functioning off of the authority of God’s word, seeks to restore its members from sin and scandal. John Angell James defines it as simply: “the right treatment of offending members.” David Dickson, a Presbyterian pastor of the late 1800’s stated two reasons for conducting church discipline. He said: “The first and great end of discipline, as laid down in Scripture, is the restoration and salvation of the offender. The second is the maintaining of the purity of the church and freeing it from scandal.” Little harms the church more than scandal. God calls us to be conscious of our own morality. When we fail, the Christian community has a responsibility to itself which takes on the obligation to lovingly correct those in error; restore them to their former place of service and preserve its witness to outsiders.
Although few churches practice it today, church discipline has certain goals attached with it. Dr. Mark Dever, pastor of Capitol Hill Baptist Church, states five reasons for doing it:
- for the good of the person disciplined
- for the good of other Christians, as they see the danger of sin
- for the health of the church as a whole
- for the corporate witness of the church
- for the glory of God, as we reflect His holiness
What are the offenses which deserve church discipline? John Angell James was a Congregational minister in Birmingham, England during the mid 19th century. He cites five offenses that deserve disciplinary attention (please see attached article). They are the following:
- All scandalous vices and immoralities (1 Corinthians 5:11-13).
- The denial of essential Christian doctrines (2 Timothy 2:17-21).
- Disturbing the peace of the church in any way (Titus 3:10).
- Allowing family members to be deprived of basic needs, when one is able to provide for them (1 Timothy 5:8).
- Living in a state of irreconcilable enmity towards fellow church members (Matthew 18:7).
Is this just an example of sticking your nose in the business of others? To which I would say, no. It is borne out of concern for the individual and for the community of faith. Such concern is expressed deliberately and in humility. It is done by speaking the truth in love (Ephesians 4:15), with the idea of winning the person toward amending their lives. Galatians 6:1 tells us: “Brethren, if a man is overtaken in any trespass, you who are spiritual restore such a one in a spirit of gentleness, considering yourself lest you also be tempted.” The aim is to restore a person from error. This is done in cooperation with the Holy Spirit. If there is no reaction or a negative reaction on the issue, the participating parties wait a month, and then approach the person again, this time with another church leader, in compliance with Matthew 18. The idea is to give the Holy Spirit time to work on the person’s heart and hopefully cause them to see the folly in their behavior. If there is still no movement, the participating parties bring the matter before the church or a leadership board that has the power to make action. If there is still no movement after this third step, then it could result in asking the person to find another church home. There are times when for uncooperative parties, this is the only remedy.
Treating someone as a tax collector is synonymous with one who desperately needs the gospel. He/she is not “one of the family.” Fellowship is affected. A requested departure is never the intention at the outset of the discipline process. Rather this is a last resort. Paul had to do this. 1 Corinthians 5 tells of the circumstances of a church member living in immorality with his stepmother. Paul placed responsibility on the church at Corinth to mourn over the situation and act proactively to minister to the person, while protecting the church’s credibility (1 Corinthians 5:2). From reading 1 Corinthians 5, it is quite evident that the church’s responsibility is to protect her reputation, and to act with purpose toward those who would decide to profess one thing, yet live another.
Verses 18 and following have to do with the authority that Jesus vested in the disciples. They were a relatively small number. "Truly I say to you, whatever you shall bind on earth shall be bound in heaven; and whatever you loose on earth shall be loosed in heaven. 19 "Again I say to you, that if two of you agree on earth about anything that they may ask, it shall be done for them by My Father who is in heaven. 20 "For where two or three have gathered together in My name, there I am in their midst." Popular is the notion that this verse provides encouragement to small groupings of Christians, Rather, it has to do with authority in action. It is meant to say that when Christian leaders act Biblically to maintain the purity and the mission of the church, they have the endorsement of the Lord Himself.
CONCLUSION
Plainly speaking, pastors cannot perform church discipline alone. There are times when other leaders are called upon to share this heavy responsibility. Refreshingly, the Schwenkfelders have always practiced church discipline. Hear the following from the 1948 General Conference bylaws: “Nothing can be considered a just or reasonable cause for discipline except that which is forbidden by the letter or the spirit of Scripture. And nothing can be considered a sufficient cause for exclusion except that which is clearly contrary to Scripture and which would have prevented the reception of the person into the church had it been known to exist at the time of his reception.” In other words, the Scripture, through the Spirit, ought to govern our lives.
This church has had to act on disciplinary matters before and it will again. It is very easy to get caught up in a he said, she said situation. When I or another leader approaches a person in fault, it is not because we enjoy it. We don’t get our kicks in correcting someone. Rather, we do it in humility for the betterment of the church. Because we are responsible for each other! Ellison states: “Should anyone enjoy carrying out this task, it is clear evidence that he is not suited to it. Since all sin damages, the Christian should not be indifferent to a brother’s sin. A personal approach should rouse a minimum of ill-feeling and gives least publicity to the sin.”
What is the pastor’s role in the restoration process? As a pastor, I feel a sense of responsible for the moral and spiritual well being of Central Schwenkfelder Church. Maybe it can be better communicated in the following words from a church in Hyattsville, Maryland,
‘The primary calling of elders is to pastor God’s people. They need to know their“flock,” visiting, counseling and praying with them. They are to be diligent, gentle, exhorting and comforting. They are to encourage and teach God’s people. They must guard the flock of Jesus Christ. Our elders’ purpose is to exercise a leadership style that is contrary to that found in the world. They are not to be controlling, or authoritarian, but to be servants who lead by their example. They are to “coach” and disciple God’s people in Christian living and service. In turn, the Word of God calls up o the congregation to be obedient, understanding, and supportive of them in their ministry.’
Howard W. Kriebel, “The Schwenkfelders in Pennsylvania,” chapter 7 excerpt, found in The Schwenkfeldian, Spring 2006, 8.
H.L. Ellison, “Matthew,” A New Testament Commentary (Grand Rapids: Zondervan, 1969), 161.
John Angell James, Christian Fellowship (Meadow View, England:Quinta Press, 1997), 52.
David Dickson, The Elder and His Work, (Phillipsburg, NJ: P and R Publishing, 2004), 94-95.
Mark Dever, Nine Marks of a Healthy Church new expanded edition (Wheaton: Crossway Books, 2004), 188-190.
Formula for the Government and Discipline of the Schwenkfelder Church (General Conference of the Schwenkfelder Church, 1948), 45.
Philosophy of Ministry of the Wallace Presbyterian Church (Hyattsville, MD).
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