1 Corinthians 5:1-8

The Corinthian believers were puffed up (arrogant) so as to create division in the church (4:6).  They were also puffed up in their attitude towards unrepentant sin in the fellowship (5:2).  To understand the teaching of this chapter it would help to have two things in mind.

·        The Body of Christ, including the gathering of believers in specific places, is a unity.  We didn’t say they have unity; we said they are a unity.  This is based in the prayer of our High Priest in John 17 when Jesus prayed that the Church may be one in us … may be made perfect in one (17:20-23).  This made the choosing of sides dealt with in 1 Cor. 1-4 a grievous sin.  But it also means that what happens to one believer effects them all.  This includes the experiences of joy and sorrow (1 Cor. 12:26).  And it includes the presence of unrepentant sin.  The Body is one lump of Passover bread; the presence of leaven (sin) anywhere in the loaf influences the entire loaf (5:7-8).  All this is why the Corinthian Church needed to take action when you are gathered together (5:4).  This needed to be the work of the unified congregation.

·        The New Testament is clear in teaching that the Church must deal with unrepentant sin.  Beginning with Jesus’ instructions in Matthew 18:15-17 the Apostle Paul made this clear in various situations (cf. Rom. 16:17; 1 Cor. 5-6; 2 Cor. 7:6-12; Gal. 6:1; 1 Thess. 5:14; 2 Thess. 3:6-15; 1 Tim. 1:18-20; 2 Tim. 2:24-26; Titus 3:10).  A summary of the teaching indicates:

o   The goals are restoration for the sinner and purity for the Body.

o   Christians are to take responsibility for each other when help is needed.

o   Discipline begins with words.

o   Discipline is based in and on THE Word.

o   Separation from the offending brother is the last step.

In actuality the Church is called to do corporately what we are called to do individually, which is to kill sin in our lives (KJV: mortify; Rom. 8:13; Col. 3:5).  In the Old Testament the grandson of Aaron, Phineas, was known for this ruthless attitude towards sin.  In Num. 25 God blessed him for killing a couple (an Israelite man and Moabite woman) who openly committed adultery.  Less known is a story late in Phineas’ life in Judges 19-21 involving the response of Israel to the tribe of Benjamin for failing to judge unrepentant sin.  Israel came against the one tribe in battle on three successive days.  The first day Israel lost 22,000 men; the second they lost 18,000.  After each attack they came to God to seek His counsel: “should we attack again?”  Each time the answer was “yes!”  Finally the third day was successful and the sin was removed from the nation.

This is difficult, but no more difficult than loving discipline applied to our children.  May God’s holy people make no partnership with sin but firmly remove the sin, and if necessary, the unrepentant sinner.  To God be the glory.