It is impossible to truly study church discipline and miss the shaded or
dark side of its use in the church.
Issues of control held by clergy or church leadership, whatever the
title, can become a power or hyper-hierarchical issue. Such a transition negates
the biblical basis of servitude in a Christ application of servant hood.
Whenever control supersedes restoration and spiritual development, church
discipline enters this shaded area which weakens the faith and distorts the
teachings of Christ.
Church discipline can be greatly
abused when removed from biblical standards. In an article by Alexandra Alter
entitled "Banned From Church", such abuse is highlighted with
little consideration to the positive or redemptive aspect of church
discipline. Within the article, a 71
year old lady is removed from a church by a State Trooper after a frantic 911
call from a minister. Her crime was simply showing up at church after the
minister had withdrawn her membership. Buried at the end of the article is one
of the best explanations of the problem.
Among churches that practice discipline, there is little
consensus on how sinners should be dealt with, says Gregory Wills, a theologian
at Southern Baptist Theological Seminary. Some pastors remove members on their
own, while other churches require agreement among deacons or a majority vote
from the congregation (Alter, 2008).
The message of Gregory Willis reveals problems
existing because of the lack of biblical standards for the practice of church
discipline among these churches.
It would seem inconceivable that
the very practice of church discipline could be and often is a violation of
biblical discipline. The question is not, what does the church think? But, what
is the proper biblical application? The standard of church discipline is not
tradition but rather biblical application. To demonstrate this we are using
Matthew 18:15-17. It would be difficult to find any denominational writings on
Church Discipline that would fail to utilize this text. The problem with the
text arises only when the exegesis is limited allowing manipulation in the
application of the text. In "Church
Discipline: Missing the Mark” R. Albert Mohler, Jr. reveals what he sees as
the impact of watered down theological practice.
The decline of church discipline is perhaps
the most visible failure of the contemporary church. No longer concerned with
maintaining purity of confession or lifestyle, the contemporary church sees
itself as a voluntary association of autonomous members, with minimal moral
accountability to God, much less to each other.
The absence of church discipline is no
longer remarkable—it is generally not even noticed. Regulative and restorative
church discipline is, to many church members, no longer a meaningful category,
or even a memory. The present generation of both ministers and church members
is virtually without experience of biblical church discipline (Mohler, 1998).
The key factor is not control; it
is holiness before a holy God in the practice of the community of Faith. The
classification of Church Discipline is centralized by many denominations and
fundamentalist churches in the Matthew 18:15-17 text. Utilizing comparisons
directly linking Old Testament texts to the New Testament teaching the Old
Testament base challenges the application of the text. It becomes apparent that
the teaching of Christ is assertively linked to the Old Testament. This leaves
the reader deficient to conclude other than a major influence of Hebraic
thought is crucial in the comprehension of the text. The format includes an application statement,
an inter-testament link, and application summary for each verse to reveal the
connection between the testaments and proper application.
Application: 15“Moreover if your brother sins against you, go and tell him his fault
between you and him alone. If he hears you, you have gained your brother (NKJV, 1998)." This is an
outworking of Leviticus 19:17, your heart must be clear in relation to the
community of faith. If someone has
sinned against you, you must go to them
and seek to make things right. If it works you are blessed, if not, you are
charged to continue. This is not for doctrinal issues or sin observed; it is
for those sins directly toward another believer. There are other scriptural
methods for dealing with additional issues. In qualifying a situation as not
being applicable to this scriptural format, is not to condone sin, but rather
to seek biblical practice to refrain from multiplying sin.
Inter-testament Link: If we understand Matthew 18:15..., from a scriptural basis
it is a limited application of Church Discipline. This text has been given to
allow for healing within the body of Christ when a believer sins against
another believer. The focus of this
discipline is always restoration of the relationship individuals have within
the body of Christ. The offended is called to take action to keep their own
heart in the right relationship toward God and their fellow man.
Leviticus 19:17 - 18,
"You shall not hate your brother in your heart.
You shall surely rebuke your neighbor, and not bear sin because of him. 18You shall not take vengeance, nor bear any grudge
against the children of your people, but you shall love your neighbor as
yourself: I am the Lord (NKJV, 1998)." Beale
and Carson would indicate verse 17 is a basis for the teaching of Christ to
instruct his followers to guard their hearts before God (Beale & Carson, 2007, p. p.56).
Application
Summary:
The application of this verse is expanded by some to include sin in general
removing the words, "against you." The general reasoning is that two
manuscripts do not contain these words. (Codex Vaticanus and Codex
Sinaiticus) (Azurdia, 1994, p. p.78). Defending,
"against you" is very apparent in, Matthew 18:21, "Then Peter came to Him and said, 'Lord, how often shall my
brother sin against me, and I forgive him? Up to seven times… (NKJV, 1998)?" The
first question ever asked about Jesus' statement is, how many times do I have
to forgive my brother when he sins against me? Did Peter understand the
statement as being any sin or sins against him? Did Jesus rebuke Peter and say,
"It's not just against you it's any sin?" No, Matthew 18:22, "Jesus said to
him, “I do not say to you, up to seven times, but up to seventy times
seven (NKJV, 1998)." Jesus simply applies a continuous application of
forgiveness then follows it with a parable to reinforce this scriptural
truth. When Keener wrote about the
background for this, he stated that it was a standard Jewish custom of the
time, reinforced by the Dead Sea Scrolls and the writings of the rabbis (Keener, 1993, pp. , Mt. 18:15). So, when Peter so easily grasped the concept
it was a reflection of the general acceptance of this teaching within the
community of faith. The overwhelming evidence indicates that the biblical
application of Matthew 18:15 includes "against you" and is limited in
its application by their insertion.
Application: 16"But if he will not
hear, take with you one or two more, that ‘by the mouth of two or three
witnesses every word may be established (NKJV, 1998).’' Jesus
is quoting from Deuteronomy 19:15-21, in which, the witnesses
must have observed the event. No charges can be brought without witnesses. If
there is not the required number of witnesses to the allegations, then this
process must end. "(The rabbis
took this principle so far that one eyewitness was not sufficient even if the eyewitness caught the murderer with the
bloody knife in hand) (Keener, 1993, pp. , Mt. 18:16)."
Inter-testament Link: The verse breaks down into three sections
by the use of commas, 16a: moves the unresolved conflict to a new level, 16b:
brings in one or two more, 16c: is an Old Testament quote from Deuteronomy
19:15-21. The Deuteronomy quote deals with establishing procedure to hear
evidence in a criminal charge (Beale & Carson, 2007, p. p.57).
Application Summary: The major problem
in the application of this verse is created by expanding the definition of the term witness. When you look at the consequence of this text fully worked
out to a non-repentant conclusion, it would be difficult to accept that the
witnesses would not meet the Old Testament requirement. In fact we could
strengthen that conclusion by injecting the Jewish source shared by Beale and
Carson.
Perhaps the closest parallel to Jesus'
procedure in Matthew appears in 1QSV,25-VI,1, where again emphasis is placed on
resolving disputes privately; only then may they be brought to the
congregation, with at least two witnesses...
(Beale & Carson, 2007, p. p.57).
The exegetical facts support only
the interpretation of the witnesses having been witnesses to the original
conflict resulting in sin.
Application: "17And if he refuses to
hear them, tell it to the church. But if he refuses even to hear
the church, let him be to you like a heathen and a tax collector (NKJV, 1998)." Every step of
this process is taken seeking the offender to repent and restore the
relationship damaged by their actions. It is not possible to understand the
severity of this final action in the context of being put out of church today.
The person simply can go down the street and join another fellowship. That was not the implication of Jesus
declaration. "After the most severe
level of discipline the offending member would be treated as a pagan instead of
a Jew. Pagans and tax gatherers alike - tax gathers were seen as agents of a
pagan government - were excluded from the religious life of the Jewish community. (Keener, 1993,
pp. , Mt. 18:17)."
Inter-testament
Link: The understanding of this text is equivalent to the cutting off of
people from the congregation of Israel as seen in Genesis 17:14, Exodus 12:15,
19: 30:33, 38 (Beale & Carson, 2007,
p. p. 56).
Application Summary: If we lose the original intensity of this action we miss
the entire application of Jesus Teaching. "An outcast. This means that you
treat the person as a nonbeliever, because he is not walking as a believer.
Love him as Jesus loved the publicans and sinners. Reach out to him in witness,
but not to relate to him as a member of the Body of Christ. Like all
evangelistic outreach, the goal is to bring a soul to Christ and back into the
functioning Body (Bubna, 2000)."
How anyone could
truly seek to teach from a biblical exegesis of the text, understanding the
historical implications, make such a statement?
Does Jesus love the publicans and sinners? Of course He loves them and
died for them. This has nothing to do with the understanding of this verse
unless you eliminate the Hebraic mindset of the original audience and
speaker. Bubna has brought this Hebraic
thought, spoke out of the deep experience of the Jewish people, out of context
and eliminated its meaning and effect, taking the truth of a heart wrenching
separation and turning it into a contemporary juggling of the membership role.
Simply remove them from the membership role and place them on the prospect
list. When we miss the depth of the Word, we can also miss the truth of the
Word.
It would be easy to
say I was writing from a denominational or personal bias. But the truth is, when I began this research,
I was coming from a church tradition misusing two of the three areas covered.
The practice of using this scripture for sin in general has been common in
churches I've served and in which I was reared. It was also a general practice
to allow any two people to go and hear the discussion even if not being true
biblical witnesses. What it really comes
down to is, do I follow the churches traditions or the original meaning of the
Word of God? Is my salvation in the church or in the shed blood of Christ? Who
is Lord of my life?
Works Cited
Alter, A. (2008, January 18). Wall Street Journal.
Retrieved December 22, 2009, from http://online.wsj.com/article/SB120061470848399079.html
Azurdia, A. (1994,
Fall). Biblical Studies . Retrieved 31 2009, 12, from
http://www.biblicalstudies.org.uk/pdf/ref-rev/03-4/3-4_azurdia.pdf
Beale, G., &
Carson, D. (2007). Comentary on the New Testament Use of the Old Testament.
Grand Rapids: Baker Academic.
Bubna, D. L. (2000,
October). Peascemakers.net. Retrieved January 13, 2010, from
http://www.peacemaker.net/site/apps/nlnet/content3.aspx?c=aqKFLTOBIpH&b=1331599&content_id={F0B71E13-F9BA-428E-B64A-913449B56F24}¬oc=1
Keener, C. (1993). The
IVP Bible background commentary: New Testament. In C. Keener, The IVP Bible
background commentary: New Testament. Downers Grove,IL: Inter Varsity
Press.
Mohler, R. A. (1998). Church
Discipline: Missing the Mark. Retrieved December 22, 2009, from
http://www.the-highway.com/discipline_Mohler.html
NKJV. (1998). Quick
Verse: New King James Version. Nashville.
Wilbur, B. (2010). Church
Discipline based on Matthew 18:15-17. Non - Published.
