What is the church? Well, in my mind, it is not a place but is a gathering of people who have be “called out” by God for His purpose. The problem is that where there are people gathered, interpersonal problems are bound to occur. And if those problems are not resolved, the fellowship of all can be affected. Life has taught me this difficult lesson. So what can we do? As usual, we can turn to God’s Word for an answer:
Matthew 18:15-17 New International Version (NIV)
Dealing With Sin in the Church
15 “If your brother or sister[a] sins,[b] go and point out their fault, just between the two of you. If they listen to you, you have won them over. 16 But if they will not listen, take one or two others along, so that ‘every matter may be established by the testimony of two or three witnesses.’[c] 17 If they still refuse to listen, tell it to the church; and if they refuse to listen even to the church, treat them as you would a pagan or a tax collector.
Footnotes:
a. Matthew 18:15 The Greek word for brother or sister (adelphos) refers here to a fellow disciple, whether man or woman; also in verses 21 and 35.
b. Matthew 18:15 Some manuscripts sins against you
c. Matthew 18:16 Deut. 19:15
I was thinking about this passage as I made my way into work yesterday morning. Now I should mention that I have taught on this Scripture before … and have had some negative feedback. But I remain convinced in these points:
(1) The first place to look when a person “hurts” you is in the mirror. I am convinced that what people do often is a reflection of what is in my life. For example, the anger someone exhibits may reflect some anger I am toting about. So the first thing I must do is self-inspection – check to see if there is a “log in my eye”. And if there is, I need to confess and seek forgiveness.
(2) If, after self-inspection, I find that the actions of my brother or sister are not a reflection of me but of an issue they may have, then I am to approach my brother or sister privately. Paul, in his letter to the church in Galatia, points out that we are to do so “gently”. I am convinced that angry confrontation gets us nowhere except further apart. Our focus in the contact should be reconciliation, not condemnation. I assure you that your brother or sister in Christ is already aware of his or her failure – reminders aren’t going to help that. Love is the salve that heals the wound.
(3) Sometimes pride gets in the way. The idea of taking two or three witnesses is not to browbeat the person into submission … but to be sure that what is said can be attested to. Too often we get into a “he said / she said” situation where what is said can be twisted. The witnesses are to be silent – listening, not participating. Again, the goal is to present an opportunity to reconcile.
(4) Unfortunately, sometimes the matter cannot be resolved privately. In that instance, the church as a whole should be informed so that the body of believers is aware of the issues. Perhaps there is someone within the body that can have a greater impact that you. But if not,
(5) The final step is to distance the body of believers from the individual. Historically, this “shunning” would have a very great impact on the person – but not so much today. Instead, the person just goes to another body of believers … but in time the same issue will arise.
The overriding thought is this: we carry the message of reconciliation; not the message of condemnation. Our goal is to teach each other how to live in peace, love and harmony. This is not an easy task because we are humans who demand our own “territory”. But, with the help and patience of God, we can learn to love each other.
Have a blessed day.
Agape’
Mr. Jim
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