The door to the church works both ways: "Welcoming a sinner and breaking fellowship with a believer"
I Corinthians 5:11 “I meant that you are not to associate with anyone who claims to be a believer yet indulges in sexual sin, or is greedy, or cheats people. Don’t even eat with such people.”
This chapter is all about Paul dealing with and confronting the Corinthian Church. It seems that the church is tolerating some outrageous behavior from some of their group. To make matters worst, Paul insinuates that the Corinthian Church is boasting about how “spiritual” they are. Paul exposes their sin and even goes so far as to say that the Church should break fellowship with anyone (who claims to be a believer) that is living a blatantly sinful life. Its the idea that the door of the church works both ways. Paul also makes is clear that this disbanding of fellowship is only among believers and that non believers are to be treated differently….it is a double standard.
Wow! Our churches need to hear this message! I need to hear this message! Is it just me or do we seem to do the exact opposite of this text? It seems that time and time again we choose not to have fellowship with unbelievers or not welcome them into the church because of their life. We act as if they should clean up their lives and then come to church. We have absolutely no tolerance of their sin and almost look at them as though they can help it. We forget that these non believers have not experienced the transforming love of Jesus Christ; they have not been made new; they have not been rescued from this old world and invited into the new Kingdom of grace and mercy. On the other hand we go to great lengths not to break fellowship with those that claim to be believers but are living a sinful life. We act as if it is ok for believers to live lives of greed, lust, envy, and pride. When’s the last time you heard a pastor tell the believers his congregation that if they were going to be greedy with their money that they needed to find new church. When was the last time you heard believers of a congregation tell their pastor that if he didn’t start preaching more gospel centered sermons that he needed to leave. It seems like double standard right? Its ok for non believer John to be addicted to porn but if believer Harry is, he’s got to go. It is a double standard; John doesn’t claim to know Jesus; his addiction is the result of living in sin; but Harry does claim to know Jesus and to make this claim but still live in blatant sin is to spit on the cross. It would do us well to take this text seriously and perhaps anyone who refuses to take this text seriously should be welcomed to leave as well. One side note….this break in fellowship is a means of grace and hopefully in the breaking of fellowship Harry is able to repent, experience forgiveness and begin fellowship in another community of faith.
Lord, I pray today that you will not let me to slip into the temptation of legalistic rhetoric when it comes to the issue of breaking fellowship with a believer. At the same time protect me from the temptation to not take this text seriously and hear the call on the believers to live a godly life. Help Crossroads to be the kind of place that welcomes all of the un believers and does so in a way that invites Jesus’ transforming work in their lives. I pray that we would be the kind of church that is full of stories of how God’s love changed someone’s life and they are now living a holy life. Give us the strength to hold each other accountable and even if necessary to break fellowship with a brother or sister that continues to live in blatant sin while claiming to be a follower of the risen Jesus. Amen.
The double standard of the gospel is all about being a means of grace!
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