Church Discipline (pt-2) - [Matthew 18]

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Hey Dave, wait till you sit in the front row next week Well, let's do it this way.
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I'm gonna hand out just for review. We're talking about the issue of church discipline Scott Would you give those to Josh maybe and Bruce or Steve just all have a copy?
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That's a copy on the front and back of the two little sections in this chart book of for church discipline
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And it just shows you the steps and we want to talk about several more passages tonight Not in any kind of outlined format and the outline is going to be
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Basically, let's look at the passages that deal with this issue that hardly has ever talked about these days. I Go back to different confessions of faiths and they'll say you're not a church unless you preach the word
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Have communion and baptism and the Lord's Supper the Southern Baptist abstracts of faith in 1858 said if you're not a church unless you have order discipline and worship
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And a historian as you're getting your page a historian once said before the war almost every church had church discipline
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Some churches would even instead of having VBS. This is a little hyperbole.
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We have VBS. You know what they would have days of discipline And there would be
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Saturdays or another day where all the church would come together and if there were fractures or fissures within the body that people could
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Grant forgiveness seek forgiveness Somebody had sinned they could deal with issues in the church can you imagine have one of those when
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I'm many people would show up on one of those a day of discipline
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I Can't help think as I drive by some of these churches in New England that looks so pretty Could it be that these churches now are just social churches because they gave up church discipline
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They didn't care about the purity of the church So everybody has a copy if you just look at it for a moment one side
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I think has the process that we looked at last week in Matthew 18 And it just shows you the little flowchart of how to go about doing church discipline something this controversial something this a big of a deal
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The Bible certainly will tell us won't it and yes matter of fact Christ himself and it just walks through that very
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Thing and then if you look at the flip side, there's some other passages that will hit tonight but I just wanted to give you that for two reasons so you could see church discipline in a flowchart form and you would
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Be encouraged to get a book like this Remember when you sit with you budget a little bit of money for your library
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You are making an investment if you come to my house and look at my tools You will not find very many tools and I'm probably not a very good mechanic.
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I want to learn I'm learning I did some things even this week But I want you to have good tools in your house because if you have the right tool you can do the job
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Bob those tools that we looked at I actually got the alternator out of the boat But I had the right tools.
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So how do you dissect the Word of God? You need good tools? You're buying the book, okay good and lastly
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Let me give you two different statements.
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One's a quote from a man and one's a quote from the Bible Both related to our topic tonight Prove yourselves doers of the word and not merely hearers who delude themselves
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The other one is Go and sin no more has been replaced with judge. Not lest you be judged.
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That's really church discipline in a nutshell Do we do what the Bible says?
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Or do we audit it? Or do we do what the world says and the world says how can we judge other people?
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And so I don't want to Have this overkill, but I do want to go through through a few more passages tonight to see what the
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Bible says about church discipline Let's go to 1st Corinthians chapter 5 and just take a look at it. We've looked at Matthew 18
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We looked at 1st Timothy 5 we've looked at some passages like that. And now we want to go to 1st
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Corinthians chapter 5 How many chapters to the
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Corinthians are inspired? There was extra well technically, no
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The ones that are in the Bible, they're all inspired But there were one or two other letters that were written to the
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Church of Corinth that didn't that were not inspired But they were letters to correct them. How many inspired letters?
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Ask you how many two? Yes. Okay. How many inspired chapters? How many in 1st
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Corinthians? 16 how many in 2nd Corinthians? 13 29 chapters
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Really of is that what you said Doug? Oh Yes That's why often we especially on Sunday morning we do not let the congregation speak
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I Said it was gonna be interactive By the way, that makes a good point when you read your
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Bibles When you see chapter 4 ending in chapter 5 starting please read if you're gonna start with chapter 5 read the end of chapter 4 and Read the end of chapter 5 or the beginning of chapter 6 because sometimes the chapter markings are wrong
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They shouldn't have started and stopped at those places so that's a good point, but 29 chapters in love to admonish this church that's messed up and 1st
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Corinthians chapter 5 we get an idea of church discipline from Paul who is away
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But he still wants the church to be pure I read this week, and I don't know if it's true or not, so I won't use the man's name, but there was a large church
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In Southern, California that there was a an affair going on in church with a church secretary
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It was not made public and within a year 17 marriages at this megachurch had broken up in senior leadership if you don't deal with sin, who knows where it's going to go and here is one of the
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Brazen illustrations of sin that needs to be dealt with Verse 1
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Paul writes to them and says in chapter 5. It is actually reported. Let me use a little inflection.
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It's actually reported And it's an ongoing report by the way in the tense. It's actually an ongoing report
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That there is immorality among you just a general term for immorality all
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Intimacy outside marriage there's immorality among you and immorality of such a kind and isn't as does not even exist among the
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Gentiles are unbelievers They don't even do this and what is it that someone has his father's wife?
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Now this is his stepmother because you wouldn't call your mother your father's wife You would call your mother your mother, but your father's wife is your stepmother
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Cicero even said we wouldn't do something like that The Gentiles don't do something like that and here in the church
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There's this kind of immorality going on this incest forbidden by Old Testament law by Roman law
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By New Testament law and it's reported on and on and on And what were they doing about it verse 2?
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It's amazing and you have become arrogant and have not mourned Instead of being sad about it instead of being sorrowful about it instead of saying
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I can't believe this is going on What did they do? Instead of mourning they were arrogant in order that the one who had done this deed might be removed from your midst
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For I on my part though absent in the body, but present in spirit have already judged him. I'm an apostle
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I've judged. This is wrong who has so committed this it's almost like he didn't want to say it again
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It's committed this as though I were present I've made up my mind what ought to be done and I have done that now.
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I want you to follow through He doesn't say because I'm an apostle he says in verse 4 in the name of Our Lord Jesus Christ for his glory for the
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Lord Jesus When you were assembled and I was with you in spirit with the power of our Lord Jesus I have decided to deliver such a one to Satan for the destruction of his flesh that his spirit may be saved in the day of the
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Lord Jesus So what's happening here church discipline is? Been should just church discipline should be done and at the end of church discipline after steps 1 2 3 and 4 that you have
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In your handout what you're really doing as you excommunicate the person is you're handing over their body to be destroyed by Satan So that their spirit might be saved
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He doesn't go through every step here because when you study the Bible you can count on theological shorthand
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Did you get that? What's wrong with this statement I determined to know nothing among you except Jesus Christ and him crucified that was
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Paul's message Is that true? Yes, is that all there is to truth
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He doesn't even talk about the resurrection Paul the whole chapter of 1st Corinthians chapter 15, but he's giving theological shorthand
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I preached Jesus Christ person and I preach his work and summed up in those words
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Christ and him crucified So there's theological shorthand here, but at the very end This is what's happening with church discipline verse 5
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Delivering them to Satan who runs the world by the way I don't mean the sovereign God of the universe who's over at all.
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But the domain of this world is Satan's so we're taking this person out of the church
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Putting them into the world so Satan can do what he wants with this person. Maybe even kill the person
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That his spirit may be saved in the day of the Lord Jesus Into his domain First Timothy 1 this has happened before among these are
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Hymenaeus and Alexander whom I have delivered over to Satan Verse 6 he says, of course, he says this your boasting is not good
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Do you not know or do yet? Do you not know that a little little leaven leavens the whole lump of dough?
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How many cooks do we have here? How many wannabe cooks a Little leaven
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Leavens the whole thing and so now you have a little bit of sin It affects the church and you can take a pure church and drive it down into impurity a lot faster than you can take an
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Emperor church impure church and lift it up to purity. It's corrupts.
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There's a corrupting Element verse 7 clean out the old leaven that you may be a new lump
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Just as you are in fact unleavened for Christ. Our Passover has been sacrificed
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Let us therefore celebrate the feast not with old leaven nor with the leaven of malice and wickedness which this is but with unleavened bread of sincerity and truth
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I Wrote to you in my letter the letter that we don't have not to associate with immoral people.
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Like how can I do that? Okay this week beloved don't associate with anybody immoral.
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Could you go to work? Could you go to school? Could you go to the
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I almost said stop -and -shop, but I remembered somebody that's like saying Burger King at this church We have somebody who owns a McDonald's and we have somebody who's works at Price Chopper that I've forgotten about How could you do it?
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Don't associate But it tells us in verse 10 I did not mean all the
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Immoral people of this world are with the covetous or swindlers or idolaters for then you'd have to go out of the world
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How are you gonna do that go to Mars? But actually I wrote to you not to associate with any what
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So called brother, we're not sure if they're Christians or not. Sometimes they're The the line is so blurred that you say we've got to put them out of the church
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They sure don't act like a Christian now. They're so called. How could they be a Christian, but it's not just immorality it's any kind of sin from the viceless covetous idolater
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Reviler slander, that's what that means or drunkard or swindler not even to eat with such a one Okay, my question to you that you can answer out loud.
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What does that mean? What does it mean when we're not supposed to associate with those?
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Kind of people that have been kicked out of the church Dave. Okay, great.
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Anybody want to add to that? What if somebody who wants to who's been excommunicated from the church wants to come to a worship service
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Will we allow them to come to a worship service Okay, why?
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Hear the gospel do unbelievers get to come to the worship service First Corinthians chapter 14.
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We hope they fall down and say surely God is in this place Do they
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What well, okay, so they get to come to worship service then what don't they get to do Lewis what if you run into him at the store?
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Yes, some kind of civil arrangement or some kind of business arrangement or something like that, but there are benefits to being a
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Christian Let's answer this question by asking this question.
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What did it mean to eat with somebody back in those days? It's kind of like what we do we've got 18 and a half minute lunch break and We you know can wolf down 13
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Big Macs and like eight seconds And we just have to eat we're eating on the run that's not how they did it back in those days did they
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They ate a little bit during noontime and then had this huge meal and when you would have to eat with somebody you would sit
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Down and have them over it. There's this huge big long thing. It was the intimate close fellowship He says
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I don't want you to associate. I don't think you can kick people out of your family for this I don't think you can say
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I can't talk to somebody at work But the extra above and beyond things we have at church There's a real close fellowship for instance
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Kim and I move out seven years ago from California, but we had our family here Well now you guys the coolies
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There's sweet fellowship that you have with other Christians and that has just been taken away when people are in sin because we don't we want to Not have them taint the
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Christians that are here, but we also want to chasten them Verse 12 says let's go back to the passage for what have
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I to do with judging outsiders Do you not judge those who are within the church? For what do
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I have to do? Excuse me verse 13, but those who are outside God judges So our concerns the church
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God will take care of outside the church and then he uses a phrase That's a refrain all the time in Deuteronomy remove the wicked man from among yourselves
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Somebody murdered someone Deuteronomy remove them some kid disobeyed the law Somebody murdered their parents
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Repurge the evil from among you over and over and over and so that is an illustration of a particular sin that Paul said
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Here's what needs to happen Church of Corinth, but what if Corinth didn't do it?
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What would happen to a church that doesn't do church discipline? Are there any Bible illustrations of a church that does not do church discipline?
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Here's what I say to my kids daddy doesn't want to have to spank you But if daddy doesn't spank you then
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God's gonna spank me and I don't like God spankings. Is there a place
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Steve? Church of Thyatira, let's go there Revelation chapter 2 if you have questions about church discipline keep saving them
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I want to show you a church That when it doesn't discipline What happens to it now you may be seeing well
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Pastor, uh, we're you know, what you're talking about is the final excommunication stage beloved I'm talking about that and every other stage if you say to yourself
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Okay. Now there's been a big church discipline thing in the church Well, what about so -and -so and what about this person and what about that situation and what about this beloved?
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May I ask you and may I implore you and may I exhort you? There's all kinds of things going on behind the scenes and if you know someone who's in sin and needs to be
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Exhorted and rebuked. Would you please go? It is not just the elders job to do that and frankly
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How can we get around and see everybody and know what everybody's doing you're interacting with people then go to them
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If someone says to me, well someone's in a certain particular sin. What about that? Are you gonna be consistent in your discipline?
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My first thing I want to say to them is have you talked to that person that you're talking about? Have you gone to them?
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Have you implored them and beseeched them? It's very very difficult how many cases go from step one to step four
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Not very many Praise God, aren't you glad?
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But here's what happens to a church that doesn't discipline and here God disciplines them.
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I Don't want to be that way Revelation chapter 2 verse 18 and to the church at Thyatira Right the
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Son of God who has eyes like a flame of fire judgment eyes His feet are like burnished bronze
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Judgment he says in verse 19. I know your deeds and your love and faith and service and perseverance good church so far
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Look at that. Their love is shown in service. Their faith is shown in perseverance Here they are at this kind of Roman military city all kinds of Alexander the great soldiers used to be there
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He had gills and Lydia's from that place, I believe But there's a problem.
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I Don't do church discipline. That's what he's saying That you tolerate the woman
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Jezebel. Is that a real name? Probably not but she was just like that lady
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Jezebel that Macbeth the Lady Macbeth of the Old Testament Here's this prophetess Jezebel.
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She calls herself a prophetess She's not though and she teaches and leads my bod servants astray.
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So they commit acts of immorality It could either be spiritual or literal and eat things sacrificed to idols
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Here comes a lady She could be rich. She could have natural gifts people start flocking around her
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They elevate her to a place of church leadership Jezebel mine, by the way means unchaste
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Verse 21 I gave her time to repent and she does not want to repent of her immorality Behold, I will cast her on a bed of sickness.
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She likes bed I'll give her a bed and those who will commit adultery now with her into great tribulation unless they repent of her deeds and Don't what do you notice there?
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It's almost like Christ is saying the real issue is not your sin The real issue is your unrepentance of that sin the sins bad, but you just won't repent
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And I will kill her children, I don't think it's literal children I think it's her followers and with pestilence and all the churches will know that I am he who searches the mind and hearts
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I Will give to each one of you according to your deeds But to the rest those of you that don't like Jezebel verse 24 who are in Thyatira and do not hold this teaching
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Who have not known the deep things of Satan and maybe that's what Jezebel is doing. I've got all the inside inside knowledge.
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I Place no other burden on you John Dagg a
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Southern Baptist said in 1858 it has been remarked that when discipline leaves the church Christ goes with it
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And that's true. Will you say pastor? Yeah immorality.
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That's a big thing. What about the other little sins? Can you do the discipline for that? How about disciplining somebody if they don't have a job?
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Can we discipline for that? Let's take a look. Let's go to 2nd Thessalonians chapter 3 now
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This is almost a more amazing passage because here's what's happening first Thessalonians 1st Thessalonians.
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Why was it written? Give me the theme of 1st Thessalonians Okay, some were saying the resurrection had already happened even bigger theme
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Christ eminent return Jesus is coming back. Let's get up on the roof Why work how many people love to work?
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I mean, there's some love to work But I mean, it's just sweat remember Genesis chapter 3 verse 19 toil thorns
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Hey, Jesus is coming back and he's already said in 1st Thessalonians. I want you to live a quiet life and work with your
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Hands, but Jesus is coming back. I get a job. I can just flit around But that's a big deal 2nd
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Thessalonians chapter 3 verse 6 an Additional passage about church discipline and again our outline is we're just hitting all these passages and I'm kind of shocked by this one
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Almost more than the last one now we command you brethren in the name of our
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Lord Jesus Christ that you keep aloof from every brother who leads an Unruly life and not according to the tradition which you receive from us
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For you yourselves know how you ought to follow our example. What was their example, by the way? What was
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Paul's example when he got to Thessalonica? Did he have to make tense? No, could he have said
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I preach the word to you you supply my needs but he did he he didn't do that He didn't want to put a burden on the
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Thessalonians. He wanted to be a good example to them Because we did not act in an undisciplined manner among you nor do we eat anyone's bread without paying for it but with labor and hardship
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It's under sweat and toil by the way We kept working night and day so that we might not be a burden to any of you
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Not because we do not have the right to do this or the right to this but in order to offer Ourselves as a model for you that you might follow our example for even when we were with you we used to give you this order a
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Verse that unbelievers even know what's the verse if anyone will not work.
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He will neither let him eat For we hear that some among you are leading an undisciplined life
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You're sitting on the roofs doing no work at all, but acting like busybodies And what happens when you do one sin another one props up?
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I'm not working the devil has I the devil The idle hands of the devil's workshop.
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That's right. That's better than the song I just was going to quote but it had something similar to that The devil will find work for idle hands to do same thing
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So you go? Well, I'm not working now. I end up being busybodies and for those of you that don't know Greek Sometime you should just pick up some kind of Greek for dummies not because you're dummies, but you know those yellow books
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By biblical Greek for dummies because the payoff is great. You know what this word busybody means
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It means the word to work. What's that? What's the word for work? That you can think of it's a measure.
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It's a unit of measure for work Erg so it's the word erg and it's the got the
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Preposition in front of it. That's Perry. It has nothing to do with periwinkle. I don't think but it means to around So you go around work you work around and it means busybody
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And you just think that that's just that's just sounds that's just better than busybody. It's the peri -erg people new cartoon
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Proverbs 30 15 the leech has two daughters What are the two daughters names that the leech has?
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Give what's their sister's name? give Proverbs 30 15
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Not satisfied. They're just leeching off of people They're busybodies unbelievers even know this
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Verse 12 says now such persons we command and exhort in the Lord Jesus Christ Notice how
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Paul when it's church discipline in 1st Corinthians 5 and now this he uses the Lord's Person and work and glory to work in quiet fashion and eat their own bread
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They're running around being busybodies all the time. Matter of fact in 1st Timothy 5 You can't be a if you're a young woman on the if you're a young woman
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You should not go around being a busybody all the time But as for you brethren do not grow weary of doing good people are gonna take advantage of you in ministry because you're doing the right thing and they're just being busybodies and not working but do
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The right thing verse 14. Here's the loving discipline Discipline is loving if anyone does not obey our instruction in this letter
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Take special note of that man and do not associate with him so that he may be put to shame but before you
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Have the wrong attitude verse 15 yet. Do not regard him as an enemy but admonish him as a brother
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So here we get this condensed version of church discipline where someone says I'm not going to work
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Someone goes and says you need to work. It's been going on for a long time Matter of fact, I was at grace Steve when there was a man
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You may even know than the man who is getting church discipline for not working now there are exceptions right people have troubles and people have
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Desires to work people have handicaps so they can't work all kinds of things like that But when a man can work and he doesn't work and he doesn't even try hard to find a job
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Used to know that great advice from the seminary make your job 40 hours a week trying to find a job and God will honor that but if you purposely don't work because you say oh
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I've got a spiritual Jesus coming back or I just don't want to the church will take care of me That was what was happening here.
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Then they are to be Confronted then you were to bring to one or two with you Then are you were to tell it to the church and then you're to excommunicate them in here.
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It's just all condensed questions about this one
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Let me ask you this When you go to someone if they don't have a job and you say well that person hasn't had a job for two months
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I'm gonna go approach them. What would be a good way to approach them out loud?
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Okay. So the first thing you should do the way I think about it is First of all, that's a good question.
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First of all, I pretend like I Don't know anything about the situation because I don't and so I don't even wait for two months
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I mean, I wait longer than two months wait several months and you say, you know, I Concerned for you and do you have a job and how can
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I help you if the person says I want to have a job? I'm searching I'm interviewing till I say yeah, you're gonna interview because I'm gonna bring
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Lewis and Dave with me pal No, I say I'm gonna pray for you and I'm gonna love you and God's gonna provide for you and God is is is
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Jehovah Jireh God is the great provider. He's faithful and it gets dropped if the person says you get off my back
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Pally Don't talk to me about work. I've never been called Pally by the way
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As long as I've been here in New England you get out of my face I'll get a job when I'm pleased to get a job and in the meantime,
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I'm surfing the net for all kinds of Christian stuff. I'm studying if you can study all day.
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I can too Then I think to myself I Didn't sign up for this job.
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It's the first thing I think and then I say, you know Maybe I'll just wait a little bit more and I think
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I'll ask you again If it's the same response Then you have to grab somebody else and you grab one or two and you go and talk to the person
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But I want to talk to them like I want to be talked to I Don't know all the facts
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So you said such -and -such about so -and -so did I get my facts, right? Did you really say that it's all with that kind of attitude
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Now, let me ask you another question We're this morning. We read first Samuel chapter 15 where there was a kind of a punctuation mark in history where a gag
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Was was hacked to pieces Can you think of a Case when the church was very young that God just bypassed all the church discipline and he just said, you know what?
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We're not gonna do steps one, two, three and four. There's gonna be time for church discipline right now, and it's gonna be by me
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Ananias and Sapphira How could Ananias Ananias? Sweet name like that.
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God is gracious Let's go there for a minute Acts chapter 5 by the way
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I want every church who's a secret church to preach this passage. Why don't they preach this?
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It's like the Jewish rabbis who skipped chapter 53 in their readings I'd be surprised to find out how many pastors preached at Acts chapter 5
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Purposely driven not to preach this Acts 5 verse 1 All right.
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I have another question Saved or unsaved Acts 5
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Ananias and Sapphira Do we have some saves here? Do we have some unsaves here?
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Saved unsaved. I think we're starting to have a faction here at the church Tim is Titus chapter 3
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Rejected factious man, let's find out Acts chapter 5 verse 1. Maybe we can't find out
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I have my views and like everything at this church You see if my views according to the scripture if you say well,
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I disagree with Mike But he's still in the pale of orthodoxy Then you just love me if you say I disagree with Mike and he's outside the pale of orthodoxy
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Then you talk to me afterwards Acts chapter 5 verse 1 but a certain man named
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Ananias God is gracious was his name and Sapphira her name in Aramaic means beautiful God is gracious and beautiful.
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We're in the church. Wouldn't you like to have put two people like that in this church? At all kinds of visitors today and incomes.
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God is gracious and beautiful Welcome to our church. We love visitors. They sold a piece of property any harm in that You'd sell any kind of property you want it's fine.
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Not a sin And they kept some back of the price for himself any problem with that.
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Keep some back keep some for yourself No, very interesting the
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Old Testament is written in Hebrew But the Greeks translated that into something we call the
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Septuagint and the Septuagint uses that word Kept back in Joshua with Achan Who was aching to steal something?
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I? Don't know if Luke's trying to make a connection or not. He might be but he had his wife's full knowledge beautiful knew about it and Bringing a portion of it.
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He laid it at the Apostles feet know what's happening here. I Know exactly what's happening here.
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We sold some land. We have some money for this church Apostles We're a number one around here.
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Look at us You say pastor. How can you say that? Look at Acts chapter 4 verse 32 remember
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I said always read the stuff before and the stuff after Acts 4 32 the congregation of those who believe were of one heart and soul and not one of them claimed that anything
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Belonging to them was his own but all things were common property to them. It was not communistic. It was hey, we love each other
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We're hurting we're ostracized. We're excommunicated. We're on synagogue and everything is everybody's
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And with great power the Apostles were giving witness to the resurrection of the Lord Jesus Abundant graces on them all there was not a needy person among them for all who were owners of land or houses would sell them and bring the proceeds of the sales and lay them at the
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Apostles feet And they would be distributed to each as any had need
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Even one by name verse 36 Joseph a Levite of Cyprian birth who was also called
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Barnabas by Barnabas by the Apostles Son of encouragement owned attractive land sold it and brought the money and laid it at the
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Apostles feet Here comes another laying at the Apostles feet except here. He wants to pretend like he's saying
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I'm like Barnabas I'm giving you all this money But he's got a little pocket change and a little five -finger discount not because it was illegal to keep some of the profits back
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But he's trying to be a hypocrite or he's not trying to be a hypocrite I guess you don't try to do that But he's being a hypocrite because he's trying to show like he's giving it all like Barnabas But he's keeping some to himself.
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So he should have just walked up and said I've sold some of this But I'm not as spiritual as everybody else. I'm a new
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Christian and I need some of that money I'm not sure if I could trust God for my existence and everything else I'm just gonna have some of that but here's what
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I do have to give you that's fine to do isn't it? They laid it at the Apostles feet they're gonna be some other things laid at the
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Apostles feet real soon That's not in my notes
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My wife tells me all the time honey stick to your notes. She's right, too
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Acts 5 3 but Peter said I remember he's an apostle He has certain supernatural gifts
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Ananias I Know what you've done Why has Satan filled your heart to lie to the Holy Spirit and keep back some of the price of the land?
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You're a big fat hypocrite is what you are and I know what you're doing and I'm going to expose you you are now exposed
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Satan has filled your heart We will next
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Sunday Lord willing look at Ephesians chapter 5 verse 18 Do not be drunk with wine, but be filled by the
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Holy Spirit, right? Same kind of terminology as the believers are to be filled by the
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Spirit of God here Satan fills the heart of this unbeliever believer
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Filled your heart to lie to the Holy Spirit and to keep back some of the price of the land You know, it's always the little things in churches that people get bugged about carpets and this and that Nobody knows if Ananias is saved.
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Nobody knows if Sapphira is saved Nobody knows if Saul is saved you can't go to Hebrews 11 and find out are they saved or are they not?
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but many people come alongside of the church and are part of the church and they aren't saved matter of fact
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James 5 19 and 20 talk about how to preach the gospel even to people in the church Up until this week.
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I always thought Ananias and Sapphira were Christians First Corinthians chapter 11 you take the
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Lord's Supper in an unworthy manner Sick and sometimes even dead right? Christians can be in all kinds of horrible sin.
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But as I look at this passage, how can Satan fill the heart of a Christian? So if you take the view that they're saved
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I respect you many great scholars believe that but on the flip side as the
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Spirit Of God must be controlling in our much be control us in our lives as Christians How can a
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Satan control and fill a believer's heart? I just don't know how that could happen Doesn't matter though because the point is the purity of the church anyway verse 4
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While it remained unsold did it not remain your own after it was sold was it not under your control?
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Why is it that you have conceived this deed in your heart? You have not lied to men and now he has an interchange between the
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Holy Spirit and God If you ever want to prove the deity of the Holy Spirit This is the great place to go, but you have not lied to men
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But you have lied to God if you look up at verse 3 you've lied to the Holy Spirit if you have a an ordination exam and you want to prove that the
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Spirit of God is God if You were meeting with a cult leader and they say no. He's just a force go right here
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And as he heard these words Ananias fell down and breathed his last and great fear came upon all who heard it
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That is a understatement It's like the time
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I sat in seminary and the professor came in and said Somebody in this class has been cheating on their Greek exams
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I knew I wasn't cheating on my Greek exams, but the way he was so heartbroken. It made me feel like That was
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I cheating and everybody in there is just like Great fear and the young man arose and covered him up and after carry him out there buried him.
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They wrapped him out Probably hot get rid of the body Verse 7 we don't know why there was three hours, but it lapsed an interval of three hours and his wife came in not knowing what?
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it happened Peter responded her tell me whether you sold the land for such and such a price
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This is not a manual here for how to confront somebody in sin, but he does talk to her
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He does ask the question. She said yes, that was a price and Peter said to her why is it that you have agreed together to put the
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Spirit of the Lord? To the test behold the feet of those who have buried your husband are at the door and they shall carry you out as well
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And immediately she fell at his feet breathed her last see you thought I was joking about the feet thing
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Laid it at the Apostles feet now God lays her at the Apostles feet the young men came in found her dead
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Carried her out and buried her beside her husband and here it comes again and great fear came upon the whole church and upon all
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Those who heard of these things who wants to go to that church if you're not honest that you you might die
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Can you imagine I've prayed this before God if I so ever take the people down a works righteousness path
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If I ever so talk about Christ that he's not God and and that he's not The Savior then
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I just as soon have you kill me I just would prefer
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I don't do that and I would prefer it doesn't it's not in the pulpit Because then you'll all sit there and say remember that Abraham said see and you're gonna read circumstances and remember when
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Paul was in Acts 2 after 28 He got hit by that thing and they said see he's getting his due
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So you can't do that. Now. Here's my question to you. Would anybody join a church like this? Who would join a church like this and I bet you
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Acts chapter 5 the rest of the chapter everybody just leaves Too high no one believers are gonna join they'd bury people
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You know, we're over every member of ministry. What's your ministry taking the dead people away from the Apostles feet?
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Whether you eat drink or bury you do all for the glory of God Every member of ministry said a deacon's job
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Scott or an elder's job But you know the great thing about it the purity of the church the church grows like mad look at acts 512 and following The hands of the
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Apostles many signs and wonders were taking place among the people They were all with one accord in Solomon's portico, but none of the rest dared to associate them
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Except for the ones that were really saved However, the people held him in high esteem and all the more
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Underline that and all the more believers in the Lord Multitudes of men and women were constantly added to their number
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To such an extent that they even carried the sick into the streets Lay them on cots and pallets so that when
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Peter came by at least a shadow might fall on any of them pure church grows
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Maybe doesn't grow with numbers, but the people grow. All right, my last point and then we need to wrap this up How are we going to treat someone who?
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Not just step four, but you go to someone and you see that they're in a snare They're in a sin you say you can't sin that way anymore
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I'll help you and I want to come alongside of you Don't do that and they say, you know, please forgive me and I've asked
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God to forgive me I need some help or you take one or two and the people go. I can't believe
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You know, there's knock at my door and there stand the elder boards and you the elder board and just like I can't believe this
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Has happened to me. I don't think they're here for Any other reason I've already been confronted and here they are and you say please forgive me
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God. I don't want to do this Or if you have step three from the pulpit or set forth from the pulpit, how should we treat people who say
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I repent and Show fruits of repentance. How should we treat them? Forgiveness and help them and what else?
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Welcome them back Rejoice Let me show you an example 2nd
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Corinthians chapter 2 final passage This is gonna be wonderful when people say yes
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And by the way beloved sin will not get you kicked out of this church because none of us would be here but in penitent
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Sin will This is such a neat little passage here
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God in his grace, I think it was Matthew Henry that talked about God's band -aids always bigger than the sore
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And here upon repentance Just the love of God 2nd
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Corinthians 2 verse 5 Then he was caused any sorrow.
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He has caused sorrow not to me But in some degree in order not to say too much to all of you
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Sufficient for such a one as this punishment was inflicted by the majority So that on the contrary you should rather forgive and confront him
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Less somehow such a one be overwhelmed by excessive sorrow. He's already had his punishment.
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He's asked for forgiveness What are you gonna do be mad at him then it's like parents parents if you
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Spank first of all, if you have a little kids, you should spank second of all If you do spank your kids don't be mad at your kids after you spank them
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They get double punishment dad's mad and they got the rob, too That's double that's double jeopardy.
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Make sure that after you give them discipline You don't want to crush them and just the same thing here with Paul Sufficient for such as the punishment you get the punishment.
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That's all that you should get You don't want them to be overwhelmed by excessive sorrow I've given you punishment son or daughter and I'm still mad at you.
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How could you my own flesh? I can't I mean, come on. I try I try
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I Don't know if I'm great at it or not But I try it's my determination that after you get a spanking in our house or after you get disciplined
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That it is afterwards, it's no geese. I love you. You're my best little one.
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Hi. You're just a great kid happy Is it true
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Luke? Why because you don't need double punishment if somebody's been punished and put out of the church and they come back you're like How could you do this in our church?
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How could you what were you thinking? No, they've already suffered enough now it is arms wide open.
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We love you. Welcome back. It's the whole prodigal son deal Remember lost found rejoice lost found rejoice lost found mad
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Pharisees No Verse 8 wherefore
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I urge you to affirm your love reaffirm your love for him That's exactly what we should do. Somebody comes walking into our door after step three or four or even after I Love you
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For to this end also, I wrote that I might put you to the test whether you are obedient in these things
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But whom you forgive anything. I also forgive you and Paul goes to talk about it We should treat with love and excitement
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Some of you have unbelieving kids and if they come home you were gonna have a huge party You're not gonna rub it in their faces again
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We could do Titus 3, but we're not going to any glass questions on church discipline.
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Is it loving? I think it is What must we do it? Yes, we must should we have the right attitude?
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Yes of restoration. Oh Here's a question.
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How long in between steps, you know, there's nothing in the Bible that tells us about how long in between steps So you just have to use wisdom
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Doesn't say send a certified letter, but sometimes you have to send certified letters Let me give you a couple pointers as you're putting your
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Bibles away Don't involve others unless God requires you to do so if you know someone's in a sin
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You don't get anybody else involved unless the Bible teaches you to Secondly, you may not have confidentiality.
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That's above and beyond Bible confidentiality Somebody comes to me and says Mike. I need to tell you something, but I don't want you to tell anybody else
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Do you know what I'll tell you? Then you probably shouldn't tell me because I might be required by biblical law to tell the elders
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I may want to talk to my wife who is my better half and she has all kinds of insight and wisdom and Knowledge about how things should be done and I can't think of things properly
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Sometimes I'll ask my wife some things I don't burden her with someone will come to me with a sin And I don't need to burden my wife for that.
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I won't tell her but I might want to tell her to get help You say well, what about confidentiality most of times?
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I'll say I will be confidential with this matter, but I might have to tell someone else So if someone says to you, this is a strict confidence between you and me
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You need to say to them it's between you and me, but what if I have to go beyond you and me, right?
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It's very very difficult Number three make sure the person knows the truth and rejects that in other words
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The person that's in the sin do they understand what the Bible says and then do they reject it?
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I've met people before who they've sinned I think their conscience should have told them but for whatever reason it didn't and they're not quite sure what they're doing sinful
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So here's what you do. This is what the Bible says. This is what I see you doing
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Do you understand what the Bible says? Yes, I've seen you do this. Did you in fact do that?
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Yes, then you weigh those two and then you try to help them but versus, you know You're just gonna be disciplined and they don't even understand it
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Lastly if somebody you've sinned against and you want restoration, please beloved say more than I'm sorry
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How about please forgive me? If you step on my foot say you're sorry
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If you step on it and grind it It's a little bit more but seriously I'm sorry doesn't mean anything
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Please forgive me means I have you have something against me Please for him to give me remove it and I won't bring it up to other people
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I won't bring it up to anyone else as God forgives Colossians Ephesians chapter 4.
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I'm going to forgive It's behind my back as far as the East is from the West cast it in the deepest sea
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I won't bring it up. Please forgive me. The other person says I forgive you and it's over Long gone should be the days of having people especially in your own family that do the same sins over and over and just Stumble with that particular area and you say please forgive me and then the other person says
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I remember when you did that 13 days Ago on that Monday afternoon 3 or 5 p .m.
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You said the same thing to me then but once you say please forgive me and You then say the other person says
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I forgive you. You can't bring those things up anymore so much better than I'm sorry All right, that's it anything else
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I've never finished a sermon in my life by saying that's it Yes, Scott Yes, you excellent great point
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Scott. Will you please forgive me? So you require the response of the person if you say I've sinned against you and God Will you please forgive me and that other person says no
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Your duty has been done and now it's their sin. No, I will not God's forgiven me for 14 billion sins
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I can't forgive yours. Have a good day No, and a matter of fact you are preaching on forgiveness soon, aren't you good he is
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All right last comments Against Rebuking is not a spiritual gift
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So, let's make sure we're patient with one another You ever take that spiritual inventory 500 questions and you can figure out what your spiritual gifts are rebuke
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No We all fall short and we just cover we're in the last days and love covers a multitude of sins
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If you'd like to read some more I encourage you to number one read our Constitution. We have church discipline in the
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Constitution. We grace churches Constitution you could read London Baptist Confession.
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You can read Westminster Confession Savoy Confession. Everybody pretty much has church discipline last quote by Timothy Harris Christ has graciously given his church a system of discipline by which to protect his people and vindicate his glory
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And God is even good in doing that All right. Let's pray father. We thank you tonight
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For your scriptures and we've just been going to a bunch of them and father. I'm glad that you have not
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Punctuated your righteousness and your justice because we have lied once we're glad you're long -suffering
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Merciful we pray for a pure church We pray for those who are even undergoing church discipline now at our church
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That isn't at step three or step four But we've seen something in someone's lives and in their life and we love them so much father
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Give us humility and grace and boldness to go And father help us be a church that's known for love and not rebuke in Jesus name.