Hello Vance. In everything regarding the Church, one clear instruction given by Paul is found in Acts 20:28 is, "Take heed therefore unto yourselves, and to all the flock, over the which the Holy Ghost hath made you overseers, to feed the church of God, which he hath purchased with his own blood."
Because of the value of every child of God, the pastoral care, control, guidance, teaching & love given to them are so important. As Paul instructed the Ephesian Elders to "take heed" (or, be very mindful) of yourselves in both their personal & ministerial lives, so also they must not to disregard the "flock" for which God had given them responsibility. Paul was thinking more about some men entering into the Church bringing in "damnable heresies" & leading the innocent unlearned members away. Yet, the elders' responsibilities extended much more to all areas of Church life.
1 Corinthians chapter 5 tells us of Paul's grief over a horrible sin found in the Church there. Even though Paul couldn't be everywhere to administer discipline, the elders were expected to identify & deal with any problem in the Church, especially sin. The elder (or, pastor), must view his congregation as Christ's flock, & the great responsibility that Jesus has bestowed on him. Just as a flock of sheep need the constant sound of the shepherd's voice, a strong prod with the staff, or even chasing the straying sheep to bring it back to the fold, so too must God's servant be diligent to know his 'sheep' & to bring back erring ones.
When the 'sheep' know that they're loved, cared for & will be guided aright, they will respond as if Christ Himself is speaking with them. The elder/pastor needs to let the erring ones know that he is aware of their sin. He needs to bring them together to deal with the problem, in the spirit of love, meekness & for restoration. They need to be taught & warned from God's Word. And if they refuse to listen, they need to be separated, even for a time ( 1 Corinthians 5:6,7).
That is a good question to ask. It seems a kind of balance needs to be made, because all have sinned and fall short. Yet, deliberate sinning while claiming to be a Christian following Jesus is incongruent ( 1 John 1:6). And deliberate sinning that is apparent within the church is especially toxic to the church body.
Paul in the Bible dealt with this when he wrote letters to the churches. He seemed frustrated with them to a degree. Paul admitted his own struggles with the flesh as well.
How should sin in the church be handled? It probably depends on the circumstance. I would recommend searching the internet for "How should sin in the church be handled?" and clicking on the Got Questions website. I believe they have solid Bible-based answers that might be helpful.
And of course most importantly, pray to God. Ask for wisdom and discernment on how best to minister to your church body. Also, it shouldn't all fall upon you. You need deacons and helpers so this doesn't all fall on you. I believe there is a higher standard for leaders in the church body and no one should serve as a leader who is being immoral. 1 Timothy 3:8-13
It seems that when we veer away from scripture, the wisdom and knowledge also become a little out of reach! Even using "got Questions" although ok, I am learning the importance of staying locked into the word! At times it may seem "monotonous". it is perhaps an indication that the next limb is about to evolve! The tree takes awhile, remembering what strengthens the roots is not always easy! Such is the world, God is in charge! Precisely in and through His words! This 2 is how the church will evolve, whos church it will be will remain too be seen! Gods or mans?
It sounds like you interpret my providing someone with scripture as a 'veer away from scripture' and I don't know why you assume that. I first recommended scripture- Paul's writings. Then I recommended the page which has even more scripture- someone already did a lot of work pulling all the verses together. Then I included 2 more scriptures. Maybe total the info has dozens of scripture for him to look at, so I don't understand the accusation of 'veer away from scripture.'
As someone who spends lots of time trying to help people it's hard to see baseless criticism especially in place that's supposed to be uplifting. Your response didn't have any scripture so you have a stronger case against yourself. "Gods or mans?" God bless.
Because of the value of every child of God, the pastoral care, control, guidance, teaching & love given to them are so important. As Paul instructed the Ephesian Elders to "take heed" (or, be very mindful) of yourselves in both their personal & ministerial lives, so also they must not to disregard the "flock" for which God had given them responsibility. Paul was thinking more about some men entering into the Church bringing in "damnable heresies" & leading the innocent unlearned members away. Yet, the elders' responsibilities extended much more to all areas of Church life.
1 Corinthians chapter 5 tells us of Paul's grief over a horrible sin found in the Church there. Even though Paul couldn't be everywhere to administer discipline, the elders were expected to identify & deal with any problem in the Church, especially sin. The elder (or, pastor), must view his congregation as Christ's flock, & the great responsibility that Jesus has bestowed on him. Just as a flock of sheep need the constant sound of the shepherd's voice, a strong prod with the staff, or even chasing the straying sheep to bring it back to the fold, so too must God's servant be diligent to know his 'sheep' & to bring back erring ones.
When the 'sheep' know that they're loved, cared for & will be guided aright, they will respond as if Christ Himself is speaking with them. The elder/pastor needs to let the erring ones know that he is aware of their sin. He needs to bring them together to deal with the problem, in the spirit of love, meekness & for restoration. They need to be taught & warned from God's Word. And if they refuse to listen, they need to be separated, even for a time ( 1 Corinthians 5:6,7).
That is a good question to ask. It seems a kind of balance needs to be made, because all have sinned and fall short. Yet, deliberate sinning while claiming to be a Christian following Jesus is incongruent ( 1 John 1:6). And deliberate sinning that is apparent within the church is especially toxic to the church body.
Paul in the Bible dealt with this when he wrote letters to the churches. He seemed frustrated with them to a degree. Paul admitted his own struggles with the flesh as well.
How should sin in the church be handled? It probably depends on the circumstance. I would recommend searching the internet for "How should sin in the church be handled?" and clicking on the Got Questions website. I believe they have solid Bible-based answers that might be helpful.
And of course most importantly, pray to God. Ask for wisdom and discernment on how best to minister to your church body. Also, it shouldn't all fall upon you. You need deacons and helpers so this doesn't all fall on you. I believe there is a higher standard for leaders in the church body and no one should serve as a leader who is being immoral. 1 Timothy 3:8-13
God bless you and your church!
It sounds like you interpret my providing someone with scripture as a 'veer away from scripture' and I don't know why you assume that. I first recommended scripture- Paul's writings. Then I recommended the page which has even more scripture- someone already did a lot of work pulling all the verses together. Then I included 2 more scriptures. Maybe total the info has dozens of scripture for him to look at, so I don't understand the accusation of 'veer away from scripture.'
As someone who spends lots of time trying to help people it's hard to see baseless criticism especially in place that's supposed to be uplifting. Your response didn't have any scripture so you have a stronger case against yourself. "Gods or mans?" God bless.
This comment thread is locked. Please enter a new comment below to start a new comment thread.
Note: Comment threads older than 2 months are automatically locked.
Do you have a Bible comment or question?
Please Sign In or Register to post comments...
Report Comment
Which best represents the problem with the comment?