In Paul’s first letter to the Corinthians, he instructed them to discipline a man that was having an incestuous relationship with his stepmother.
Deliver such a one to Satan for the destruction of the flesh, that his spirit may be saved in the day of the Lord Jesus. 1 Corinthians 5:5 (NKJV)
In simple terms, the man was excommunicated from their fellowship. Whenever you are ousted from the “in” group, it hurts. It gives you time to think about what you did wrong and you are apt to change your ways. However, if after changing your ways you are still snubbed by that group, you tend to lose heart and question why you were part of them in the first place. That may be ok for a fraternity or a click but not Christianity!
Paul tells the church at
But if any has caused sorrow, he has caused sorrow not to me, but in some degree—in order not to say too much—to all of you. 6 Sufficient for such a one is this punishment which was inflicted by the majority, 7 so that on the contrary you should rather forgive and comfort him, otherwise such a one might be overwhelmed by excessive sorrow. 8 Wherefore I urge you to reaffirm your love for him. 2 Corinthians 2:5 - 8 (NASB)
Forgiveness is to be part of our makeup as it is of Christ’s. He forgave our sins when we confessed them to him and we are to forgive others for their sins against us.
Paul goes beyond forgiveness and tells the Corinthians to comfort the man. In chapter one of second Corinthians Paul had relayed to them that God comforts them so that they could comfort others. Here he shows them a specific situation in which to apply that comfort.
Finally, Paul tells them to reaffirm their love for this man. It is not always easy to love somebody that has wronged you, but it is the godly thing to do. We were made in the image of God. One of the goals of Christianity is to become more like Christ. He loved us when we were still sinners. How much more should we love someone who has repented of their sin in order to draw them back into fellowship with their brothers and sisters in Christ?
SEEK FIRST THE
