Judgmental

 There are no perfect churches. Churches are made up of imperfect people who struggle with sin. This is common knowledge. What may not be so common among congregations is the number and type of sins among the people. All of this with very little to no accountability. We live in an age where people are welcomed in flocks no matter what they have done or what they are doing. Churches to treat people with grace. There is forgiveness. That is not the point of this post. 

Christian people living in willful, deliberate and defiant sin hurt the church and bring shame and reproach on Jesus. These are the people who need confrontation and accountability. Sometimes even removal from the church body. 

In I Corinthians 5:1-13 we read about a grievous sin among one of the men in the church. A sexually immoral man was having sex with his father's wife. Most think the woman was his stepmother. Paul said that such behavior was not even tolerated by pagans, yet this man was welcomed in worship. I am not saying the man sinned and then stopped. He was still engaged in the unholy behavior. 

Nobody in the church said a word to the immoral man about repentance. I am sure there was gossip. There always is when somebody blows it among the people of God. The whisper campaigns start. The rumors run rampant. Accountability and confrontation were noticeably absent. That is until Paul got wind of the situation. He went into action firing off a letter to the Corinthian church. He did not hold back. 

Paul calls out the church for being arrogant instead of mourning and grieving over this sin. He actually judged the immoral man. I thought we are not supposed to judge according to Matthew 7:1-5. We are not to look for splinters in other people's eyes. Read what the scripture contains in I Corinthians 5:12. For what have I to do with judging outsiders? Is it not those inside the church who you are to judge?

I bet most were not even aware that verse was in the Bible. Not only did Paul judge the man but he exhorted the church to do the same. He wrote, "Purge the evil man from among you." Not only that but he urged them to deliver this man to Satan for the destruction of his flesh that his spirit might be saved. 

Paul is not done. He exhorts the church to not even associate with sexually immoral people. He also includes not to do so at all. That is an extremely harsh stance. Paul also told the church not to associate with greedy people, swindlers, or idolaters. Think of how many of such people fill our pews today. 

Is that the reason the church is so impotent in society today. We are weighed down with so many openly defiant sinful people on Sunday mornings it grieves and quenches the Holy Spirit. Where God is grieved, He will not work as powerfully. There is a clog in the hose that kinks His power. 

Do churches really take holiness seriously? Do the people of God embrace repentance and have the guts to remove unrepentant immoral people from the assembly? Do pastors? It is time for judgment to begin in the house of God. Such pastors better get their resumes updated. They most likely will not survive such confrontation no matter how badly it is needed.