“Moreover if your brother sins against you, go and tell him his fault between you and him alone. If he hears you, you have gained your brother. But if he will not hear, take with you one or two more, that ‘by the mouth of two or three witnesses every word may be established.’ And if he refuses to hear them, tell it to the church. But if he refuses even to hear the church, let him be to you like a heathen and a tax collector. Assuredly, I say to you, whatever you bind on earth will be bound in heaven, and whatever you loose on earth will be loosed in heaven.” – Matthew 18:15-18
What happens if a sinning brother refuses to repent after your private pursuit of him, as well as your witnessed pursuit? If you have to proceed to step 3 and tell the matter to the church, what happens when the Session or the Presbytery (for ministers) engages in the pursuit, determines that the brother is guilty of a true sin, but he remains unrepentant regardless of the applied censure(s)? The elders have to prayerfully and wisely use the Office of the Keys.
Some of you may wonder what the Office of the Keys is. This refers to the keys of the kingdom that Jesus gave Peter and the apostles in Matthew 16:19. What is the purpose of the keys? They are used by the elders to open and shut. Through faithful preaching and administration of church discipline the kingdom of Heaven is opened to believers and shut to unbelievers. Jesus teaches you in Matthew 18:18 that He has given the Elders the keys of the kingdom to shut it, to excommunicate or cast out those who continue in their refusal to repent from the fellowship of the church.
Westminster Confession of Faith, Chapter 30, Of Church Censures summarizes the teaching of Scripture regarding the necessity and purpose of church censures, along with the types of censures God has prescribed to be administered. Consider sections 3-4:
- Church censures are necessary, for the reclaiming and gaining of offending brethren, for deterring of others from the like offenses, for purging out of that leaven which might infect the whole lump, for vindicating the honor of Christ, and the holy profession of the gospel, and for preventing the wrath of God, which might justly fall upon the church, if they should suffer his covenant, and the seals thereof, to be profaned by notorious and obstinate offenders. (Matthew 7:6; 1 Corinthians 5:1-13, 1 Corinthians 11:27-34, Jude 23, 1 Timothy 1:20, 1 Timothy 5:20)
- For the better attaining of these ends, the officers of the church are to proceed by admonition; suspension from the sacrament of the Lord’s Supper for a season; and by excommunication from the church; according to the nature of the crime, and demerit of the person. (Matthew 18:17, 1 Corinthians 5:4-5, 1 Corinthians 5:13, 1 Thessalonians 5:12, 2 Thessalonians 3:6, 2 Thessalonians 3:14-15, Titus 3:10)
In addition to what I stated above, what else is important to keep in mind about excommunication? The OPC Book of Church Order states in Book of Discipline VI:B.5 that excommunication is “the most severe form of censure and is resorted to only in cases of offenses aggravated by persistent impenitence. It consists in a solemn declaration by an ecclesiastical judicatory that the offender is no longer considered a member of the body of Christ.” To be clear, as excommunication is the casting of one out of the church, it’s a very difficult and challenging subject and occasion. It’s church discipline that the elders grieve to pronounce, and the members grieve to hear. Have you experienced someone you know having to be excommunicated?
So, if the man refuses to repent, Jesus says “let him be to you like a heathen and a tax collector.” He is to be cast out from the fellowship of the church and as Paul told Timothy regarding Hymenaeus and Alexander in 1 Timothy 1:20, as well as the church in Corinth regarding the man living in sexual immorality, they were delivered to Satan for the destruction of the flesh that their spirits “may be saved in the day of the Lord Jesus”. (1 Corinthians 5:1-5) At this point, the man’s sin is made public to the congregation through a public pronouncement of the excommunication by the Session or Presbytery (for ministers). Beloved, as this final step of discipline is a huge deal, must not be dealt with lightly, and must be carried out prayerfully, with must wisdom, grace, and solemnity, pray for your Elders, the person being disciplined, and Christ’s church.
Now, a good question is- “Pastor, how am I supposed to interact with someone who has been excommunicated? Does my relationship with them have to change? What do I do, especially if they are a member of my family?” These are important questions. First, know what is true of him, as well as what you must do and not do.
- Know that he is no longer welcome to partake of the Lord’s Supper. He has no part in the spiritual blessings and benefits which Christ bestows upon his church.
- Yes, your relationship with an excommunicated individual should change. As long as he persists in sin, let him be to you as an unbeliever. Share the Gospel with him and warn him as you would a lost sheep. But do not associate with him as a fellow believer, that he may be ashamed and have godly sorrow that leads to repentance. Towing this kind of line with care is often challenging but important, even and especially when the disciplined person is a member of your family.
- Further, excommunication isn’t at act that should cause you to wash your hands of them. On the contrary, pray for him with lamentation. Pray that the Lord would work in and through the discipline. Pray that He would be merciful to change his heart, transform his life, and grant him godly sorrow that leads to repentance. We must remember that we take these actions out of obedience to Christ and love for the offender! Our prayer must always be, even after excommunication, that he repents, is saved, and restored!
Know that I’ve served on three Sessions that had to excommunicate a member. During my service on one of those Sessions, the Lord was gracious to the offender, brought him to sincere repentance after he became quite ill, and the Session had the joy of restoring him to the fellowship of the church. To God be the glory!
All of this being said, Beloved, as excommunication is to serve as a deterrent to you and others from committing like offenses (WCF 30.3), see it as a warning for us all. Fear the Lord, be watchful, sober, and humble regarding any sin in your life. Seek God’s grace to walk worthy of your calling every day. (Ephesians 4:1) For he who thinks he stands must take heed lest he fall. (1 Corinthians 10:12) Continue in the true fellowship with the Father and his Son Jesus Christ, and also with all faithful believers, so that we may obtain eternal salvation. “Let us lay aside every weight, and the sin which so easily ensnares us, and let us run with endurance the race that is set before us, looking unto Jesus, the author and finisher of our faith…” (Hebrews 12:1-2a)
In the next edition: What if the church errs in the use of church discipline?