It is actually reported that there is sexual immorality among you, and such sexual immorality as is not even named among the Gentiles—that a man has his father's wife! And you are puffed up, and have not rather mourned, that he who has done this deed might be taken away from among you. For I indeed, as absent in body but present in spirit, have already judged (as though I were present) him who has so done this deed. In the name of our Lord Jesus Christ, when you are gathered together, along with my spirit, with the power of our Lord Jesus Christ, 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. Your glorying is not good. Do you not know that a little leaven leavens the whole lump? Therefore purge out the old leaven, that you may be a new lump, since you truly are unleavened. For indeed Christ, our Passover, was sacrificed for us. Therefore let us keep the feast, not with old leaven, nor with the leaven of malice and wickedness, but with the unleavened bread of sincerity and truth. --1 Corinthians 5:1-8
To My Daughters,
As carnal as the city of Corinth was this particular sin of one who named the name of Christ caused quite a stir. The world loves to catch a Christian in sin and the more seemingly immoral the deed, the better! This particular sexual immorality Paul tells us was not even named among the Gentiles...A man having his father's wife...his stepmother.
The Christians in the church of Corinth were not ashamed about the evil that was occurring among them...no...they were puffed up by their tolerance. Sin among us who name the of Christ should break our hearts! It should make us weep. Instead those in the Corinth church not only tolerated the sin but were proud of their tolerance! Uh oh political correctness in Corinth. Me thinks they are missing the point of the cross.
Paul tells them to deliver such a one to Satan...not for his destruction but for his restoration. In excluding him from fellowship and leaving him alone in his sin, Paul was hoping to bring this man to the end of himself and to repentance. He was doing this man a great service...he showed him love by putting him out of the church. Paul's perspective was eternal...so with much prayer and in the name and power of Christ, Paul delivered him to Satan so that his flesh might be destroyed but his spirit saved in the day of the Lord Jesus. In effect, Paul was giving him what he wanted and allowing him to eat the fruit of his own way in the hopes that his sin would eventually make him sick and long for the joy of the Lord's presence and the Lord's people in his life once again. Sin leavens and spreads if allowed to go unchecked. Christ suffered and died for each and every one of our sins... to treat them as if they did not matter or were of no consequence is to trample on the blood of Jesus. Thankfully, the church at Corinth did, indeed, take Paul's advice, and it worked. Paul was then able to instruct them to welcome their brother back into their company.
Paul was not expecting them to be sinless..we all struggle with sin daily. The difference here was that this was willful and continual sin without shame, without godly sorrow, and without repentance. Sin effects everyone...not only the person committing the sin but also those with whom this person has contact. Sin is selfishness which by definition is the opposite of love.
The witness of a group of people living for Christ can be huge in this dark world, but it can be diminished and even extinguished when even one person is not worshiping in sincerity and truth. Our word and our deeds need to match to be an effective witness. When we name the name of Christ our nature should be pure, holy and righteous like our God's. We should reflect the nature of our Father. One weak link in the body affects everyone in the body.
Before the Passover a Jew was required to remove all leaven from their house until not even a trace remained. After searching and scrubbing diligently the head of the household would say, “Oh God, I have cast out all the leaven from my house, and if there is any leaven that I do not know of, with all my heart I cast it out too.” What a picture for each of us! What a reminder to separate ourselves from sin and evil lest where we think we stand we fall! We are to offer and consecrate our very lives to Him who died so that we could live. Our lives are to be lived out not in hypocrisy, but with the unleavened bread of sincerity and truth...in a word...Jesus!
For it is God who works in you both to will and to do for His good pleasure. Do all things without complaining and disputing, that you may become blameless and harmless, children of God without fault in the midst of a crooked and perverse generation, among whom you shine as lights in the world, holding fast the word of life, so that I may rejoice in the day of Christ that I have not run in vain or labored in vain. --Philippians 2:13-16
Love
Mom
