What To Do When Someone Sins Against You

For where two or three are gathered together in my name, there am I in the midst of them. Would you pray with me this morning? Thank you, Lord Jesus, for your word. Thank you for the truth that it contains. We pray that you would help us to, you give us grace, that is, to live up to it, to do what your word says, to obey your voice.

Because we know your way is the best way. And Lord, you have good motivations for everything that you tell us. It is for your glory and for our good, for our benefit that your name might be glorified through us in this world around us. Lord, help us as we study your word. Guide us each one. Help me, Lord, to say the things that your people need, Lord, because you alone know the needs of each and every person.

And so Lord, just like we come every Sunday, Lord, we acknowledge that we can’t do anything without you. And Lord, that you are the one who is able to meet our needs, spiritual and otherwise, you’re the one who is able to direct our steps individually. Our eyes are upon you, Lord. So help us, we pray in Jesus’ name. Amen. Notice in verse number 15 that this, 15 to 20, this section begins with the word moreover, which indicates to us that it is a continuation of sorts from the previous section that we studied last week, which is the section of Scripture dealing with offenses or stumbling blocks.

And it’s no surprise that this section, which deals with a trespassing brother, we’ll get to that in a minute, is related to offense because oftentimes the very thing that causes us to stumble is the sin of another. We can think that we have this hyper atomized view of ourselves and we think, well, what I do, it doesn’t affect anybody else. That’s their problem. And the Lord says, that’s not the way it works.

We affect each other, both in our families, in our church, at our work, whatever the context is, what we do affects other people. Sometimes that causes a stumbling block. Sometimes it encourages others. And sometimes it causes situations where there’s a trespass. And so it’s no wonder that these two sections are connected by the word moreover. Notice what it says in verse 15. Moreover, if thy brother shall trespass against thee.

So I want to set the context of these verses because it’s very specific. I know that sometimes these verses are used and applied more generally and that’s good. That’s fine and right. But I want us all to see specifically what the Lord’s referring to in this passage. The first indicator is the word brother, the word brother. In other words, the spiritual connection is what the Lord is primarily referring to.

If you keep reading, he mentions brother in verse number 15, trespass against thee. Verse 16, there is a mention of two or three witnesses, one or two more. And then in verse 17, there’s a mention of the word church. So the idea is there’s one or two more, two or three witnesses. And if that fails, then it goes to the church. And then if the person in question neglects the church, then the person is treated not as a part of the group anymore, but is treated as someone outside of the group.

So that sets the context of this. What’s primarily in view is not necessarily personal relationships like you might have at your home or your work or your job or whatever. Although the principles here definitely apply. But what is specifically being referred to here is the relationship that might exist in a church setting. That’s why the brother, the witnesses, and then the church is mentioned. So in this case, the main thrust, the main truth that the Lord is aiming at is this situation in which we find ourselves on a weekly basis.

That is, the church meeting together. The church is not just the church on Sunday. The church is the church every day. But we meet on Sunday and we have relationships, hopefully with one another outside of our meeting. That’s the hope. That’s the goal. Sometimes there are problems that arise within people in the church. But again, we’re not even talking about just personal problems. If you and I as individuals, if we have any kind of relationship with another human being, there are going to be problems.

Right? It is inevitable. It doesn’t matter. They could be your blood brother and sister. Sometimes the biggest problems that we tend to have are with people that are closest to us. Husband, wife, children, parents. Brothers, sisters. But then anytime you have coworkers, you have friends, you have extended family, you have church folk, brothers and sisters in Christ, and it goes on and on from there. Anytime you have two people that are rubbing together like this, there’s going to be sparks from time to time.

And the Lord obviously has principles to deal with that. Let me show you one that we’ve already studied. And I want to show you a contrast. Go to Matthew 5. Don’t lose your place here because we’re coming right back. Matthew 5 verse number 23.

Matthew 5 verse number 23. You see the same terminology, although it says something different. Matthew 5, 23. Therefore, if thou bring thy gift to the altar, and there rememberst that thy brother, same term, hath ought against thee. Now, the word ought, we’ve already looked at this, but the word ought just means anything. So, ought is not a thing. It’s a container that contains anything. Okay? Leave there thy gift before the altar and go thy way.

First, be reconciled to thy brother, then come and offer thy gift. Notice the context of this is worship. Right? This is temple, in the temple is what this is talking about. But the context is worship, which is kind of similar to a church setting, is it not? Verse number 25. Agree with thine adversary quickly, whilst thou art in the way with him, lest in any time the adversary deliver thee to the judge, and the judge deliver thee to the officer, and thou be cast into prison.

Verily I say unto thee, thou shalt by no means come out thence till thou hast paid the uttermost farthing. So, in verse 23 and 4 we see that in this case, unlike in Matthew 18, this is a case where I’m going to worship and I remember that someone has a problem with me. Not the reverse. Not I have a problem with them. Not that they have harmed me, but I remember that they have the idea that I have harmed them.

I’m to leave my gift, go to that person, and reconcile that problem. Of course, to the best of my ability, and then offer the gift. In other words, there’s not supposed to be, where it is at all feasible, there’s not supposed to be outstanding issues between brothers and sisters in Christ. The Lord is not pleased with that, and neither should we be. But I want you to notice the seriousness that we see in Matthew chapter 5.

It uses the word ought, which means anything. These are the kinds of personal problems and quibbles you have with people. You say something, they misunderstand. Maybe you said something in the wrong way, and you were a little bit biting, or whatever. We have personal issues like that all the time, and your family is the easiest examples of that. So, the Lord provides a way in Matthew 5 to deal with that, to go to that person.

So, the principles are kind of overlapping. Go back to Matthew 18. I want to show you what’s different. In Matthew 18, there’s two primary things that are different in verse 15 down through verse 20. Two primary things. The first thing is, it’s not the word ought or anything that we’re talking about. Not the container. The word used here is trespass. That’s different. And what’s also different is not that I remember that I have hurt someone else, but in Matthew the person who has been sinned against is the person approaching the conversation.

Does that make sense? So, it’s a little bit different. But one thing is clear. There are things that overlap and are similar. The principles are the same. That’s what we’re going to see. But the severity of the matter is much different. If we have a personal issue with one another in the body of Christ, not every issue rises to the level, scripturally, to be brought to the church and to put someone out from the fellowship.

Right? Like, if someone says a mean comment to you about, you know, whatever, the way you did your hair or, you know, the color of your suit or whatever, that’s not like, you might be offended and you might be upset or angry, but that doesn’t mean that that can rise to the level, scripturally, to put someone out of the church. That’s why we have to pay attention to the word trespass.

Trespass. And one thing, before we go any further, note that in verse 15 it just says, brother, this is a process, this is a mechanism, if you will, that’s not just for the preachers. Right? It’s not just for the pastor to do all these things. This is supposed to be between the members of the body of Christ, of which the pastor is a part, of course. But this is supposed to be for everyone.

This involves our personal relationships with one another, but it does tell us something. The very fact that these verses are here tells us that there are going to be times when Christians are going to sin against each other. It will happen. It’s inevitable. By the very fact that these verses are in the Bible tells us it’s going to happen. And it’s probably going to happen to you if it hasn’t already.

So here’s the thing. If you know in advance, because the Lord has told us this is the way to try and deal with this, when someone sins against you, if you know that’s going to happen in advance, then should not our first reaction to be to look at the scripture and say, okay, I’m not happy about this situation, but the Lord told me this would happen, and he gave me a process to deal with it.

He wants me to deal with it. Not run from it, deal with it. But the thing is, we want to run from it. I want to run from it. Nobody likes these kinds of conversations. Nobody at all. But what is in view here? What is in view is a trespass. Notice what it says in verse 15. Moreover, if thy brother shall trespass against thee. Now this word trespass is actually a verb.

Shall trespass. That’s crossed the line, right? This word trespass is the very same word of Romans 3 verse 23. For all have sinned. That’s it. Same word. Different word used. Sin, trespass, same idea. So what we’re talking about here, and this is so important for us to get, what we’re talking about here are not just kind of minor personality issues between two people who are different and interactions that sometimes get people upset or things like that.

Although we know we have to deal with those things as well. This is talking about sins. We’re talking about a trespass is something that God forbids. It’s something that is a sin in God’s sight. Because sin in God’s sight, generally you can put them into two categories. Trespasses, sins. Anything that God forbids. We do it as a sin. Anything that God tells us to do, we fail.

That’s a sin. That’s a trespass. But some sins are sins related to God himself primarily. And then many other sins, probably the bulk of our sins, affect another. That’s why it says trespass against thee. So if I get angry and I yell a curse word at somebody at the coffee shop or something I’m sinning against God for sure. But I’m also sinning against a person. And that’s what we’re viewing here.

So this is not, we’re not talking about low level things here. We’re talking about significant things that are not just he said, she said, but no. God said this person should not have done this thing and has done it and has hurt his brother or his sister in Christ in his sin. We have to get that clear because in that case, that’s the case in which you get down to verse number 16 and 17.

Not minor things, but outright sins in God’s sight. Let me just give you kind of an abrasive example to illustrate this and we’ll see a little bit further in just a minute. Say another man is going after your wife in the church. I know some of you are thinking, I have permission to carry in this church. Say another man is going after your wife in the church or say they actually do commit sin together.

This is what we’re talking about right here. This is a trespass against you. I know I’m using kind of the maybe worst case scenario that this is what, does that happen in churches? Could it be that things like that? Yeah, they do. And our reaction, our tendency is to pull away and say, well I ain’t going to church like that. Well hold on. Hold on. No matter what church we go to, this is to all churches.

This is a problem and could be a problem, potential problem in every church no matter what church. Our church is not immune to it for sure and I’m not saying I know anything that’s going on. I certainly hope nothing is going on. I’m not aware of anything thankfully. But the Lord says deal with it. Deal with it. So this is the, get the context here of a trespass.

So there’s two primary parties here I want to pay attention to real quick. The first one I want you to see in verse number 15 is the sinner. And by that I don’t mean an unbeliever. In this particular case I want us to pay attention to the sinner in this circumstance. So this sinner commits a sin against God that is also against his brother in Christ, verse 15.

So he’s the offending party in this matter. And the Lord, even though this man has offended his brother in that he has sinned against The Lord in this passage has provided a mechanism of accountability. Let me pause here and say something to our, and I’ve said this before but I just want to reiterate it because I’m learning, I’m learning a lot as I go. Being a missionary in Cambodia is different than being a pastor in America.

The way Cambodian people think is different than the way Americans think. So I want to make this clear. And I’m speaking primarily to the men but it’s not just to the men. If there is a problem of sin in our church it is not just the duty of the pastor to deal with it. It’s the duty of the men in the church who are spiritually minded to address that matter.

That’s here. Jesus doesn’t say, well the apostles have to deal with it. No, he says that the brother, in fact the one who is offended, the one who has been harmed primarily is the one who goes to the other. And by the Lord saying this what he’s showing us is that the Lord wants whenever sin does come into a church setting, and it happens in our personal lives, it happens in churches all over the place, the Lord has provided a way so that that sin gets confronted.

It’s not supposed to remain. It’s not supposed to remain unmolested in the church. It’s not supposed to have an easy and quiet time when sin comes in among us. The Lord says it needs to be addressed. And I’m telling you in our southern culture, and I’m part of it, born and raised, in our southern culture the thing we do is we just ignore everything and we just kind of play the part, right?

But the Lord says no, it needs to be addressed. Because the Lord wants inside of the church of God, he wants there to be accountability. He wants there to be a means to rebuke sin within the ranks and call people to repentance whenever they are out of the way, whenever they are wayward to the Lord. You see, if you or I know that there are spiritual men and spiritual women who, if they see you going astray, they see that we’re going off the deep end or we’re in sin in some way, and I know and you know that they are going to call you out on the floor.

That’s a strong deterrent. But what we do is we short circuit that deterrent when we say we’re not going to say anything to anybody because we don’t want to embarrass anybody. Well the deterrent goes out the window. The Lord wants the church of God to be pure. And this is one way he accomplishes that. He uses us to do that. We’re going to get to 1 Corinthians 5 in just a minute.

The second person I want you to see in verse 15 is not the person who is the sinner, but the person who has been sinned against. In fact, this verse is directed at that person. In fact, verse 15, moreover, if thy brother shall trespass against thee, go and tell him. That’s a command to the one who has been hurt. Well, I don’t have to do that. They ought to come to me.

I agree. But it could be that they’re unaware that they have harmed you and what they’ve done. But it also could be that they’re avoiding it. And so the Lord puts the responsibility on the person who has been sinned against to go and tell them and to address the matter. Yes, they should come to me. But I mean, I know you’ve heard it. I didn’t do anything wrong.

They ought to come to me. They should. But even if they don’t, the duty in this verse is upon the one who has been sinned against. Now to the one who has been sinned against, this method that the Lord describes here, which I admit is not easy, it is not fun, but this method provides a way to avoid anger and bitterness when a person has been hurt by the sin of another.

Because what we do is we close it in. Someone hurts us and sins against us. Maybe they lose their temper at us or maybe they say an unkind thing or something far more serious than that, which is primarily what we’re talking about here. But the principles apply and we hold it in and we stew on it and it makes us angry and we mull over it. And before we know it, we are hot.

And so the Lord provides a relief valve. Look if you would at Leviticus if you would. We’ll come back to Matthew in just a minute. Leviticus chapter 19. Leviticus 19 verse number 16.

Now just to speak honestly, this is true of me. I’m sure it’s true of you. We live in the same life together. We have the same tendencies generally speaking. When someone does us wrong, when someone harms us, what is our tendency? Our tendency is to bury it because that’s the easiest path to avoid the problem. And I agree. I agree. But we don’t like to go through the unpleasantness of what we read in Matthew 18.

That’s why to be honest with you, Matthew 18 is not very often practiced. But the result of that is bitterness when we bury it. Anger that’s not dealt with turns into bitterness. But there are other times to speak frankly that we avoid the Matthew 18 conversation because we don’t want reconciliation. We don’t want to be right with another. That’s a thing too. Look at Vigas 19 verse 16.

Listen to that. Not suffer sin upon him. You know what that means? That means by going to him and rebuking him, which is what we’re reading in Matthew 18, you’re actually stepping between him and his sin. You’re standing in the gap for him. Thou shalt not avenge, verse 18, nor bear any grudge against the children of thy people, but thou shalt love thy neighbor as thyself. In these three verses, think of the things that are connected together.

What do we have connected here? There’s an association between tail bearing, between hatred, and of course rebuking another’s sin, which is what Matthew 18 is about, between bearing a grudge and love. They’re all kind of mashed in together into these three verses. You know why? Because they’re all related. One of the easiest things we can do if someone sins against us is to tell other people. That directly contradicts Matthew 18, and yet it’s listed right here.

One of the easiest things we can do when someone sins against us is bury it and hold a grudge. That’s directly contradicted in Matthew 18, and it’s also listed here. We have hatred and a grudge. Those things come as a result of not doing what the Lord says here. Look at verse number 18 at the very end, and we’re getting to the real crux. Thou shalt in any wise love thy neighbor, rebuke thy neighbor, and not suffer sin upon them.

Verse 18, thou shalt not avenge nor bear any grudge against the children of thy people, but thou shalt love thy neighbor as thyself. You see, the Lord frames all of this in love. So Matthew 18, why do we go to the person who has sinned against us? We go out of love. We go out of love. Now regarding love, you think, well, I don’t know if that’s, it doesn’t really feel like love.

It feels very unpleasant. It feels like a flogging. Psalm 141 verse 5, let the righteous smite me. It shall be a kindness. And let him reprove me. It shall be an excellent oil, which shall not break my head, for yet my prayer also shall be in their calamities. That’s the hard part. So sometimes, sometimes some of you have been in situations where someone has approached you, thankfully, when they had an issue.

Maybe you sinned against them. Maybe you didn’t know it. Maybe you did know it. And they approached you. And they did the hard thing. And it took you by surprise. You had no idea that what you had done had hurt them. Is this our attitude when someone comes to us? It hurts, but I know it comes of love. That’s the kind of reproof we need. And that speaks to our motive, which we’ll get to in a second.

So Proverbs 27.5 says this, open rebuke is better than secret love. Faithful are the wounds of a friend, but the kisses of an enemy are deceitful. Faithful are the wounds of a friend. So the way the Lord views this Matthew 18 conversation is not the way we view it. He views it as a matter of love. You see, love does not ignore another Christian’s sin just to keep the peace.

Love recognizes that a sin is destructive and deadly to the person who commits it, the trespasser. And it’s deadly and destructive to that person. Thou shalt love thy neighbor as thyself, verse 18, and to everyone around them. That’s why they go to them. And this gets to the real crux of it. Go back to Matthew 18, if you will. I want you to see it clearly. Matthew 18, look at verse 15.

Moreover if thy brother shall trespass against thee, go and tell him his fault between thee and him alone. If he shall hear thee, thou hast gained thy brother. You know what the end of that verse gives us? It gives us the motivation. It gives us the goal. This verse reveals, the end of this verse, thou hast gained thy brother, reveals the desire of the one who was sinned against.

This is the goal. This is the hope. The hope is that when we go to that person who has sinned against us, and again, this is talking about primarily serious matters, but even lesser matters. When we go to that person and we tell them their fault, like the Bible says, it’s not about venting. It’s not about getting something off our chest, putting them in their place, setting them straight.

That’s not what it’s about at all. If that is the motivation, this is off the rails. And you know what will happen? It will not be effective. Reconciliation will not happen. The motivation is, if you go to that person and you tell them, the hope is that you gain your brother back, that you’re made at one again. That’s the desire. Galatians 6, 1, Brethren, if a man be overtaken in a fault, ye which are spiritual, restore such in one in the spirit of meekness, considering thyself, lest thou also be tempted.

Going to another person to give them a piece of your mind, set them in their place, that’s not the spirit of meekness. And it’s also not designed for reconciliation. The Lord not only tells us what to do, but the spirit in which to do it. If this happens to you and you go to a person, really there ought to be tears in your heart, if not in your eye also.

This is a sincere desire to be set it right. The motivation is so, so important. This is also why when there’s a problem like this, we go to that person, which is what verse 15 says. We go to that person and not another person because reconciliation is the desire. I notice in verse 15 once again he says this, tell him his fault between thee and him, what does it say?

Alone. Alone. One on one. Proverbs 25 verse 9 says this, debate thy cause with thy neighbor himself and discover not a secret to another. There’s nothing in the world that says when someone hurts us or sins against us that we have to tell anybody else. There’s nowhere in scripture that says that you need a place to vent. Because you might do harm to that person who is receiving your venting.

Be careful of that. There might be unintentional harm beyond the legitimate issue before us. And what’s more is it says alone. You see dealing with these matters in a way other than the scripture prescribes, that is in a way that’s public or around others, runs the risk of shaming them. And when you shame a person in public or among other people, it actually is counterproductive to reconciliation.

Because the moment you shame someone, now not only do they have to deal with the actual sin involved, but they have the additional stumbling block of their pride. Now they got to, there’s this ego that wells up in them where they have to look the part, they have to maintain appearances because we’ve shamed them in front of other people. And that is actually a stumbling block to reconciliation.

It makes it more difficult. This is why the Lord says, go to the person alone. We don’t want to tempt the person with whom we’re trying to reconcile. We don’t want to tempt them to not humble themselves when we reprove them. But also when we shame someone, we’re demonstrating that reconciliation is not really our goal. So if we’re going to have this conversation that verse 15 describes, it’s a conversation that we’re probably going to have to plan in advance, right?

Find a time to be private and have that tough conversation. It’s a conversation that I guarantee if you do it, if we do it in the right spirit, it’ll be something you pray about a lot. Lord, please, anything else. Have you ever had that happen? Lord, anything else besides this? It’s no fun at all. Verse 16. But if he will not hear thee, then take with thee one or two more that in the mouth of two or three witnesses every word may be established.

The problem of misrepresentation. When you talk about a problem between two people, misrepresentation is always an issue. This is why witnesses are needed. There’s no question. No matter if one person says one and one person says another, witnesses who are disengaged, not a part of the matter, can look at it and say, no, this is what was said and this is how it was said. But to be a witness, the witness has to be a person who is spiritually minded enough to call a spade a spade without any partiality.

And he must be a man or a woman who always sides with the Lord in all matters, no matter who’s involved. And so you see this progression. One on one, verse 15. One or two more, verse 16. Notice the circle is widening. The circle of people who are involved in this is widening. And then verse 17, you have the worst case scenario. This is not what anybody wants.

And it is the case where it has to be brought before all the people of God to judge. And this is, verse 17 is the reason why I think the Lord’s primary aim is not just personal quibbles between people, but serious matters of sin because 1 Corinthians actually discusses that. In fact, let’s look at verse 17, then go to 1 Corinthians 5. Verse 17, and if he shall neglect to hear them, tell it unto the church.

But if he neglect to hear the church, let him be unto thee as a heathen man and a publican. Here’s what this is. To treat a man as a heathen and a publican, we don’t allow heathen and publicans to be part of the church. We say that’s mean. Well, you’ve got to be saved and baptized to be part of the church. You’ve got to be a believer.

And so the idea is, if you’re treating him as an unbeliever, he can no longer be part of the fellowship. But that doesn’t mean you mistreat the person. Treating a man as a heathen and a publican, which is to say treating him as an unbeliever, doesn’t mean you mistreat him. What it means is, just like you would with an unbeliever, you call this person to repentance. Because again, the goal is reconciliation, restoration.

That’s the heart. Go if you would to 1 Corinthians chapter number 5. 1 Corinthians 5, and this is where we’ll finish this morning. 1 Corinthians chapter 5. What 1 Corinthians 5 is, is a real life, practical application of Matthew 18. This is an instance that actually happened in a local church. And it is handled exactly as Matthew 18 describes. 1 Corinthians 5 verse 1. It is reported commonly that there is fornication among you, and such fornication as is not so much as named among the Gentiles, that one should have his father’s wife.

This is wickedness. This is Matthew 18 trespasses. Would you agree? For sure. You see, you are puffed up, and have not rather mourned that he that hath done this deed might be taken away from you. First, do you see the spirit? Verse 2, do you see the spirit? Brothers and sisters, do you see the spirit? There’s a sin between brothers and sisters in Christ. What’s the spirit?

Mourning. Not anger, mourning. Not getting even, mourning. See, that’s a good test if our heart is in the right place. Verse 3. Verily I as absent in body, but present in spirit, have judged already, as though I were present concerning him that hath so done this deed. In the name of our Lord Jesus Christ, when ye are gathered together, this is the church now. Remember, Jesus said where two or three are gathered together in Matthew 18.

The binding and loosing, we already talked about that. In the church setting, this is the power of the corporate decision of the church regarding this man’s sin. In the name of our Lord Jesus Christ, when ye are gathered together, and my spirit with the power of our Lord Jesus Christ, to deliver such in one unto Satan for the destruction of the flesh, that the spirit may be saved in the day of the Lord Jesus.

The motivation is, again, verse 5. Now look at verse 6. Your glorying is not good. Know ye not that a little leaven leaveneth the whole lump? He’s using this parable here. What is he saying? A little leaven leaveneth the lump. Now I know we use that all the time. It’s an idiom. It’s a parable we say all the time, right? A little leaven leaveneth the lump. But in this chapter, what is the leaven talking about?

It’s talking about this fornicator who has had a relationship with his father’s wife. See if that goes unopposed in a church, if Matthew 18 is not followed, that leaven remains and it leavens the lump. See, sin like this in a church will leaven the whole. This is one of the reasons Matthew 18 says what it says. The Lord says, go and tell him his fault. That accountability is designed to purify the body, right?

Look what it says in the next verse. He says, purge out therefore the old leaven, that ye may be a new lump. Get rid of that. That sin, either through repentance or disfellowship, as ye are unleavened, for even Christ our Passover is sacrificed for us. Therefore let us keep the feast, not with old leaven, neither with the leaven of malice and wickedness, but with the unleavened bread of sincerity and truth.

I wrote unto you in an epistle not to company with fornicators. Now notice what it says, verse 10. I mean, just pause for a second. Not to company. What does that mean, hang out with, spend time with? Fornicators. This world is absolutely chock full, top to bottom with fornicators. They are everywhere. Everywhere. We’re not talking about those. Verse 10. Yet not altogether with the fornicators of this world, or with the covetous, or extortioners, or with idolaters.

For then must ye needs go out of the world. In other words, where are you going to go to get away from people like this in this world? They’re everywhere. This is the world. But verse 11. But now I have written unto you not to keep company. If any man that is called a brother, there’s that word again, Matthew 18, Matthew 5, brother. If any man that is called a brother be a fornicator, or a covetous, or an idolater, or a railler, or a drunkard, or an extortioner, with such in one, no, not to eat.

That’s pretty strict. Notice the sins here. These aren’t personal quibbles. These are transgressions. Four, verse 12. What have I to do to judge them also that are without? Do not ye judge them that are within, but them that are without. So much for this judge not. The Lord’s saying, we’re not judging them. We’re judging inside here. But them that are without, God judgeth. Therefore put away from among yourselves that wicked person.

Sadly, in this case, this man was not reconcilable. He did not hear the church, and so he had to be disfellowshipped. And it’s the responsibility of the people of God to say, no, we’re not going to hang around him. This is an odd Sunday morning service message, is it not? I’m thankful, and I’m sure you are too, that in a church, you’ve only seen this practice in Matthew 18 a few times, right?

I’ve only ever seen it done a few times. We had to do it one time in Cambodia with a drunken lady. But it’s not something you ever want to do. principles that we have studied, even if it doesn’t involve things of that magnitude, apply to every relationship that we might have. It doesn’t make these questions easy, but it does give us the spirit and the kind of blueprint to deal with these issues in such a way that we have the highest chance for reconciliation and unity and oneness with our brother and sister, because that’s the goal.

I just want to ask a question. In your life, is there anybody that you can think of, and I’m honestly asking myself the same question, is there anybody in your life that the principles of Matthew 18, you need to apply those to that person, and you need to approach that person about the matter in the spirit of reconciliation. That’s what the Lord tells us to do. I’m not going to stand here and tell you that it’s going to turn out the way you hope.

We know this world is far more mucky than that, but really that’s kind of secondary. It’s what you want, but really it’s about doing what the Lord wants us to do and dealing with it in a biblical way, sometimes a difficult way, but the biblical way, so that you can say, I grieve, I mourn over this situation, assuming it doesn’t go the right way that you want it to, but you can say, I have done everything in my power to be right with that person.

Just like with this, we have done everything in our power to get that person to repent, so that they can be restored into the fellowship. Is there anybody like that in your life that you need to approach? Let’s pray together.