Church Discipline

Jesus Christ administers discipline in the Church of Heaven, so He is solely responsible to administer discipline in a local congregation. Jesus explained how He will reveal His will to a church regarding disputes and discipline in Matt 18:15-18, but most churches reject the means by which He has chosen to resolve disciplinary matters. Since members live as equals in the Church, (see article Church Life) congregational agreement is the means by which the Lord exercises discipline in a local church. Situations involving misconduct and disagreement might seem difficult to resolve in a church where every member lives as an equal with every other member, but such is not the case. The means to resolve these issues is remarkably simple, and the formula Jesus taught to deal with such matters is an essential part of the means God uses to separate true believers from those who pretend to believe in a congregation. Jesus Himself outlined the manner in which any disagreement can be resolved in a congregation. His instruction emphasizes the personal responsibility each member has toward the other members of the church.

"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. 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. 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 an heathen man and a publican." (Matt 18:15-17)

The hierarchical form of government employed in every organized church overrides Jesus’ instruction, and members usually tattle their grievances to the pastor rather than confronting offenders personally and privately. If the pastor is unable to resolve the dispute, the matter may be sent up the chain of command until it finally reaches the denominational head, who makes a final decision on the matter. Thus, the problem is frequently resolved by a church administrator who has no personal knowledge about the dispute and no personal relationship with the individuals involved in the dispute. In the congregations of the Church of Heaven, however, every matter is resolved by those involved or by members who know those involved. Ultimately, the whole congregation is given first-hand testimony regarding the circumstances of the offense.

Jesus’ instruction is specifically tailored for churches where there are no human authorities to judge the members or to make decisions regarding members’ disputes. The first step initially protects the privacy of the offender, because the offender and the one offended must meet together alone in an attempt to resolve the matter. If the offended individual receives an apology or an explanation about why the perceived conduct might be justified, the matter may be simply resolved, and the unity of the church is restored. If no resolution comes out of the initial meeting, the offended party must choose one or two other members to accompany him to a second semi-private meeting, where the matter is discussed with the group. If the additional pressure of these members brings resolution to the dispute, the unity of the church is restored. However, if the group of members fails to resolve the matter, the dispute must be brought before the whole congregation in assembly.

This third step in the process is the point at which organized churches diverge from faithful churches. In organized churches Jesus’ statement, “tell it unto the church,” is interpreted to mean “tell it to the authorities in the church,” but Jesus did not instruct the member to tell it to the authorities, because no authorities exist in local congregations of the Church of Heaven. There are no human judges to resolve matters in faithful congregations. The Lord’s instruction is clear and specific. He said, tell it to the CHURCH—the whole congregation—the entire body of assembled believers. When the small group fails to resolve the matter, the whole congregation must hear the matter, and each of the two individuals involved in the dispute must personally explain his or her side of the story to the entire assembled church.

At this point a number of scenarios could play out, but, if the whole congregation in assembly agrees that an offense has been committed and the offender fails to acknowledge the sin, the offender must be considered to be a heathen and a publican. Since unbelievers are excluded from fellowship in a faithful congregation, the offending member must be removed from the church, and the members may not associate or eat a meal with the offender. (1 Cor 5:11-13) Every believer is required to acknowledge sin as soon as he or she becomes aware of the sin. Those who refuse to acknowledge any sin, particularly in the face of congregational agreement and rebuke, must be removed from the church.

The epistle to the Corinthians preserves an example of proper disfellowship, so churches can know how to remove members from fellowship who are practicing a certain sin. Paul was not present in Corinth at the time, but he had received word from other church members that a man was, at the very least, committing fornication, and, more likely, living with his step-mother. Paul recognized that the man needed to be removed from the church and gave the following instruction to the church regarding the sinner:

"For I verily, 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, and my spirit, with the power of our Lord Jesus Christ, To deliver such an one unto Satan for the destruction of the flesh, that the spirit may be saved in the day of the Lord Jesus." (1 Cor 5:3-5)

Paul was a leader in the church, but he was not an authority. Paul did not say, I command you to remove this man from fellowship. He did not say, By my authority, remove this man from fellowship. On the contrary, Paul associated himself together with the congregation, being “present in spirit,” and instructed the congregation to act as a body to remove the man from fellowship. Paul did not act unilaterally but included himself with the church and told the church to act in the name (by the authority) of Jesus Christ, not by the authority of Paul. When the assembled members of the church (together with Paul's spirit) agreed that the man was sinning, their agreement was evidence that the Lord had brought the members to agreement. A church must be in agreement and act by the authority of Jesus Christ to remove any member from the church. If there is any doubt, Paul’s final statement in this chapter clarifies it. He used a present imperative Greek verb in the second person plural form to state that “ye” (the whole congregation) must act to remove the man from fellowship.

“Therefore put [ye] away from among yourselves that wicked person.”

(1 Cor 5:13)

Paul also outlined the responsibilities of the remaining members in respect to the disfellowshipped individual. The members could no longer have any association with the offending member.

"But now I have written unto you not to keep company, if any man that is called a brother be a fornicator, or covetous, or an idolater, or a railer, or a drunkard, or an extortioner; with such an one no not to eat." (v. 11)

Paul's instruction provides the strongest punishment possible in situations where there are no authorities to incarcerate or otherwise punish an offender. Members could not keep company with the man, and members could not even share a meal with man. Paul's instructions specifically preclude sharing communion with the man. Paul advised this complete social rejection by the members of the church in order to provoke repentance from the sinner. In this particular case the remedy bore good fruit, because the man later broke off his relationship with his step-mother, repented of his sin and was returned to membership in good standing. (2 Cor 2:1-8)

Discipline in the Church of Heaven is administered by Jesus Christ through the congregation, not by the unilateral judgment of a church authority. When the congregation has agreed in assembly that a member has become a heathen and a publican, the judgment of the Lord is evident in the church, and the members must honor the Lord’s judgment by rejecting the member from fellowship and refusing to associate with the member in any way. These instructions regarding dispute resolution assure that a favorable decision cannot be bought with money or by a member’s personal influence with the pastor. Politics and favoritism is dead in the Church of Heaven.