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| To deliver such an one unto Satan... |
[23/07/2022 14:12]
Sir, I have a couple of questions on 1 Corinthians 5.
v2
And ye are puffed up, and have not rather mourned, that he that hath done this
deed might be taken away from among you.
Q1. What is meant by
"he that hath done this deed might be taken away from among you"?
v3
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,
Q2. What had Apostle
Paul judged already?
v5
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.
Q3. If this refers to
apostolic authority only, no longer relevant to us, then what MUST the church
do?
Appreciate your
response.
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[23/07/2022 17:12]
Q1. What is meant by
"he that hath done this deed might be taken away from among you."
Apostle Paul
expresses his disgust and disappointment concerning the situation:
- they are puffed up
about the hideous sin; they likely boast of their openness and progressiveness,
e.g. “we are loving, we aren’t censorious, we respect people’s private life,
blah, blah, blah.”
- they have not
mourned for such grievous sin in their midst, and do the needful, "that he
that hath done this deed might be taken away from among you."
- they have not
exercised the authority, i.e. power to act; Christ has vested in the church the authority to
deal with such matters, to remove an unrepentant member from the church body;
they did not excommunicate such an unrepentant sinner. Excommunication is the
responsibility and prerogative of the church, not any one individual, not even
apostle Paul. So, even the Apostle Paul needed to instruct the church to do the
excommunication.
Q2. What had Apostle Paul judged already?
“For I verily… have
judged already… concerning him that hath so done this deed”
– Apostle Paul, in
the name of our Lord Jesus Christ, has already exercised his apostolic
authority on the matter; he has executed his judgment upon the man; this is a
sharp slap in the face of the church for their inaction against, and tolerance
of the hideous deed.
What is the judgment Apostle Paul has executed? What’s the basis of Paul apostolic authority? It is, “in the name of our Lord Jesus Christ” – verse 5.
1Co 5:4 “In the name of our Lord Jesus Christ, when ye are gathered together, and my spirit, with the power of our Lord Jesus Christ,
Verse 4 has two
distinct parts:
- “For I verily…
have judged already… 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.”
- “In the name of our
Lord Jesus Christ” is related to what the Apostle Paul has already done;
- “in the power of our
Lord Jesus Christ” is related to what the church MUST do: administer
excommunication, when they are gathered together.
Apostle Paul exercised his apostolic authority on the matter, and instructed the church to perform her duty: "he that hath done this deed might be taken away from among you." No further need for prayers and seeking God’s will
Q3. If this refers to apostolic authority only, no longer relevant to us then what MUST the church do?
“No longer relevant” implies it was relevant before! It never was in the church’s power to execute such a judgment, i.e. “to deliver such an one unto Satan for the destruction of the flesh…”
It’s the standing duty of the church to execute the power of our Lord Jesus Christ vested in the church to remove such a one from the fellowship and communion of the church, excommunicate. “… but if he neglect to hear the church, let him be unto thee as an heathen man and a publican.” Mt 18:17b
The privileges of
Apostolic authority belong to the Apostles alone; the privileges of church
power, vested by Christ alone in each local church, belong to the church
alone; each church is held responsible by her Lord Jesus Christ to administer
that vested power according to the mind of Christ. ( We have touched on this
somewhat in our study on 1689.26 on “Concerning the Church.”
Thank you for these excellent questions.
Keep asking; it will
help all of us to learn and know the Scriptures better.
