Holiness is the radiant heart of the Church—the fruit of her union with Christ and the pledge of her future perfection. Yet, like unity and catholicity, it is only imperfectly realized in time. The Church on earth is the Church militant, still waging war against sin within and without, still advancing toward that spotless Bride whom the returning Lord shall present in glory. Church discipline is the means by which this sanctifying progress is guarded and nourished, as the body of Christ seeks to reflect the holiness of its Head.
The Necessity of Discipline
Neither Christ’s apostles nor their earliest churches claimed sinless purity. Paul and John both confess their need for continued cleansing (cf. 1 John 1:8), and the Epistles are replete with admonitions, reproofs, and pastoral grief over the stubbornness of believers.
The Galatian churches flirted with legalism, forsaking gospel liberty for Mosaic bondage. Corinth tolerated divisive cliques, idolatrous associations, flagrant sexual sin, and sacrilegious abuses of the Lord’s Table. The Asian churches, as addressed in Revelation, faced doctrinal compromise, moral laxity, and spiritual torpor (Rev. 2–3).
Such imperfections demanded not indifference but sanctifying discipline. The Church’s call to holiness requires vigilance—both for her own witness and for the restoration of the fallen.
The Dual Aim of Discipline
Church discipline serves two essential purposes:
- Purification of the body: A public expression that sin must not be allowed to fester within the community called to reflect God’s holiness.
- Restoration of the sinner: A redemptive act that aims at repentance, not retribution. Even excommunication is exercised for the soul’s salvation, not its condemnation.
This is captured in Paul’s grave but hopeful verdict: to deliver the erring member “to Satan for the destruction of the flesh, that the spirit may be saved in the day of the Lord Jesus” (1 Cor. 5:5).
The Process of Discipline
The New Testament outlines a graduated pattern of discipline, reflecting both pastoral patience and moral seriousness:
- Private admonition: A one-on-one call to repentance (Matt. 18:15).
- Public correction: If the offender refuses private reproof, the matter is brought to witnesses or the church (Matt. 18:16–17).
- Excommunication: As a last resort, the unrepentant are excluded from the fellowship and sacraments of the Church. This is not a permanent ban, but a spiritual quarantine designed to awaken repentance.
Upon repentance, the Church is urged to restore the penitent with love and humility (2 Cor. 2:5–10), lest sorrow overwhelm them.
Authority and Participation
Church discipline is a communal act. While apostles might pronounce judgment, they did so in harmony with the congregation. Paul insists that his judgment concerning the incestuous man at Corinth was shared in spirit with the whole church assembled in the name and power of the Lord (1 Cor. 5:3–5).
Our Lord himself speaks of the Church as a judicial assembly (Matt. 18:17). As the synagogue had its council of elders (presbyters), so the local Christian congregation inherited that role—charged with both pastoral and disciplinary authority.
Examples from the Apostolic Church
Two prominent cases illuminate the seriousness and mercy of discipline in apostolic times:
- Ananias and Sapphira: In a chilling act of divine judgment, Peter confronts their deceit regarding a financial offering. They are struck dead—not by the apostle, but by the Holy Spirit—for lying to God and the Church in its earliest days (Acts 5:1–10).
- The Corinthian adulterer: Paul excommunicates a man guilty of incest (1 Cor. 5:1). Yet in a subsequent letter, he urges the Church to forgive and comfort the penitent, lest he be “swallowed up with excessive sorrow” (2 Cor. 2:6–7).
These narratives reflect both the fear and the hope of discipline: the holiness of the Church must not be trampled, yet the heart of Christ still beats to redeem the broken.
Discipline and the Goal of Holiness
Ultimately, discipline is not a system of punishments but a ministry of healing. It aims not merely to silence sin but to awaken righteousness, not to isolate but to reconcile. The Church disciplines as Christ disciplines: “Those whom I love, I rebuke and chasten” (Rev. 3:19).
Through this process, the Church moves ever closer to her calling—“a glorious Church, not having spot or wrinkle… but holy and without blemish” (Eph. 5:27).
