July 13, 2006
Dismembered
A few days ago our elders informed the church they had removed a husband and wife from membership for the ‘sin of dissension’. I’ve seen church discipline applied, but have never seen a situation go to the degree of disfellowship. It’s easy to be blasé about a phrase in Scripture until we need it or we are forced to use it. As I try to wrap my head around, “treat him as you would a pagan or a tax collector” (Matt 18:15-17 NIV), I recall Jesus eating and having fellowship with tax collectors. Adding to my dilemma is the passage from 1 Cor 12:21, “The eye cannot say to the hand, ‘I don’t need you!’ And the head cannot say to the feet, ‘I don’t need you!’”. I’m having visions of body parts littering the church landscape.
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Gail;
----Thank you. You have been a sister of great strength standing by Char and I. So have so many others who have written and phoned to tell us that they feel the leaders of the church overstepped their God given authority. One young lady said that our communication to the church and their communication to the church stood like day and night beside each other. I just pray and hope that the people who are at that church read again both of those communications and search with sincere hearts for the truth written in both.
----As I told the leaders of the church on the evening of June 28, "Dissension against division may well be the workings of peace."
I do not consider for a moment any of what I have done the last six years to have been done for destruction, but for edification through the healing of division. Our hearts are clean in that we have made a sincere and bold call against the practices of favoritism in that piece of His body.
----I chuckled Friday when I arrived at home from work. Char had inserted the elders' letter in an envelope with a stick figure drawn on the front. Each of this poor figure's arms and legs were detached a slight distance from its stick body. Boldly written beside it: "Help! Dismembered!"
We are OK indeed! Because we know the Word, we practise the Word, and we have seen the spiritual implications within the body life at that church, and many others like it.
----God bless that church and its leaders (He will), God bless those who have given us reassurance, and God bless you, Gail.
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