Lesson 4—Expel The Immoral Brother

I Corinthians 5:1-13

Introduction

“Before the coming of European culture to the Western Hemisphere, the Eskimos lived in tightly knit clans. They had no prisons and no death penalty for murderers. Eskimos found guilty of willfully taking the life of another were simply excluded from the fellowship of the tribe. They were told that from that day their names would never be mentioned again among the clan. They would not be received into other igloos nor their existence acknowledged in any way. The enormity of this punishment was so dreadful that it robbed their lives of all meaning. Rather than face the bleak prospect of solitary life in the Arctic, the condemned ones would usually take their own lives. Consequently, serious crime was rare among Eskimos.” Eldred Echols, from his book, The Most Excellent Way.
Much like the Eskimo culture, the synagogue was at the center of the early Jewish Christian’s life. The synagogue represented a place to worship, a home base for social activities, a place where children and adults were educated, the court system, and, to some extent, a center for commerce. To be cut off from something that was such a vital part of your life was serious business.

We as a church have lost the identity that the early church had. Disfellowship seldom occurs and when it does it has often resulted in litigation that has cast Christ’s Church in a bad light. Our hesitancy comes from our struggle with, like the Corinthian Church, tolerating and purging flagrant sin from the Body (Church).

Contextual Overview

In Chapters 1-4, Paul focuses on divisions within the church that had started as a result of spiritual immaturity. The Corinthians prided themselves on the religious party they belonged to (i.e. Paulines, Cephasites, Apollosers). Divisions arose within the Corinthian Church as a result of this. Paul builds the case that their jealousies and strife, indications of their unwillingness to live by the Spirit, were making a mockery of the Lordship of Christ. He further states that it is God who is the lifeblood of the Church in which they were members. He encourages them to examine the spiritual foundation (dependence on God) they are building and the holy Temple (their bodies) they are placing on that foundation. He explains his and other apostle’s mission to become fools for Christ’s sake and admonishes the Corinthians to do likewise. With these thoughts in mind Paul now turns his attention to another weakness within the congregation, the tolerance of immorality.

Consider these possibilities for arrogance in the Corinthian Church:
• The Corinthian Church may be proud of this man’s sin.
(II Peter 2 & Jude)
• The Corinthians may be puffed up and proud, not because of this man’s sin, but because of the “loving way in which they deal with him.”
• The Corinthians may be proud and arrogant, not because of this sin or their response to it, but in spite of this sin.

Outline

Verses 1-5 - Paul expresses shock and dismay about the immorality, particularly an incident of sexual immorality, taking place within the Corinthian Church. He is deeply disturbed by their arrogance regarding this situation and lack of action. He is saddened that they are not mourning over this sin and instructs them to put him out and even hand the guilty party over to Satan.

What are possible meanings of:
“Deliver this man to Satan for the destruction of the flesh, that his spirit may be saved in the day of the Lord.”

Verses 6-8 - Paul relates unchecked sin to leaven (see Exodus 12:15) which was to be thrown out prior to the spiritual Passover for which Christ was the sacrificial lamb. Paul further encourages the brethren to keep the Festival by striving to remain pure by keeping malice and wickedness (yeast) from among them.

Verses 9-13 - Paul again states that the Corinthians should not associate with sexually immoral people who call themselves brothers. He expands his parameters to include those within the church who claim to be Christians but are greedy, idolaters, slanderer, drunkards and swindlers. He prescribes that judgment, action in dealing with flagrant sin within the church, is a necessity and emphatically states, “Expel the wicked man from among you.”

Related Scriptures:
Leviticus 18:8; 20:11-13, 20; Deut. 27:23; Matthew 18:15-17; Romans 16:17; Galatians 6:1-2; II Thessalonians 3:6

Discussion Questions
1. Have you ever known someone who has been disfellowshipped? What were the circumstances?
2. In what ways is disfellowship today different than in the early church?
3. Who is responsible for Church discipline?
4. According to this passage (vv. 1; 9-11) what sins can result in being expelled?
5. How can “expelling the immoral brother” be an act of love?
6. What does it mean to “deliver such a one to Satan for the destruction of the flesh”? How does this relate to I Cor. 4:3-5?
7. In practical terms what steps should we take to “not associate with” an immoral brother and “not eat with such a person”?
8. How does this passage say we should act toward those who are immoral outside our fellowship? Inside?
9. Why don’t we disfellowship more today?
10. How can Pleasant Valley develop a closer relationship within the family so that we share, to a greater degree, the fellowship which the early Christians enjoyed?

References:
Eldred Echols, The Most Excellent Way, Chapter 4

Warren W. Wiersbe, Be Wise

Lyman Coleman and Richard Peace, I Corinthians from the Mastering the Basics Series, pp. 36-39.

Bob Deffinbaugh, Church Discipline: Taking Sin Seriously (I Cor. 5:1-13), Biblical Studies Press. 1999

-James Arbuckle



(James Arbuckle grew up in West Texas and graduated from Abilene Christian University with a BA in Biblical Studies. He later received a BS degree in Civil Engineering from Texas Tech University. He currently serves as the Office Manager for Carter & Burgess, Inc., an engineering firm in Little Rock, AR where he has been for the past 9 years. James and his wife of 19 years, Melinda, have four children, James Jr., Kathryn, Scott, and Sarah. They’ve attended Pleasant Valley since 1994. He co-teaches the 6th grade Bible class and substitutes in adult classes.)