Discipline and Restoration

Let's pray.

Lord, we come to you hungry.

We come to you confessing our need to be nourished by your word.

We come realizing we haven't been in your word much this last week or month or year.

So we're grateful to be here together with all your people, to be nourished together.

So Lord, I ask that you would forgive the sins of the speaker this morning.

I ask that you would work through his weakness, that you, Lord, would shine, that we would see Jesus and Jesus alone.

And this we ask, Lord, in his name.

Amen.

So we made it.

We made it to the last chapter of 2 Corinthians.

It wasn't guaranteed that we'd finish this sermon series.

You know, we did a sermon series on the seven deadly sins once, and we only did six.

We also did a sermon series on every verse of Psalm 23 and only made it through verse 5.

The summer has a thing with our sermon series, but this one survived.

We're in chapter 13, and I'm really excited.

Before we begin, though, I'd like to take some time to reflect.

Let's take a moment of silence to meditate.

In the middle of this chapter of 13 of 2 Corinthians, in verse 5, you heard Caleb read,

Do you not realize that Christ Jesus is in you?

So I'd like you to think about that.

Ask yourself, or imagine Paul, the Apostle Paul, asking that of you, of the Church of the Advent.

Do you not realize that Christ Jesus is in you?

So take a moment to reflect on that.

Now reflect on this.

If Jesus is in you, how is that evident to those around you?

If Jesus is in you, how evident is that to those around you?

I'm going to come back to address that question and perhaps some of the answers that might be ringing around our minds.

In this final chapter of 2 Corinthians, we see the coming together of a couple different threads in this letter.

So before we look at this closing chapter, I'd like to do a review of the whole letter.

I'd like us to walk away with a good understanding of what Paul is saying in this letter to the Corinthians.

Now in Acts 18, we read how Paul founded the church in Corinth.

Now after Paul leaves, he gets word that everything in the church in Corinth has gone pear-shaped,

which prompts him to write, we believe, two letters,

the first of which is lost to us,

the second of which is the book of 1 Corinthians.

That letter isn't received well by some in the church,

and they reject Paul and his authority.

So then Paul returns to Corinth,

and later he would call this return to the city of Corinth and to the church there,

the painful visit.

And then he followed up that visit with another letter that's been lost to us.

Many but not all in the church respond well to that letter and to his visit.

And so Paul writes a fourth letter,

and that's the letter of 2 Corinthians.

He writes them that they were grieved into repenting.

He writes to affirm his love for them.

In this letter, we learn that one of the reasons that Paul was originally rejected by the church,

and why several still reject him,

is that he did not match their idea of greatness.

Paul was humble in appearance.

He was poor.

He made his living through manual labor.

He was not a very dynamic public speaker, interestingly.

And the Corinthians were more attracted to some speakers,

some Christian speakers that came later.

These speakers were wealthier, eloquent.

They were more charismatic than Paul.

And to the minds of the Corinthians,

surely this means that the power of God is in these speakers.

Well, Paul makes it very clear that status is not indicative of God's power.

Quite the opposite, Paul's job was not to be impressive,

but to point to the one who is, and that is King Jesus.

So in 2 Corinthians, Paul then several,

he spends several chapters unpacking the paradox of the cross.

Christ's glory and his kingship were on display as he suffered and was executed on the cross.

The cross provided salvation and revealed God's character

and provided the pattern for Christian living,

which too is paradoxical.

We live through dying.

He then challenges the Corinthian church on another matter.

Paul had been raising funds for the church in Jerusalem.

There was a famine there which had brought poverty to the Christians in Jerusalem.

But the church in Corinth had failed to save up enough to give to this offering.

So Paul cites this as another example of how the Corinthians were not getting the upside-down gospel.

Now, if the church understood that,

then surely they would give of their own wealth to help others in need.

Lastly, in 2 Corinthians, Paul defends himself.

Paul says,

You want a resume?

I'll give you a resume.

I'm a theological expert.

I'm a Pharisee, as a matter of fact.

I've met the risen Jesus.

I have actually been in his heavenly throne room.

Yet I don't brag about those things.

I boast in my weakness and my flaws.

Because when I am weak, then I am strong.

For Christ's power is made perfect in my weakness, in my humility, and in my poverty.

Paul tells the Corinthians that his own weakness and humility were demonstrations of his authority.

And so we come to chapter 13.

Paul has told them that he's coming for a third time.

He's warning them.

We read in chapter 12,

I fear that when I come again, I may have to mourn over many of those who sinned earlier

and have not repented of the impurity, sexual immorality, and sensuality that they have practiced.

And then we read in chapter 13, verse 3,

that there may still be some who resist his authority.

So some are being immoral.

Some are resisting his authority.

And so on this visit, he says he's not going to spare them.

He's talking about excommunication.

So I thought in looking at chapter 13,

that one of our goals like this morning

could be to walk away from here with an understanding of what excommunication is.

Because it's not something you hear from the pulpit very often, right?

But it's something that we actually do practice at Church of the Advent.

I think we should talk about it a bit

because some of us grew up in churches where that was practiced.

Some of us grew up in churches where it wasn't practiced.

And perhaps the word excommunication sounds like some kind of cultural relic from the medieval church.

Some of us didn't grow up in church at all.

And this is brand new to you.

And it sounds actually somewhat intolerant and even hateful.

So let's talk through it.

And then we're going to observe three things about excommunication

as Paul exercises it.

And then we're just going to wrap up our sermon series on 2 Corinthians.

Okay?

So let's first define excommunication.

And this sounds rather, I guess, scholastic.

I don't know.

Or heady.

But let's pray that God could use this in our lives and in our minds this morning.

One could say that excommunication is the final step of a process of discipline

undertaken to correct sin in the life of a church member,

ultimately resulting in the barring of a person from receiving communion.

It is not shunning.

Excommunication isn't canceling.

And the goal of excommunication is repentance and restoration of a person

to full fellowship with the church.

Now, the primary thing to note is that Jesus commanded us to practice this.

In chapter 18, he commanded his church to exercise discipline.

In Matthew chapter 18, which we heard Jeff read earlier,

Matthew 18 · chapter mention

he gives his 12 disciples, his church,

a series of steps to undertake should one sin against another.

So we're just going to walk through these steps, okay?

Okay, the first step, as we read in chapter 18, Adam, there we go.

The first step is to point out the offense to the offender, one-on-one.

This is why, for someone to approach me or Tommy, and this happens,

or another clergy, and they were to say,

hey, such and such person I've noticed is doing this thing or that thing,

and I think you should talk to them.

And our first response will always be,

well, have you approached them?

And a lot of the time we hear, no, no.

But this first step is important

because it's not the responsibility of the clergy

to monitor and check the behavior of everyone in the congregation, right?

It's the responsibility of the whole church

to encourage one another,

to rescue one another,

should someone fall into sin.

Now, the second step,

if the offender refuses to repent,

then the offended party is to approach the offender again,

this time with one or two witnesses.

It's interesting that both Jesus in Matthew 18

and Paul in 2 Corinthians 13,

quote Deuteronomy 19.15,

that a matter must be established

by the testimony of two or three witnesses.

Both Jesus and Paul are invoking a courtroom principle

from ancient Israel.

Matters in the church,

if they are to be handled in love,

are to be handled with due process.

And they must be handled orderly and fairly.

Now, you may find,

if you are in this process

and you bring with yourself one or two witnesses,

that those witnesses are going to see things that you don't see.

And perhaps blame is to be shared,

or perhaps that other person isn't in the wrong after all,

and that you're being too critical.

But if the witnesses agree with you,

and if the offender is still not repenting,

then Jesus says the third step would be

to bring it to the church.

In our context,

it would mean bringing it before those who are in authority,

which would be the rector, Tommy,

the other clergy,

acting in concert with our parish council,

and if necessary,

with a parish response team

to investigate serious charges.

The job of the parish response team

is to take the personal judgment and biases of the clergy

out of the equation

to do a fair investigation

and to present the clergy

with a dispassionate assessment of the facts.

Now, the facts indicate

that there's still unrepentant sin,

and if the offender remains unrepentant,

Jesus says to let him be to you

as a Gentile and a tax collector.

In other words,

treat him or her as if they weren't a Christian.

That is, the person is to be barred from this table.

Now, were this to happen at Advent,

the person would certainly still be welcome

and even encouraged to come every Sunday

to sit under the teaching,

to participate in the prayers.

It also doesn't mean shunning.

That's not what we're talking about.

We're still called to love this person,

which would mean sharing meals,

spending time with them,

engaging in an honest conversation with them,

though that conversation would

and probably should look and sound a bit different

as before.

But being barred from the table

is a serious thing.

Just as baptism and communion

are visible signs to us

that we are in union with God

and members of God's family,

barring from the table

is also a visible sign

that we are outside of God's family

and the state of our souls

is in jeopardy.

Now, that might feel like

a lot of power to be wielded by the church.

Yes.

Yes, it is.

And Jesus commands this.

He goes on in chapter 18,

Now, many of you are familiar

with that last verse, right?

But most of us have heard it

taken out of context.

Jesus doesn't mean that

whenever you gather for, like,

a Bible study or a prayer group

with two or three or more,

then I'm going to suddenly appear

as if I hadn't been there before.

Jesus is equally there

as He was when you were alone.

What Jesus is saying here

is that when you as a church

make decisions in regard to discipline,

I have your back.

From my throne in heaven

and through the Holy Spirit

that I have sent to guide you,

I'm going to ratify your decisions

when you exercise church discipline

in obedience to God's Word.

This is the first of three things

that I'd like to observe

about Paul's discussion

of discipline in the church in Corinth.

is that the means of church discipline

is Christ's resurrection power.

So the means of discipline

is Christ's power.

This resurrection power

is on display in acts of discipline

and judgment.

It's this power that Paul anticipates

will be on display

when he visits the Corinthians.

He says,

you seek proof of my authority.

Well, I've already demonstrated it

with my own suffering,

but now I'm going to come with discipline,

which is the very exercise of authority

that Jesus gave to His church

and is evidence of the risen Jesus

acting in power among His people.

The second thing to observe

in 2 Corinthians 13

is the motive of church discipline,

which is love.

The means of discipline is God's power.

The motive of discipline is love.

Paul writes in chapter 2 of 2 Corinthians,

for I wrote to you out of much affliction

and anguish of heart

and with many tears,

not to cause you pain,

but to let you know the abundant love

that I have for you.

This love for individuals

and for the church

is what motivates Paul's discipline.

Now, the third thing to notice

about Paul's discipline

is the goal.

So the means is Christ's power.

The motive is love.

And the goal is restoration.

It's not ultimately punishment.

It's not the solidifying

of our insider status

by othering somebody else.

The goal is to win back

our brother or sister.

Jesus told us to engage

in the four steps of church discipline

to gain our brother.

James chapter 5 says,

James 5 · chapter mention

My brothers,

if anyone among you

wanders from the truth

and someone were to bring him back,

let him know that

whoever brings back a sinner

from his wandering

will save his soul from death

and will cover a multitude of sins.

And it's why Paul concludes

his letter the way he does.

He has peace and restoration in mind

when he writes

at the end of the chapter.

And listen for like the rich tapestry

of deep connected relationships.

Finally, brothers, rejoice.

Aim for restoration.

Comfort one another.

Agree with one another.

Live in peace.

And the God of love and peace

will be with you.

Greet one another with a holy kiss.

All the saints greet you.

The grace of the Lord Jesus Christ

and the love of God

and the fellowship of the Holy Spirit

be with you all.

So that wraps up 2 Corinthians.

And I thought we could end

our study of the book

by meditating on its main theme,

which is the paradox

of power through weakness.

That paradox of power

through weakness

is demonstrated on the cross

as Christ is glorified

in his death and suffering.

His resurrection only happens

because he had to die first.

And those who follow Jesus

experience that resurrection power

only through dying.

Dying to our sins.

Dying to our preferences.

Dying to our comforts.

So let's go back

to the question I asked

at the beginning.

If Jesus is in you,

then how evident is that

to those around you?

And I have to confess

it was a trick question

because I kind of knew

what you were going to think

or most of us were going to think.

And it's the thing that I think.

When I think,

how is Jesus in me?

Is that evident to people around me?

I think of either the things

that I did.

Oh, see,

like my excellence

is somehow like pointing to Jesus,

right,

and his goodness.

Or,

I think of my failures.

Like,

ah,

people aren't seeing Jesus

because of my failures.

The way I've messed up.

So no,

Jesus is not on display in my life.

Both of those outcomes

show that I have a long way to go.

That we have a long way to go

to understanding grace.

To understanding the gospel.

If it's true for us,

as it was true for Paul,

that Christ's power

is made perfect in our weakness,

then why do we go

to such extraordinary lengths

to hide our weaknesses?

To put forward

the best possible image of ourselves?

To point to our resumes?

To cover up our flaws?

I really don't meet

any Christian

who says,

um,

I think the world needs more of me

and less of Jesus.

I mean,

like,

we often, like,

think and act that way.

But, like,

when really oppressed,

no one really says that.

That I've met.

So,

then,

when we try to be excellent,

because we think it's our excellence

that people,

that,

let me back up.

Most Christians I know will say,

yes,

I want the world to see less of me

and more of Christ.

And then,

because of that,

we try to be excellent.

Because we think

that excellence

points people to Jesus.

And we think our weaknesses

get in the way of that.

Now,

how do I know that?

It's because of the way

we talk about it.

Like,

the language we use.

We always say stuff like,

God worked in spite of me.

Or,

He worked in spite of this part of my life.

Or,

He worked despite this part of me.

As if my weaknesses

were something for God to overcome.

Right?

That they were some kind of obstacle

that God needed to break through.

That God had to

begrudgingly trudge

through the muck of my flaws.

And listen,

God's omnipotent.

The reason He works,

quote unquote,

in spite of my weaknesses

is because He loves it.

It's His jam.

He's not put off by our flaws.

Our flaws are actually arrows

in His quiver.

Let me put it this way.

And this is something I heard

Paul Tripp say earlier.

My weakness

is the playground

for God's grace.

My weakness

is the playground

for God's grace.

So that's so cool.

If our weaknesses

are the playground

for God's grace,

then why are we embarrassed

about them?

Why do we try to hide them?

Or try to minimize them?

I mean,

it's our weakness

and flaws

that we should be putting forward,

right?

If God delights

in displaying His power

through our weaknesses,

shouldn't they then be

indirectly a source

of our joy?

We should say,

God,

you're actually

drawn to this part of me,

and I would like the world

to know how this part of me

makes me need you,

reliant on you.

I'd like the world

to know that I believe

you're crazy about me,

despite,

or with,

all my flaws,

despite my besetting sins.

Now hear me,

this is not a technique.

I mean,

I read almost every day

it feels like

a blogger

who has a self-deprecating

sense of humor,

blah, blah, blah.

This is not that.

This is your flaws

being what serves

as a doorway

to a deeper connection

with God,

and as a result,

others' connection

with God,

because it's those flaws

that God was drawn to

in the first place.

Now how exactly

do you do that?

How do you

display your weaknesses?

I think that's something

that you,

with wisdom,

need to work out

as part of,

like,

your discipleship.

Perhaps,

for now,

it's just meeting

with a small group

of friends,

regularly,

with whom you can

be completely transparent,

who will love you

and hold you accountable

and pray for you.

Perhaps it's making

the decision,

if you're a leader,

that instead of obscuring

your need for grace,

which only keeps

your followers

at arm's length

and subverts their trust

and steals their energy

and creativity,

perhaps as a leader,

you could confess

in real time

how much you mess up.

And in doing so,

your character

is transformed

and your followers

follow you

instead of out of fear,

but in creativity

and joy

and openness

and flexibility.

So those are two ways.

I'd like to share

something a friend

of mine did.

His name is Ted.

And this week,

he posted something

on CaringBridge.

I don't know if you know

CaringBridge.

It's a site where you

post,

like,

a very serious

medical condition.

People can follow along

and keep track

of your progress,

make donations,

et cetera.

This is what Ted did.

And to me,

this is a great example

of putting one's

weakness forward.

He writes,

he starts

a CaringBridge

for himself

and he writes,

I want to be honest.

I've been closer

to death

than I've let on.

I'm doing really well.

I'm not suicidal,

but I have been

at times

over the last three years.

Anxiety and depression

seem like opposites,

but they often

mix together

to create an empty,

nauseous,

hollow feeling

of freefall.

Now,

if you add to that

marital conflict,

a sense of failure

in parenting,

or a perfect storm

of stressors,

ending it all

can seem

surprisingly attractive.

The Apostle Paul,

this is Ted writing,

the Apostle Paul

was at times

under great pressure,

far beyond

his ability

to endure,

and despaired

even of life itself.

That's from

2 Corinthians.

He endured

far worse suffering

than I have,

including beatings

and imprisonment,

hunger and thirst

in the desert,

and shivering cold

while shipwrecked

on the open seas.

I wonder if it was

while clinging

to driftwood

all night

in the Mediterranean

that he despaired

of life

and contemplated

just letting go.

I wanted to share

my health status

because it is good

for me,

and it also may

encourage others

to know they are

not alone.

I wanted to share

through Caring Bridge

to remind others

that mental health

struggles are as real

as cancer,

dementia,

or kidney failure.

As cancer can come

out of remission,

so too can the

darkness of depression.

It can overwhelm

one's thoughts

and blot out

any ray of hope.

But the main reason

I want to share

is to testify

to God's kindness

and loving grace.

The very next verse

in Paul's letter

is one of my favorites.

It's 2 Corinthians 1.9.

But this happened

that we might not

rely on ourselves,

but on God

who raises the dead.

One reason churches

are so weak today

is because most

American Christians

simply don't need

to rely on God.

I know I didn't.

We can take care

of ourselves just fine

through prideful self-reliance,

distract through entertainment,

cushioned with comfort,

only we really can't.

When we rely on ourselves

or other gods

of this world,

if we are honest,

we end up eventually

with broken dreams,

disillusionment,

and even despair.

But it is surprisingly

God's loving kindness

that leads us

to turn from trusting

in ourselves or others

and turn to Him

desperately for rescue.

That is when God shows up

in exciting ways

with a refreshing forgiveness

through Jesus Christ.

Living for Him

is so much more exciting

than living for me.

Many of my goals

for my life

were pitiful,

but His mission

and purpose for me

are fulfilling

and full of hope.

My theme of living

for eternity

is a very real part

of that hope

and as a result,

my health.

So no,

mental health

is not a traditional disease

you will find

on Caring Bridge,

but it can be equally deadly

nonetheless.

Perhaps this may become

an acceptable place

for others to open up

and share similar struggles.

And even if one person

does this,

my sharing

will have been worth it.

Do you hear

His weakness

pointing to Jesus?

Do you hear His flaws

and His confession

pointing to the greatness

of Jesus

who brings resurrection life?

So let this question

be a question

we meditate on

for the rest of the summer

coming out of this book

of 2 Corinthians.

Not how does my excellence

display Jesus,

but how are my weaknesses

a playground

for God's grace?

How are my weaknesses

a playground

for God's grace?

In the name of the Father

and of the Son

and of the Holy Spirit.

Amen.

Let's pray.

Lord,

as we contemplate

Paul

and his example

and his admonishment,

we confess

we need help,

we need wisdom

on how to

live with our weaknesses

on display.

We need courage

and ultimately,

Lord,

inflame

our desire,

increase our hunger,

Jesus,

for you to be displayed

in our lives

through our weakness,

Lord.

We would seek many

to see you,

Jesus,

to know you,

to follow you,

to experience you

and your saving grace

and your love.

Make us,

Lord,

as individuals

and as a church,

that vehicle

for displaying

your power

and grace.

We pray in Jesus' name.

Amen.

Amen.

Amen.

Amen.

Amen.

Amen.

Amen.

Amen.

Amen.

Amen.

Amen.

Amen.

Amen.

Amen.