Is There No Grace?

“Have you heard about that preacher?” How often has that been eagerly rumored through the mills of Baptist circles? There seems to be an increase in self-justification or self-promotion within the church these days. These days...who am I kidding? These self-promotions started back with Cain against Able, the ten brothers against Joseph, Korah against Moses, the prodigal’s brother, the “Camps” in Corinth (1 Corinthians 1:12), and so on. This temptation to elevate one’s self is within every man, woman, and child. Not even the disciples were exempt from this attractive vice. Swift and harsh criticism of others comes naturally to us.

How do you go about correcting a brother? I’m going to assume you know about the order of church discipline from confrontation to ex-communication. Matthew chapter eighteen gives us detailed steps regarding how to deal with an offense. But, what is the purpose of church discipline? If your first thought is to get rid of a sinner or to cast out disobedience, there is the primary problem. In Galatians 6:1, we see the word "restore". This is the same word translated "mending" in Matthew 4:21.

When I was eight years old, I broke my arm. Should it have been cut off at the elbow? Thankfully Dr. Burton decided it was better to mend or restore my arm. When someone in the church yields to temptation, the primary focus is to restore that individual back into God’s will. Paul corrected, but didn’t cut off, the Church of Corinth and the churches of Galatia.

Restoration is better received when given in the spirit of meekness (c.f. Proverbs 18:19). Are you eager to correct someone? Have you bragged about your confrontation? This is not the spirit of meekness. There is a critical element within Galatians 6:1 of the "spiritual" or mature Christian restoring the offender. The method of restoration is a grievous responsibility that has no room for pride or self-promotion. Incidentally, a warning is given to the spiritual one. When privately admonishing another, consider what level of grace you would like to be treated with because you understand your own lusts. Is it not a concern for someone’s health if you say, “You’re fat!”? Well, was it the truth? Preferably, love and meekness is the method by which God would have us correct a brother or sister in Christ, knowing we are not above temptation (c.f. 1 Corinthians 10:12). If we must provoke a brother, let it be "unto love and to good works" (Hebrews 10:24). Lest you think I’m gathering around the campfire to sing Kumbaya, specific sins should be preached against with vigor. Correction is part of edification, yet practicing the scriptural approach through meekness, love, and unity is often lacking. The bickering and division between brothers in Christ because of personal preferences is not a spirit of unity (c.f. Ephesians 4:3,16). It is the spirit of pride. People today are the same as those of Paul’s day, which is why Paul instructed a warning to the churches regarding divisions (Galatians 5:14-15).

We are to bear one another’s burdens, not one another’s contempt. Striving together for the faith is not striving together for self-glorification (c.f. Philippians 2:3). Those that devour each other become cancer in the "body fitly joined together" (Ephesians 4:16). James 3:13-15 helps describe the headquarters of our heart, and that reveals someone’s ultimate purpose of admonition.

Can we not be a united body without suffering from the auto-immune diseases of self-promotion, self-justification, or self-sufficiency? Do you desire to be the spiritual Christian to restore...in the spirit of meekness? Let us be patient toward all men lest the ministry be blamed and mocked. The desire should not be conformity, but a love for God from the heart which then persuades the body. “Souls are often pliable in the hands of a meek and spiritually provoking Christian. If grace is a prominent doctrine, surely it should be thriving in the Baptist faith.”