Thus says the Lord: "Stand by the roads, and look, and ask for the ancient paths, where the good way is; and walk in it, and find rest for your souls.
But they said, 'We will not walk in it.'" --Jeremiah 6:16

 

14 April, 2008   comments: (0) Postmodernism   Church Discipline? "But That's Judgmental"    Quoting Martyn Lloyd Jones . . . "Beware of false prophets, which come to you in sheep's clothing, but inwardly they are ravening wolves". But how is that to be taken? I cannot beware of "false prophets" if I am not to think, and if I am so afraid of judging that I never make any assessment at all of their teaching. These people come in sheep's clothing; they are very ingratiating and they use Christian terminology. They appear to be very harmless and honest and are invariably very nice. But we are not to be taken in by that kind of thing; beware of such people. Our Lord also says, "Ye shall know them by their fruits"; but if I am not to have any standard or exercise discrimination, how can I test the fruit and discriminate between the true and the false? So, without going any further, that cannot be the true interpretation which suggests that this just means being free and easy, and scripture can not be telling us to have a flabby and indulgent attitude towards anybody who vaguely uses the designation Christian. That is quite impossible. This view, however, is held so tenaciously that we must not even leave it at that. We must go further and put it like this: the Scripture itself teaches us that judgment has to be exercised in connection with affairs of the Government. It is Scripture which teaches us that judges and magistrates are appointed of God and that a magistrate is called upon to deliver and pronounce judgment, that it is his duty to do so. It is part of God's way of restraining evil and sin and their effects in this world of time. So, if a man says he does not believe in police courts he is contradicting Scripture. It does not always mean the use of force, but judgment has to be exercised, and for a man not to do so, or to be unprepared to do so, is not merely to fail in fulfilling his duty, it is to be unscriptural. But you also find the same teaching in the Scriptures with regard to the Church. They show very clearly that judgment is to be exercised in the realm of the Church. This is worthy of an entire study on its own, because, owing to our flabby ideas and notions, it is almost true to say that such a thing as discipline in the Christian Church is non-existent today. When did you last hear of a person being excommunicated, or of a person being kept back from the Communion Table? Go back to the history of Protestantism and you will find that the Protestant definition of the Church is, that "the Church is a place in which the Word is preached, the Sacraments are administered, and discipline is exercised". Discipline, to the Protestant Fathers, was as much a mark of the Church as the preaching of the Word and the administration of the Sacraments. But we know very little about discipline. It is the result of this flabby, sentimental notion that you must not judge, and which asks, "Who are you to express judgment?" But the Scripture exhorts us to do so. This question of judging applies, also, in the matter of doctrine. Here is this question of false prophets to which our Lord calls attention. We are supposed to detect them and to avoid them. But that is impossible without a knowledge of doctrine, and the exercise of that knowledge in judgment. Paul writing to the Galatians says, But though we, or an angel from heaven, preach any other gospel unto you than that which we have preached unto you, let him be accursed.' That is a clear pronouncement. Then you remember what the apostle has to say in 1 Corinthians 15 about those people who were denying the resurrection. He says the same thing in 2 Timothy 2 when he says that some deny the resurrection, saying it is past already, of whom is Hymenaeus and Philetus; and he again expresses judgment with regard to that and exhorts Timothy to do so. In writing to Titus he says, A man that is an heretick after the first and second admonition reject.' How do you know whether a man is a heretic or not if your view is that, as long as a man calls himself a Christian, he must be a Christian, and you do not care what he believes? Then go on to John's Epistles, John the apostle of love '. In the First Epistle he gives his instructions with regard to the false teachers and the anti-Christs who were to be avoided and rejected. Indeed, in his second Epistle, he puts it very strongly in these words: If there come any unto you, and bring not this doctrine, receive him not into your house, neither bid him God speed: for he that biddeth him God speed is partaker of his evil deeds.' You see what the apostle is saying. If a man comes to you who does not hold the true doctrine, you must not receive him into your house, you must not bid him God speed and provide him with money to preach his false doctrine. But today it would be said that that is a lack of charity. As a Christian, I should always have this general effect upon men before I have this specific effect. Wherever I may find [in myself something different about me along these lines, it] should have its effect; and that in turn ought to lead men and women to look at me and to say, "There is something unusual about that man". Then, as they watch my conduct and behavior, they begin to ask me questions. Here, the element of light [of the world]' comes out; I am able to speak and to teach them. Far too often we Christians tend to reverse the order. We have spoken in a very enlightened manner, but we have not always lived as the salt of the earth. ... The two things should always go together... From:  Studies in the Sermon on the Mount   Posted by: Jim B.   Link: http://www.oldtruth.com/blog.cfm/id.2.pid.995   Be the first to post a comment about this article        Home  |   About  |  Videos   |  Calvinism