Church Discipline for Unrepentant Sin in a Cycle of Porn
Church discipline for unrepentant sin, including persistent engagement with pornography, is rooted in the biblical understanding of sin's nature and the church's call to holiness. Sin is understood as a deliberate act of rebellion against God, a preference for the creature over the Creator, and a corruption of one's nature [3, 4]. All humanity is born with a sinful nature, and while the godly strive against it, the wicked indulge it [1]. To claim one has not sinned is to make God a liar [5].
The New Testament outlines a process for addressing unrepentant sin within the Christian community. Jesus himself provides instructions in Matthew 18:15-17, which culminates in treating an unrepentant individual "as a pagan or a tax collector" [7]. This final step, often referred to as excommunication, signifies exclusion from the fellowship of believers [7]. The Apostle Paul further elaborates on this in 1 Corinthians 5, instructing the church to "discipline anyone in the church who is known to be living in sin," specifically mentioning various forms of immorality, including sexual sin [8]. The purpose of such discipline is not vindictive retribution but the restoration of the wayward individual to holiness and fellowship with God and the community [7].
The goal of church discipline is also to protect the purity of the church and prevent sin from corrupting the fellowship [7]. John Gill notes that Satan gains an advantage when church discipline is neglected or misused [9]. While sin originates from the devil, those who commit sin imitate the devil, becoming "children of the devil by imitating him" [2]. Therefore, the church, as belonging to Christ and ultimately to God, is called to maintain holiness [6]. The process of discipline aims to bring about repentance, which is a change of mind leading to a change of action, and to prevent Satan from gaining an advantage over the church or the individual [9].
Sources
- Psalms (Protestant academic) “Tyndale House on Psalms 58:3: 58:3 All human beings are born sinners (see 51:5); however, whereas the wicked indulge their sinful nature, the godly fight against it (Rom 7:19-23; Jas 4:1-10).”
- 1 John (Presbyterian) “Jamieson, Fausset & Brown on 1 John 3:8: He that committeth sin is of the devil--in contrast to "He that doeth righteousness," Jo1 3:7. He is a son of the devil (Jo1 3:10; Joh 8:44). John does not, however, say, "born of the devil." as he does "born of God," for "the devil begets none, nor does he create any; but whoever imitates the devil becomes a child of the devil by imitating him, not by proper birth" [AUGUSTINE, Ten Homilies on the First Epistle of John, Homily 4.10]. From the devil there is not generation, but corruption [BENGEL]. sinneth from the beginning--from the time that any beg”
- Genesis (Presbyterian) “Jamieson, Fausset & Brown on Genesis 3:13: beguiled--cajoled by flattering lies. This sin of the first pair was heinous and aggravated--it was not simply eating an apple, but a love of self, dishonor to God, ingratitude to a benefactor, disobedience to the best of Masters--a preference of the creature to the Creator.”
- Psalms (Protestant academic) “Tyndale House on Psalms 19:13: 19:13 An individual who commits deliberate sins does so with an insolent (86:14) or arrogant (119:21, 69) attitude. • The great sin is rebellion (see 32:1).”
- 1 John (Presbyterian) “Jamieson, Fausset & Brown on 1 John 1:10: Parallel to Jo1 1:8. we have not sinned--referring to the commission of actual sins, even after regeneration and conversion; whereas in Jo1 1:8, "we have no sin," refers to the present GUILT remaining (until cleansed) from the actual sins committed, and to the SIN of our corrupt old nature still adhering to us. The perfect "have . . . sinned" brings down the commission of sins to the present time, not merely sins committed before, but since, conversion. we make him a liar--a gradation; Jo1 1:6, "we lie"; Jo1 1:8, "we deceive ourselves"; worst of al”
- 1 Corinthians (Protestant academic) “Tyndale House on 1 Corinthians 3:23: 3:23 Just as they may now claim everything as their own, so Christ has claimed them for himself (see Rom 14:7-9), and in Christ they are ultimately claimed by God (see 1 Cor 6:19-20; 7:23).”
- Matthew (Protestant academic) “Tyndale House on Matthew 18:17: 18:17 The church is the local Christian community. • The unrepentant person is to be considered a pagan or a corrupt tax collector, a wicked transgressor of the law. Church discipline by exclusion (excommunication; see Acts 5:1-6; Rom 16:17; 1 Cor 5:1-13; 2 Cor 6:14-18; Gal 5:7-12; 2 Thes 3:14-15) is rooted in the conviction that God’s people are to be holy and that sin corrupts fellowship, both between people and between the people and God. The goal is neither vindictive retribution nor a public display of power, but restoration of the wayward to holiness and f”
- 1 Corinthians (Protestant academic) “Tyndale House on 1 Corinthians 5:9: 5:9-13 The church is to discipline anyone in the church who is known to be living in sin. 5:9 When I wrote to you before refers to an earlier letter now lost. • Sexual sin is any form of illicit sexual activity (see also 6:9).”
- 2 Corinthians (Baptist/Reformed) “John Gill on 2 Corinthians 2:11: Lest Satan should get an advantage of us,.... Or make gain of us, or we should be circumvented by him; a metaphor taken from covetous persons, who take every occasion, and make use of every advantage to circumvent and deceive persons in trading with them: Satan gets an advantage of the churches, when church discipline is brought into neglect and contempt, or turned into tyranny; or when he can draw off any person from a church, or keep him out of it: wherefore the apostle's argument is, that since the incestuous person had true repentance for his sin, he ought ”