Issue 3 - Day 5

1 Corinthians 5

1 Corinthians 5:6-7

6. Your glorying is not good. Know ye not that a little leaven leaveneth the whole lump?
7. Purge out therefore the old leaven, that ye may be a new lump, as ye are unleavened. For even Christ our passover is sacrificed for us:

Here is the dilemma. We are not to spend any time with evil doers, and Paul lists quite a few here. At the same time it is the evil doers who most need God to change their lives! For non-believers we must spend time with them to witness to them. For those who say they believe we are called to throw out anyone who is like this, as their effect is like yeast. The whole church will be brought down by their actions. No yeast was permitted at passover, and no sin is acceptable in the church. Yes we all do sin, and yes no-one if perfect, but the sin Paul refers to are the visible sins, the public sins if you like. The sins that will bring a church into ill repute.

All too often in the news we hear of pastors who have been caught sleeping with one, or more of their flock! We hear of pastors sent to prison for fiddling the finances to their own gain. What does this do to the church and it's witness? If there are people in the church known publicly to be a disgrace then the whole body is disgraced.

Firstly, in your own life ask God to reveal in you what needs to change. Avoid even the appearance of evil, and the standard here is God's word, not what is currently acceptable in our culture. Secondly, if you know someone in the body is sinning, confront them, and if necessary deal with the situation as the Bible directs. Become lumps, new lumps.