“Come out from them and be separate.” What does this mean today?
The Bible calls for the welcoming of sinners into our fellowships, whether churches, home groups or homes. Christ welcomed all, especially needy sinners, with the aim of leading them toward repentance, faith, and restoration in Him.
I have just phoned up a person who has not been to church for more than a month or two. Apparently no-one else had been in contact with him and added,
“I didn’t feel wanted.”
A convicted thief is released from prison but the church he had been involved in did not want to know him; he may tarnish the church’s reputation or have a bad effect on people.
A young person has dropped out of the youth group, staying that he didn’t feel welcome but again no-one has bothered to talk to him to find out why.
Such people may not be the easiest to get on with or the most popular with others but is that a reason to shun them? Gossip about such people can spread like fire and can be utterly damaging. It is so easy to make people feel unwanted. Has church become a community for the benefit of the in-people and are those who don’t naturally fit in leaving churches because they are ostracised?
One youth leader was asked why he hadn’t phoned a girl who had stopped coming to the Christian group he ran. His reply was either an excuse or very worrying,
“I might be misunderstood.”
If that was his real concern he could easily have asked someone else to contact her.
Love for others must always be a mark of Christians. We are in a difficult world that contains many hurt people and many wicked people. The early church found it hard to accept Saul the Christian persecutor, but to the churches benefit they changed their minds, he became the great apostle Paul. The church was following the example of the Lord Jesus.
To seek and care for the lost reflects the love of God for those who are perishing, it is the essence of evangelism. The prophet Ezekiel reminds us about our God:
“Say to them, ‘As surely as I live, declares the Sovereign Lord, I take no pleasure in the death of the wicked, but rather that they turn from their ways and live. Turn! Turn from your evil ways! Why will you die, people of Israel?’” Ezekiel 33:11
Peter reminds Christians that this should still be our motivation in dealing with others as this is how the Lord has dealt with us.
“He is patient with you, not wanting any to perish, but everyone to come to repentance.” 2 Peter 3:9
If someone claims to be a follower of Jesus but in practice has no concern for the lost, do they have the Spirit of God in them? Did Jesus and his apostles play it safe and keep the good news about Jesus themselves?
The 19th century British Prime Minister, William Gladstone was a very happily married man with eight children. He was not only a deeply committed Christian but he was also committed to social reform. Throughout his life he and his wife undertook what he described as a ‘rescue mission’ to aid prostitutes. He would go out of his way to talk to them, trying to persuade them to follow his Saviour and abandon their trade. He would even give them money and help them find other employment. He kept meticulous diaries of all these activities. There is no evidence that he or his wife were involved in any immoral activities. However his opponents used this to try to tarnish his reputation and we all know how gossip spreads.
Russell Brand, the disreputable television personality has been open about his past struggles with drug and alcohol addiction, as well as promiscuity, has been open about his past struggles with drug and alcohol addiction, as well as promiscuity. He was an atheist and hedonist, not the type welcomed in many churches Yet he was befriended by Bear Grylls, a devout Christian who is not ashamed to talk about his faith and now Russell has said that he has become a Christian. Gryll’s involvement in Russell’s public baptism has been widely criticised both in the media and in churches as a publicity stunt. Would Jesus behave like Grill’s or should churches warn people off such involvement.
1. Jesus’ Ministry as an Example
Jesus Himself welcomed sinners, setting a precedent for His followers.
“Jesus answered them, ‘It is not the healthy who need a doctor, but the sick. I have not come to call the righteous, but sinners to repentance.’” Luke 5:31-32
The Pharisees criticised Jesus, saying,
“This man welcomes sinners and eats with them.” Luke 15:1-2
His response was to share parables of the lost sheep, coin, and son, showing the joy in heaven over one sinner who repents.
When Jesus was on his final journey to be sacrificed in Jerusalem he passed through Jericho. Large crowds came out to see him, including one despicable rogue who no-one liked. His name was Zacchaeus, the local Chief Tax Collector. He couldn’t get near Jesus because of the crowds so he climbed a sycamore tree to get a glimpse. It was the hated Zacchaeus that Jesus then addressed by name,
“Zacchaeus,, come down immediately. I must stay at your house today.” Luke 19:5
Jesus picked out the hated sinner, leaving the self-righteous to themselves.
“All the people saw this and began to mutter, ‘He has gone to be the guest of a ‘sinner’.” Luke 19:7
Zacchaeus did repent when he met Jesus and changed his selfish ways. Jesus then said to him,
“Today salvation has come to this house, because this man, too, has become a son of Abraham. For the Son of Man came to seek and to save what was lost.” Luke 19:9-10
We are left to wonder what those priggish people thought of Jesus for befriending this rogue.
On another occasion Jesus went out of his way to meet a woman that he knew had been promiscuous in Samaria, a people who were known to be ‘no good’. What is more he took his young disciples with him! Was that wise? Safeguarding laws in those days prohibited men from speaking to women, yet alone a Samaritan woman. Was Jesus setting a bad example or is he showing us that god is particularly concerned for the lost?
2. Paul’s Teaching on Fellowship
Jews prided themselves on being a holy people who tried to keep God’s laws. They therefore kept themselves separate from unholy people around and much Jewish law protected this belief. A sincere Jew would never even enter the home of a Gentile. Jesus changed this way of thinking and stressed that God looks at our motives, our hearts, and not outward behaviour.
The early Jewish church in Jerusalem were concerned when Peter visited the home of Cornelius, a Roman centurion, to share the Christian gospel. When it transpired that the whole household had turned to Christ and that Peter had done this at the express command of God the church leaders realised that their previous way of thinking was wrong.
There remained a strong group in the early church that insisted that new Gentile Christians should accept the Jewish law on the basis that this would protect both the faith God had given in the Scriptures and also protect the young Christians. Paul was adamant that Christianity must never become keeping outward laws, as Judaism had become but must continue to be a heart-centred faith. He has some very strong words against those in churches who wanted to return to a system of rules and many found what he said very controversial. Paul however was more concerned about what God thought of him than what others criticised him for:
“Am I now trying to win the approval of human beings, or of God? Or am I trying to please people? If I were still trying to please people, I would not be a servant of Christ.” Galatians 1:10
Paul teaches that the church should be a place of grace, welcoming those who seek Christened the fellowship of God’s people.
“Accept one another, then, just as Christ accepted you, in order to bring praise to God.” Romans 15:7
This includes welcoming people who are struggling with sin, showing them the love of Christ. After listing various sins, Paul reminds believers that they themselves were once sinners:
“And that is what some of you were. But you were washed, you were sanctified, you were justified in the name of the Lord Jesus Christ and by the Spirit of our God.” 1 Corinthians 6:9-11:
What an important reminder this is. We are all sinners in God’s eyes but he has welcomed us into his family.
But some Christians are still doubtful about the risks of being involved in an ungodly world. One senior Christian justified his lack of involvement in evangelism by quoting Paul who was himself quoting the quoting the Old Testament,
“Come out from them and be separate, says the Lord. Touch no unclean thing, and I will receive you.” 2 Corinthians 6:17
How easy it is to misuse Scripture. This verse in in the context of either close working with false teachers or possibly marriage. The previous chapter had been all about why Christians must take risks to spread the gospel and the beginning of chapter 6 describes the hardships and risks Paul had undergone to fulfil this urgent commission. Paul wrote elsewhere:
“God has chosen to make known among the Gentiles the glorious riches of this mystery, which is Christ in you, the hope of glory. We proclaim him, teaching and admonishing everyone with all wisdom . . .” Colossians 1:27-28
Do we share such risk taking for the sake of our Lord?
3. Grace and Restoration
The church is called to restore sinners gently, without falling into self-righteousness. It is so easy to fall into the trap of looking down on others.
“Brothers and sisters, if someone is caught in a sin, you who live by the Spirit should restore that person gently. But watch yourselves, or you also may be tempted.” Galatians 6:1
“My brothers and sisters, if one of you should wander from the truth and someone should bring that person back, remember this: Whoever turns a sinner from the error of their way will save them from death and cover over a multitude of sins.” James 5:19-20
What a joy it is to help someone who feels rejected to see that whatever they may have done in the past they can start again in fellowship with Jesus and his people.
Paul wrote to the Corinthian church about the scandalous way they accepted a man who was openly involved in serious sexual immorality, a man was sleeping with his father’s wife (likely his stepmother). Paul is shocked by the church’s tolerance of this openly defiant and persistent sin insists that the man be expelled from the community:
“Hand this man over to Satan for the destruction of the flesh, so that his spirit may be saved on the day of the Lord” 1 Corinthians 5:5
The purpose of this was disciplinary, aiming both to protect the church’s purity and mission as well as to bring the sinner to repentance.
Between 6 and 12 months later Paul wrote a second letter to the Corinthians and appears to refer to this same individual and advises the church to forgive and comfort him because he has repented:
“Now instead, you ought to forgive and comfort him, so that he will not be overwhelmed by excessive sorrow” 2 Corinthians 2:7
Paul emphasises the need to restore the man to fellowship to avoid discouragement and to demonstrate the church’s forgiveness in Christ. Similarly, our focus today should be particularly concerned for the spiritual life of individuals and for this they need to become actively involved in an outgoing, Bible teaching, local Christian community.
4. Balancing Grace and Holiness
While welcoming sinners, Scripture also calls for accountability and transformation in Christ. We are not to be naive in what we trust people with. It is still foolish to allow a kleptomaniac free access to our homes where they could steal something.
Jesus teaches a process for addressing sin within the church, emphasising restoration rather than exclusion. There is a process to go through when dealing with a blatant sinner who is a church member (Matthew 18:15-17).
An active Christian in a local church had an affair with the wife of another church member. The vicar asked them both to stop the relationship and refused to give them communion. Sadly the new couple then decided to go together to another church that was not too concerned about such matters.
In summary, the Bible calls for the welcoming of sinners into our fellowships, whether churches, home groups or homes. Christ welcomed all, especially needy sinners, with the aim of leading them toward repentance, faith, and restoration in Him.
A well-known Christian with a poor reputation visited another church. What thrilled him was the way people came up and talked to him and made him feel so welcome - one of the elders even invited him back for lunch. Isn’t this what Jesus emphasised in the ‘Parable of the Sheep and Goats’ (Matthew 25:31-40). Some Christians (‘my brethren’) were imprisoned by the authorities and having a hard time but Jesus teaches that the evidence for being God’s sheep was that they visited, cared for and fed these their brethren even though, by doing so, they could well damage themselves. The goats opt to keep their hands clean and stay away from being involved.
Clearly there must be safeguards and not advocate running unnecessary risks, but we must still love ‘sinners’ just as Jesus has loved and welcomed us. Should all Christians, but especially those with church responsibilities, not be encouraged to keep in close contact with those who do not feel at home in our churches. Do we really try to make everyone feel welcome in our homes and fellowships or can we sometimes cause them to feel unwanted?
Our message is simple, ‘Jesus Christ is Lord’. When people accept this he forgives them their sin and gives them his Holy Spirit who enables them to change and work together with other Christians for God’s glory in his world.
BVP
