STOPPING THE ROT
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Opening Prayer
Holy Spirit, show me if there are any specific situations, sins, or attitudes that are making it hard for me to hear your voice.
Read 1 CORINTHIANS 5
For additional translations of the passage, use this link to Bible Gateway.
Dealing With a Case of Incest
5 It is actually reported that there is sexual immorality among you, and of a kind that even pagans do not tolerate: A man is sleeping with his father’s wife. 2 And you are proud! Shouldn’t you rather have gone into mourning and have put out of your fellowship the man who has been doing this? 3 For my part, even though I am not physically present, I am with you in spirit. As one who is present with you in this way, I have already passed judgment in the name of our Lord Jesus on the one who has been doing this. 4 So when you are assembled and I am with you in spirit, and the power of our Lord Jesus is present, 5 hand this man over to Satan for the destruction of the flesh,[a][b] so that his spirit may be saved on the day of the Lord.
6 Your boasting is not good. Don’t you know that a little yeast leavens the whole batch of dough? 7 Get rid of the old yeast, so that you may be a new unleavened batch—as you really are. For Christ, our Passover lamb, has been sacrificed. 8 Therefore let us keep the Festival, not with the old bread leavened with malice and wickedness, but with the unleavened bread of sincerity and truth.
9 I wrote to you in my letter not to associate with sexually immoral people— 10 not at all meaning the people of this world who are immoral, or the greedy and swindlers, or idolaters. In that case you would have to leave this world. 11 But now I am writing to you that you must not associate with anyone who claims to be a brother or sister[c] but is sexually immoral or greedy, an idolater or slanderer, a drunkard or swindler. Do not even eat with such people.
12 What business is it of mine to judge those outside the church? Are you not to judge those inside? 13 God will judge those outside. “Expel the wicked person from among you.”[d]
Footnotes
- 1 Corinthians 5:5 In contexts like this, the Greek word for flesh (sarx) refers to the sinful state of human beings, often presented as a power in opposition to the Spirit.
- 1 Corinthians 5:5 Or of his body
- 1 Corinthians 5:11 The Greek word for brother or sister (adelphos) refers here to a believer, whether man or woman, as part of God’s family; also in 8:11, 13.
- 1 Corinthians 5:13 Deut. 13:5; 17:7; 19:19; 21:21; 22:21,24; 24:7
New International Version (NIV)Holy Bible, New International Version®, NIV® Copyright ©1973, 1978, 1984, 2011 by Biblica, Inc.® Used by permission. All rights reserved worldwide.
Reflect
In what ways do you see that flagrant abuse of Christian liberty is harmful to the church?A serious report has reached Paul: a church member is in a continuing liaison with his father’s wife. Even the unshockable Greeks would be scandalized by such a sexual relationship (vv. 1, 2). Paul wants to know how it is that they’re not grieved by this. The unholiness must be removed from the church as old yeast from the dough (vv. 6, 7, 13). The fact that they haven’t sensed God’s grief at this suggests they’re already becoming spiritually dulled. They must stop the rot. They have no reason for pride or boasting (vv. 2, 6).
Paul’s language in verses 3–5 is hard to grasp. Through their fellowship in the Spirit, Paul expects to exercise his authority in some present sense by the Spirit’s power even while absent. Perhaps what’s meant is that, as Paul’s judgment is read out while they’re gathered to worship, the power of the Lord Jesus will convince those present.
They need to redraw some boundaries (not just about sex). They’re to stop breaking bread with those claiming to be following Jesus if they won’t address persistent patterns of sinful behavior. Just as with the first man (v. 1), they’re to break fellowship with such people, intending to draw them back to God in penitence (vv. 5, 10, 11).
Apply
Reflect on how you are drawing boundaries at the moment. In what ways might the Lord want you to redraw them?
Closing prayer
Lord God, show me if there are ways in which I am compromising my testimony for you, either in my own behavior or by tolerating the behavior of others.
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