The Time to Stop Punishment

2:6-7a "Sufficient for such a one is this punishment which was inflicted by the majority, so that on the contrary you should rather forgive and comfort him..."

Paul’s visit to Corinth was marred by a grievous confrontation with a man in the church who opposed him. In a severe follow-up letter, he instructed them to punish this man, presumably by excommunicating him from the church.

Now Paul says it’s time to remove the punishment imposed on the guilty man. In other words, the man has shown sufficient evidence of repentance to be received back into the church and forgiven.

To repent means to change your mind, to change the way you think, to have a change of heart, to come to your senses. A mere apology is not enough. John commanded the Pharisees to "bear fruits in keeping with repentance" (both Matt. and Luke 3:8). Paul spoke of "performing deeds appropriate to repentance" in Acts 26:20.

After committing a sin, and especially after being disciplined by a church, a man must show some proof of repentance. There must be sorrow and brokenness, renunciation of sin and seeking of forgiveness from those sinned against. In addition to this, there may be steps of restitution. If a man truly regrets his sin he will do whatever he can to undo it. If he has hurt someone, he will do whatever he can to heal the wound. If he has offended someone he will go out of his way to make it right. If he has stolen or damaged someone’s property, he will replace it, whether or not the victim asks him to. He will show by his actions that he wishes he had never committed the sin.

One of the primary purposes for "handing over to Satan" through excommunication is to bring about repentance and thus, the restoration of the person back to Christ and His Church:

* 1Cor. 5:5 "...deliver such a one to Satan for the destruction of his flesh, that his spirit may be saved..." (Cf. Prov. 22:15) (“Flesh” here seems to mean his sinful nature which is presently driving his life. “Spirit” means his soul. Paul intends for the excommunication to cause the person to die to his present sinful course in order that his soul might be saved on the Judgment Day.)
* Titus 1:13 "...reprove [those who by their deeds have denied God - v.16] severely that they may be sound in the faith..."
* 2Thes. 3:14 "...do not associate with him, so that he may be put to shame."
* 1Tim.1:20 “...Hymenaeus and Alexander, whom I have delivered over to Satan, so that they may be taught not to blaspheme.”

Once the goal has been accomplished, once the lesson has been learned, once the repentance has been achieved, then "the punishment is sufficient." Then it is time for the church to open its arms to the disciplined person and receive him with the same spirit with which the father received the prodigal son, even "comforting" (v.7) him in his godly sorrow, while the angels rejoice in heaven.

Dear Father, it is sinful for us to count Your instructions as useless. It is our job to obey You, not criticize the methods You have assigned. Surely You can make Your own methods effective, or You would not have appointed them in the first place. Please give Your church the faith to use the tools You have given to deal with unrepentant sin, looking to You to bless what You have commanded. May there be a resurgence in Your church both of Biblical discipline and of godly repentance.