Harsh words to live by...

1 Cor 5:11-13  says “...you must not associate with anyone who claims to be a brother or sister but is sexually immoral or greedy, an idolater or slanderer, a drunkard or swindler. Do not even eat with such people. What business is it of mine to judge those outside the church? Are you not to judge those inside? God will judge those outside.”

I came across these verses while listening to a sermon by Andy Stanley called Guardrails.  Guardrails are there to provide protection and to keep us from veering off the road.  When I first heard him refer to these verses, I thought he was being harsh and misinterpreting what God had intended.  In his sermon series, he challenged me to stop flirting with disaster and establish some personal guardrails. 

Does God really mean that we must not associate and have absolutely nothing to do with someone who claims to be a brother or sister and participates in these types of behaviors?  God even goes as far as to say "do not even eat with such people!"  WOW!  Those are harsh words.  My heart wants to say, "But what about mercy?  What about grace?"

So I dug a little deeper...

• Sexually immoral - relations outside of marriage
• Greedy – having or showing a continual selfish desire
• Idolater - a person that admires intensely and often blindly one that is not usually a subject of worship
• Slanderer - to harm the reputation of someone else
• Drunkard - one who is habitually drunk
• Swindler - to take something from someone by using tricks and careful words

Does He really tell us to judge those inside the church?  If so, what are we to judge each other against? What are we to look for?  The fruit of the spirit is love, joy, peace, forbearance, kindness, goodness, faithfulness, gentleness and self-control.  What God is saying is that if we don’t see fruit, then these people really are not God’s disciples and we are to have nothing to do with them.  God says, you will know they are mine by their love.

I Cor 13 “Love is patient, love is kind. It does not envy, it does not boast, it is not proud.  It does not dishonor others, it is not self-seeking, it is not easily angered, it keeps no record of wrongs.  Love does not delight in evil but rejoices with the truth.  It always protects, always trusts, always hopes, always perseveres.  Love never fails.”

Harsh words that I honestly struggle to understand and live by...