Reformed Doctrine Daily Devotions

Today’s Scripture reminds us of the lesson that we learned from the story of Martha and Mary. 

“Now as they were traveling along, He entered a village;  and a woman named Martha welcomed Him into her home.  She had a sister called Mary, who was seated at the Lord’s feet, listening to His word.  But Martha was distracted with all her preparations;  and she came up to Him and said, “Lord, do You not care that my sister has left me to do all the serving alone?  Then tell her to help me.”  But the Lord answered and said to her, “Martha, Martha, you are worried and bothered about so many things;  but only one thing is necessary, for Mary has chosen the good part, which shall not be taken away from her.”  Luke 10:38-42.

We can worry and be bothered about so many things.  We can be like the seed which fell among the thorns in the Parable of the Sower.  “The seed which fell among the thorns, these are the ones who have heard, and as they go on their way they are choked with worries and riches and pleasures of this life, and bring no fruit to maturity.”  Luke 8:14.  

We should be like Mary who “has chosen the good part”, “seated at the Lord’s feet, listening to His word”.  This is the “only one thing is necessary” equivalent of “what matters is the keeping of the commandments of God” in verse 19 of today’s Scripture.  

“For he is not a Jew who is one outwardly, nor is circumcision that which is outward in the flesh.  But he is a Jew who is one inwardly; and circumcision is that which is of the heart, by the Spirit, not by the letter;  and his praise is not from men, but from God.”  Romans 2:28-29. 

The “only one thing is necessary” is ultimately our Lord and Savior and Jesus Christ.  “And the testimony is this, that God has given us eternal life, and this life is in His Son.  He who has the Son has the life;  he who does not have the Son of God does not have the life.”  1 John 5:11-12. 

“Do not worry about it;  but if you are able also to become free, rather do that.”  In other words, we should not worry about our condition.  We can and should improve our condition so long as we don’t let the concerns of our condition cause us to worry or be bothered to the extent that these concerns of our condition choke us off from devotion to Christ. 

Sometimes, we may be able to keep our devotion to Christ and improve our condition.  In such situation, we should then improve our condition.    

Other times, we can not keep our devotion to Christ and improve our condition.  In such situation, it is better that we remain in our condition even if that condition is that we are a slave.  “For what will it profit a man if he gains the whole world and forfeits his soul?  Or what will a man give in exchange for his soul?’  Matthew 16:26

“²⁵ Husbands, love your wives, just as Christ also loved the church and gave Himself up for her, ²⁶ so that He might sanctify her, having cleansed her by the washing of water with the word, ²⁷ that He might present to Himself the church in all her glory, having no spot or wrinkle or any such thing;  but that she would be holy and blameless.  ²⁸ So husbands ought also to love their own wives as their own bodies.  He who loves his own wife loves himself;  ²⁹ for no one ever hated his own flesh, but nourishes and cherishes it, just as Christ also does the church, ³⁰ because we are members of His body.  ³¹ FOR THIS REASON A MAN SHALL LEAVE HIS FATHER AND MOTHER AND SHALL BE JOINED TO HIS WIFE, AND THE TWO SHALL BECOME ONE FLESH.  ³² This mystery is great; but I am speaking with reference to Christ and the church. ³³ Nevertheless, each individual among you also is to love his own wife even as himself, and the wife must see to it that she respects her husband.”  Ephesians 5:25-33. 

“In the same way, you wives, be submissive to your own husbands so that even if any of them are disobedient to the word, they may be won without a word by the behavior of their wives, as they observe your chaste and respectful behavior.”  1 Peter 3:1.

The central teaching on the surface of today’s Scripture is that there is hope for the salvation of an unbelieving spouse.  Therefore, if a believing spouse has an unbelieving spouse who consents to live with the believing spouse, the believing spouse must not send him or her away.  “For the unbelieving husband is sanctified through his wife, and the unbelieving wife is sanctified through her believing husband;  for otherwise your children are unclean, but now they are holy.”  1 Corinthians 7:14.  ^“For how do you know, O wife, whether you will save your husband?  Or how do you know, O husband, whether you will save your wife?”  1 Corinthians 7:16. 

“But, you don’t know my spouse!”:  some may exclaim.  For hope, we can then turn to consider the marriage of Christ and the Church.

We can think about the patience of Christ with the Apostle Paul who persecuted the church.  Paul said:  “even though I was formerly a blasphemer and a persecutor and a violent aggressor.  Yet I was shown mercy because I acted ignorantly in unbelief;  and the grace of our Lord was more than abundant, with the faith and love which are found in Christ Jesus.  It is a trustworthy statement, deserving full acceptance, that Christ Jesus came into the world to save sinners, among whom I am foremost of all.  Yet for this reason I found mercy, so that in me as the foremost, Jesus Christ might demonstrate His perfect patience as an example for those who would believe in Him for eternal life.”  1 Timothy 1:13-16.     

Isaiah 42:3
“A bruised reed He will not break And a dimly burning wick He will not extinguish;  He will faithfully bring forth justice.”

But, there is more hope than just such a demonstration of patience by Christ.  We have the Spirit of Christ who bears such fruit of patience in our lives.  Moreover,  we have the Spirit of Christ who also bears such other fruit in our lives that will also help us in our relationship with our spouse.  “But the fruit of the Spirit is love, joy, peace, patience, kindness, goodness, faithfulness, gentleness, self-control;  against such things there is no law.”  Galatians 5:22-23.

Prior to God’s sovereign work in us, we all were alienated from God, hostile to God, and engaged in evil deeds,  Colossians 1:21.  “And you were dead in your trespasses and sins, in which you formerly walked according to the course of this world, according to the prince of the power of the air, of the spirit that is now working in the sons of disobedience.  Among them we too all formerly lived in the lusts of our flesh, indulging the desires of the flesh and of the mind, and were by nature children of wrath, even as the rest.”  Ephesians 2:1-3.   

“Now the deeds of the flesh are evident, which are:  immorality, impurity, sensuality, idolatry, sorcery, enmities, strife, jealousy, outbursts of anger, disputes, dissensions, factions, envying, drunkenness, carousing, and things like these, of which I forewarn you, just as I have forewarned you, that those who practice such things will not inherit the kingdom of God.”  Galatians 5:19-21. 

But, there is hope!

God has predestined some to salvation.  “For those whom He foreknew, He also predestined to become conformed to the image of His Son, so that He would be the firstborn among many brethren;  and these whom He predestined, He also called;  and these whom He called, He also justified;  and these whom He justified, He also glorified.”  Romans 8:29-30. 

“But God, being rich in mercy, because of His great love with which He loved us, even when we were dead in our transgressions, made us alive together with Christ (by grace you have been saved), and raised us up with Him, and seated us with Him in the heavenly places in Christ Jesus, so that in the ages to come He might show the surpassing riches of His grace in kindness toward us in Christ Jesus.  For by grace you have been saved through faith;  and that not of yourselves, it is the gift of God;  not as a result of works, so that no one may boast.”  Ephesians 2:4-9.

“… but you were washed, but you were sanctified, but you were justified in the name of the Lord Jesus Christ and in the Spirit of our God.”  1 Corinthians 6:11.

⁷  Actually, then, it is already a defeat for you, that you have lawsuits with one another.  Why not rather be wronged?  Why not rather be defrauded?

⁸  On the contrary, you yourselves wrong and defraud. You do this even to your brethren.”  1 Corinthians 6:1-8.

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This is a difficult passage, particularly for me as an attorney.  From the start, I need to admit that I don’t have the belief that church members should never resolve their cases against other members in public courts before such unbelievers.  There may be those Christians who do interpret the Scripture that way, and we should consider not only their interpretation of this Scripture but other Scripture as well.  As stated, this is a difficult passage requiring much cross-referencing with other Scripture and other care and wisdom.

However, at least, church members should be reluctant to bring their cases against other members in public courts before such unbelievers.  They should try to first use the resources of the church to resolve their case within the church.  And, there are reasons to do so in addition to that it is consistent with the “judging” position of believers stated in verses 3 and 4.  Reconciliation and good-will between believers may be more important than who gets the better financial outcome.

If common grace were given to unbelievers, then there would be that basis for church members to resolve their cases in public courts before such unbelievers.  But, common grace is not given to unbelievers.  Unbelievers may have and do have worldly wisdom and skills, but they may not have the grace that may be needed to resolve such disputes between believers. 

Specific Godly wisdom is needed in addition to (or as part of) grace.  1 Corinthians 6:5.  It is interesting to me that although the elders of a church should be the first thought as to the pool of men who should be first considered to mediate or adjudicate the dispute within the church, the qualifications of elders (a/k/a overseers) in Titus Chapter 1 and 1 Timothy Chapter 3 do not specifically include that quality of wisdom.  In other words, there may very well be wise men within the group of elders who can best mediate or adjudicate a specifc dispute;  if so, great, then you can use one of them.  But if there is not such a wise man who can best mediate or adjudicate a specific dispute within that group of elders, then it may be necessary to look outside of that group to find such a wise man within the church who can best mediate or adjudicate the dispute within the church.  As part of that specific Godly wisdom, it may also be best for that wise man to have specific intellectual knowledge of science, business, or other area involved in the dispute. 

All of this is easy to say for those who are not involved in such a dispute.  If you fortune is at stake, this and other Scripture may be very difficult to digest and apply. 

But, there is hope!

“But, we work with that man!  He is our neighbor!  He is our cousin!”:  some may say.  There can be all kinds of excuses to not remove a specific man from the church or even discipline him at all. 

But, today’s Scripture is clear both in its command and in its explanation of the reason for this strict discipline.

In yesterday’s devotion, we focused on the grace of discipline both the church and to the disciplined individual (“… so that his spirit may be saved in the day of the Lord Jesus”  1 Corinthians 5:5.).  Today, Scripture does not present such grace for some of the disciplined individuals.  In such severe cases, the grace is only for the church.  Certain wicked men simply need to removed from the church regardless of whether or not they are eventually saved.  In such severe cases, the church cannot prioritize its desire to restore the individual over the need to protect the church.

Obviously, such severe cases call for great wisdom in its elders.  Obviously, there is no Scripture to make it easy for us which contains the specific name of the wicked man and specifically commands by specific name that the specific man be removed.

But, there is hope!        

Even in today’s Scripture, we read:  “For Christ our Passover also has been sacrificed.”  Christ has provided us with “the unleavened bread of sincerity and truth”.  1 Corinthians 5:7-8. 

We also find hope elsewhere in Scripture.

God gives elders to the church who are “holding fast the faithful word which is in accordance with the teaching, so that he will be able both to exhort in sound doctrine and to refute those who contradict.  For there are many rebellious men, empty talkers and deceivers, especially those of the circumcision, who must be silenced because they are upsetting whole families, teaching things they should not teach for the sake of sordid gain.”  Titus 1:9-11.

For these elders and for the rest of us believers who need wisdom to make tough decisions as to whether or not remove a specific individual from church, Christ is “our wisdom from God”.  1 Corinthians 1:30.  And, the Holy Spirit is our Helper to guide us into all truth including the truth necessary to make these difficult decisions.  “But when He, the Spirit of truth, comes, He will guide you into all the truth;  for He will not speak on His own initiative, but whatever He hears, He will speak;  and He will disclose to you what is to come.”  John 16:13

“Finally, brethren, pray for us that the word of the Lord will spread rapidly and be glorified, just as it did also with you;  and that we will be rescued from perverse and evil men;  for not all have faith.  But the Lord is faithful, and He will strengthen and protect you from the evil one.”  2 Thessalonians 3:1-3.

Without discipline, the whole Church would suffer.  Sin is like cancer affecting the whole body.  Sin is like leaven which affects the whole lump.  “A little leaven leavens the whole lump of dough.  I have confidence in you in the Lord that you will adopt no other view;  but the one who is disturbing you will bear his judgment, whoever he is.”  Galatians 5:9-10.

Therefore, Paul repeats the command of God through the ages.  “… REMOVE THE WICKED MAN FROM AMONG YOURSELVES.”  1 Corinthians 5:13.  

As one example, let us not forget the lesson of Achan.  Achan was just one man, but his sin affected all of Israel.  “But the sons of Israel acted unfaithfully in regard to the things under the ban, for Achan, the son of Carmi, the son of Zabdi, the son of Zerah, from the tribe of Judah, took some of the things under the ban, therefore the anger of the LORD burned against the sons of Israel.”  Joshua 7:1. 

God punished Israel causing Israel to be defeated at the battle at Ai.  When Joshua, Israel’s leader questioned God as to why He allowed this to occur.  The LORD said to Joshua:  “Therefore the sons of Israel cannot stand before their enemies; they turn their backs before their enemies, for they have become accursed.  I will not be with you anymore unless you destroy the things under the ban from your midst.”  Joshua 7:12.

Joshua found out what Achan had done and confronted Achan.  “Joshua said, “Why have you troubled us?  The LORD will trouble you this day.”  And all Israel stoned them with stones; and they burned them with fire after they had stoned them with stones.  They raised over him a great heap of stones that stands to this day, and the LORD turned from the fierceness of His anger.  Therefore the name of that place has been called the valley of Achor to this day.”  Joshua 7:25-27. 

Now, this Scripture (and other Scripture as well) certainly does not teach us that we should stone or kill the guilty party as part of church discipline.   But, it teaches us two things.  First, it teaches us that sin affects the whole Church.  Second, it teaches that the Church needs to appropriately discipline.

Examples of church discipline include, but are not limited to:  private reprimand, public reprimand in front of the church, not allowing the guilty party to participate in communion, and excommunication or removal from the church.  The elders of the church have the authority to discipline and must do so carefully and prayerfully according to Scripture and the rules of the particular church.     

Discipline is one of the marks of the true church.  Here is what The Belgic Confession states in part.

Article 29:  Of the marks of the true Church, and wherein she differs from the false Church.

“…  The marks, by which the true Church is known, are these: if the pure doctrine of the gospel is preached therein;  if she maintains the pure administration of the sacraments as instituted by Christ;  if church discipline is exercised in punishing of sin:  in short, if all things are managed according to the pure Word of God, all things contrary thereto rejected, and Jesus Christ acknowledged as the only Head of the Church. Hereby the true Church may certainly be known, from which no man has a right to separate himself.  …” 

In conclusion, let us not only view discipline as a duty.  Let us view discipline as a grace of God.  First, it is a grace to the whole church to wash the church and keep it pure.  But, second, it is also a grace to the individual guilty party.  We read in today’s Scripture of the discipline that was a grace to the individual guilty party “… so that his spirit may be saved inthe day of the Lord Jesus.”  1 Corinthians 5:5.     

“… MY SON, DO NOT REGARD LIGHTLY THE DISCIPLINE OF THE LORD,
NOR FAINT WHEN YOU ARE REPROVED BY HIM; 
FOR THOSE WHOM THE LORD LOVES HE DISCIPLINES,
AND HE SCOURGES EVERY SON WHOM HE RECEIVES.”  Hebrews 12:5-6.

“All discipline for the moment seems not to be joyful, but sorrowful;  yet to those who have been trained by it, afterwards it yields the peaceful fruit of righteousness.”  Hebrews 12:11.

When we read about the sufferings in these two passages, and when we consider other sufferings by ourselves and others, it is easy to shrink back.  We know we should endure and persevere, but who has the strength to so endure and persevere through all the suffering?!

But, there is hope!

Our hope is in “Perseverance of the Saints a/k/a Preservation of the Saints”, the “P” of “TULIP”, the Five Points of Calvinism, the Reformed Doctrine of Salvation.  God causes us to persevere.  God preserves us.

Here is part of what The Canons of Dordt states:

Article 3.  By reason of these remains of indwelling sin, and the temptations of sin and of the world, those who are converted could not persevere in a state of grace, if left to their own strength.  But God is faithful, who having conferred grace, mercifully confirms, and powerfully preserves them herein, even to the end.

Here is the entire part of this doctrine on “Perseverance of the Saints a/k/a Preservation of the Saints”: