Church Discipline: Is It Necessary?

Church discipline is making a comeback in Baptist circles. There has been two sources of great influence on this topic. One major source is Dr. Al Mohler. Dr. Mohler is the President of The Southern Baptist Seminary in Louisville, Kentucky. Over the last several years, Dr. Mohler has touched on this subject on his blog and during his speaking engagements. The other main source is Pastor Mark Dever. Pastor Dever is the Senior Pastor at Capital Hills Baptist Church in Washington D.C. These two men have made it their goal to make church discipline a part of Baptist life.

Many years ago, Baptist Churches removed people from their membership all the time. I once read a church history of a small Baptist Church in Kentucky. In the minutes, there was an ongoing story of a man that seemed to have a problem with drinking and partying. We must remember that all of this took place in the late 1800's. The man was removed from the church several times for his public behavior. He would later repent and then be voted back into the fold. However, during one business meeting, he stood up and asked that his name be removed. He acknowledged that he was not fit to be a Church member. This was the last time he was mentioned in the history.

The question must be asked: Why are we know longer practicing scriptural Church discipline? I believe there are a couple answers to this question worthy of writing about.

First, we do not practice church discipline because our society has taught us to accept sin. There is no more shame. There is no more sorrow when it comes to inappropriate behavior. A young woman can have children out of wedlock and be applauded for her actions. A young man can act inappropriately and it will be completely overlooked, due to the fact that we all our sinners. We are told time and again that we are not to judge. This is true, that is why we have the Bible. It does all the judging for us. All we have to do is be the messenger. We know that we are not to accept sin. However, because we are taught incorrectly about judging; we often do.

Second, we do not want to hurt anyone's feelings. Our churches have become so sensitive about feelings, that we are afraid to say anything. I wrote a blog about the effects of existentialism on the church. Everyone should read that one again. The church often mimics its culture. Our culture is one of feelings and emotions. How you feel is more important than is it right. I will guarantee that we will never feel like practicing church discipline. As long as feelings are used to make our major decisions in the church, then church discipline will be ignored.

Third and finally, we do not respect our church membership. Most Baptist Churches will keep a person on their roles until they are dead. Then they will wait three days just to make sure it took. Churches have members that live in other states. Churches have members that haven't attended in years. I will assure you that 100 years ago, if a member of a Baptist church missed a month with no good reason, they wouldn't be a member much longer. Church membership no longer means something. As long as church membership is as open as it is, we will never practice church discipline.

Here is the good news. I have come to the conclusion that Church discipline usually takes place whether we vote on it or not. If the church pastor preaches what the Bible teaches, then the unrepentant person will not stay there very long. It is apparent to me that most sinful people stay away from the church. They do not want to feel convicted. Now this is only true is the pastor is a Bible believer. Disregard this thought if the pastor never preaches on sin.

Every now and then, a church will have a public sinful behavior done by a church member that refuses to acknowledge the sin. The pastor must have full authority to deal with this sin. The Bible tells us that the pastor must deal with this sin. The church must support the pastor in the process. For we cannot let unrepentant sin run rampant in our church halls.

To be honest with you, I would love to bring discipline back into the church. However, my church's membership is not in order to do it. Thus, we will practice it on an individual basis. It is important for us to all remember that God wants his church to maintain a level of holiness. Sin must be dealt with, but it must be dealt with in a loving and gracious way. If we deal with it incorrectly, then we fall into sin ourselves. We must be very careful.

Football Season is Here!

I know that most of my posts are theological in nature, but I just can't help myself this year. If you come each week looking for deep thoughts, then let me encourage you to come back next week. Today's post is all about my favorite sport football. The theological bigrevcoop will be back next week.

Let me start with the NFL. I am a huge Browns fan. I have been from the start. One of my biggest regrets in life is living in Louisville when Art Modell stole the Browns, and took them to Baltimore. I had absolutely no one to cry with. Most folks in Kentucky did not understand my hurt. I longed to be near Cleveland so that others may feel the pain right along with me.

I predict Cleveland to be 8 and 8 this year. My biggest concern for the Browns in their division. They have to play the Bengals, Ravens, and the Steelers twice. This is one of the toughest divisions in all of football. I think the Browns may be better than an 8 and 8 team on paper. I just think their schedule is too difficult.

I am also concerned with the quarterback position. I like Charlie Frye, but I do not know how productive he will be. He has only played in a handfull of games. It takes a quarterback a few years to fully develop. We can only hope that he develops fast and good.

My prediction for the Superbowl is the Colts over the Panthers. I am sure a lot of other people will pick the same two. I think it is Manning's turn to shine. He is the best QB in football, and I think he will win two superbowls in the next four years.

As for college, I think the polls have it right. The Buckeyes our number one in my heart and number one in the polls. I simply believe their offense is too good to be stopped. I know that they are replacing a lot of Defensive players, but we have the players to replace them. The Ohio State Defense will still be one of the best in the nation. However, their Offense will be handsdown the best in the nation.

September 9th is the scariest game on the Schedule. The Buckeyes play Texas at Texas. Two weeks later is another scary game. They play Iowa at Iowa. They play Penn State and Michigan at home this year. I see the Buckeyes playing USC in the Fiesta Bowl. By the way, The Buckeyes just don't lose in the Fiesta Bowl.

As for Michigan. I believe this will be Coach Carr's last season. I don't think Michigan will make the same mistake as Ohio State did with Cooper. When the Buckeyes spank Michigan by three touchdowns this year, Carr will be forced out. You can't lose to your arch-rival 4 out of 5 years and survive.

For the next 4 months, you will know how I will spend my weekends. Football is here, and I cannot be any happier. Go Bucks and Go Browns! And by the way, my second favorite team is the one playing the Steelers and the one playing Michigan.

Why Are Most Evangelicals Political Conservatives?

In the late 1970's, a major theological and political shift took place in the Southern Baptist Convention. The convention was moving leftward in the 1960's and 1970's, but that all changed. A massive grassroots efforts affected the political landscape of the convention. The Southern Baptist Convention moved to the right, and the nation followed.

The truth is that this shift was mostly caused by theological reasons. Southern Baptists are people of the book. Once the local church became aware of what was taking place at the Seminaries, the local church felt the need to respond. However, this theological shift had major implications on the nation as a whole.

The Reagan revolution started in 1980. This political movement was created when Southern Democrats switched parties and began voting for Republicans. The once solid south, became a political juggernaut for the Republican party. The Republicans had an educated evangelical voting block to thank for this movement.

Now we know that most evangelicals align themselves with the Republican party. I hope to give a brief explanation of why this is so. I believe there are two reasons for it. The first reason is obvious, and the second reason may make you think.

The first reason that most evangelicals are conservative is their moral convictions. Evangelicals believe that the Bible is true. The Bible speaks very clearly on several social issues. I know that there are those out there that say that the Bible doesn't really speak on these issues, but there are also people out there that will argue that the Earth is flat. The Bible tells us that Homosexuality is a sin. The Bible declares that marriage is a sacred relationship between a woman and a man. The Bible tells us that life is sacred. The Bible tells us that life begins in the womb. These undeniable facts lead most evangelicals to vote for conservatives. Liberals do not hold to these social views, and thus evangelicals are going to reject liberal candidates.

The second reason that most evangelicals are conservative has to deal with Eschatology. Evangelicals hate communism. They hate communism for two reasons. First, communism, for the most part, promotes atheism. Second, most evangelicals see communism as a way for the anti-Christ to rule the world. Dispensationalism lends itself to this belief. Most Evangelicals are dispensationalists whether they know it or not. Thus, the fact that Republicans have been very vocal about the evils of communism helped fortify evangelical support.

You have to go all the way back to Richard Nixon to see this line of thought. Many Evangelicals began to move towards the Republicans in the 1960's. The Republican party took a harder line against communism than the Democratic party. The reason for this is due to the fact that the Democratic party believes in more government programs than the Republican party. The Democratic party is more socialistic, and Socialism is one step away from communism.

Early evangelical thinkers began to see the difference in the two parties. There were calls by some Evangelicals long before the Reagan revolution to move towards the Republican party. The social liberalism of the 1960's moved even more evangelicals to the right, and the Reagan revolution moved many more. Much of this was due to Reagan calling the Soviet Union an evil empire.

The early 1990's finished the shift. President Bill Clinton pushed the country to the left, right after his election in 1992. Clinton's progressive stances, educated the South further. The South saw that their beliefs were out of line with the leader of the democratic party. The nation saw a dramatic change in the 1994 congressional elections. This change was due to an overwhelming evangelical turnout in the South. The evangelical shift has been completed.

As a political observer, I do not believe that there will be another theological/political movement like this any time soon. Evangelicals are firmly placed in the Republican party. Nevertheless, the republican party can cause them to stay home if they refuse to stand up to moral issues or stop fighting communism and other anti-Christian beliefs. If the Republican party desires to keep this huge voting block intact, they must stay conservative. Simply put, that is what most Evangelicals are.

Defining Christianity

I never ask people if they are a Christian. I will not ask that question because there is no clear definition of a Christian. In the town I currently live in, I would venture to say that 98% would call themselves a Christian. Why? Because they believe in Jesus. Because they aren't Jewish. Because they grew up Catholic. It really doesn't matter, because there is not a universal definition for what it means to be a Christian. So I am going to write what I think a real Christian is.

First, a real Christian must believe certain things. I have a list of five. First, a person must believe in the divinity of Jesus to be a Christian. If you do not believe in the divinity of Christ, then you do not know who Jesus really is. If you do not know who Jesus is, then how could you be a Christian.

Second, a real Christian must believe in substitutionary Atonement. This means that Jesus is the only and complete substitute for our punishment on the cross. If you do not believe that Jesus is our complete substitution then you do not believe in the purpose of his worship. You do not understand what it means to be the Lamb of God. Thus, you cannot be a Christian.

Third, a real Christian must believe in the exclusivity of Christ in Salvation. In other words, you must believe that Jesus in the only way to Heaven. IF there was another way to Heaven, then Jesus was a fool for dying on the cross. Thus, if you make Jesus a fool, you cannot be a Christian.

Fourth, a real Christian must believe in the physical death, resurrection, and return of Jesus. This is bedrock theology of the faith. The entire message of the Gospel is the physical death resurrection, and return of Jesus. Thus if you do not believe this, you cannot be a Christian.

Fifth, a real Christian must believe in the born-again experience. The new birth is key to Christianity. You are not born a Christian. God makes you a Christian. He does this by giving you a new life in Jesus. If you do not believe in a new life in Christ, then you cannot be a Christian.

Now I also believe that a person must act a certain way to be called a Christian. We are to pursue Holiness. We are to surrender all. We are to repent of our sins. We are be disciples of Jesus.


I believe that a person must be a Disciple of Christ to call themselves a Christian. I do not believe a person who neglects God's word can call themselves a Christian. I do not believe a person that does not pray regularly can call themselves a Christian. I do not believe that a person who refuses to go to worship can call themselves a Christian. I do not believe a person that refuses to share their faith can call themselves a Christian.

Now that being said, I know that someone may think, "Who are you to judge?" I want to answer this very clearly. I am not judging anyone. The Bible is. All I am doing is repeating what the Bible says that Christian are going to do. If you have a problem with this list, then you have a problem with God's word. I would venture to say that if you have a problem with God's word then you are not a Christian.

There, I did it. A long and drawn out definition of what I think makes a Christian. I am sure that this list is not complete, and I am sure that some of my readers may let me know. Nevertheless, this is a good place to start with someone who says they are a Christian, but there is no fruit to show it.

What Is Wrong With People?

I have grown accustom to disagreement. As a Pastor, I deal with disagreement all the time. Anytime you decide to do something in a church, someone will think it is a bad idea. I also went to Southern Seminary. I went during a time when disagreement was king. My denomination has had its share of fighting over the last 150 years. As a Christian, I am constantly disagreeing with the world around me. Thus, I have grown accustomed to hearing those who disagree with me, and I try hard to hear others out.

However, every now and then, a point of view gains popularity that I have no stomach for. This normally only happens when sanity is thrown out the window. You see, I can talk to a non-believer, and respectfully disagree with their side of the story. The only time I refuse to debate is when someone has a completely irrational thought and tries to act as if it is fact.

I am trying hard not to blow my lid when I hear American citizens try to blame Israel for this conflict going on. I know, I know, it is the same people that blame America for all that is wrong in the world. However, I am completely taken back by their ignorance and stubbornness. I one time visited a person in a mental ward. Another patient was convinced that he was a donkey. I watched him for a while. He made donkey sounds. He kicked his legs. He walked on all fours. However, he wasn't a donkey. He was convinced of it. However, the doctors knew better.

There are a whole lot of people in the world that are convinced of things regardless of the reasoning behind it. I have come up with a term to describe folks who blame everyone else than those who are the real problem. The term is O.J.itus.

You see, the last time I was this aggravated with a segment of the population was after the O.J. trial. The evidence was overwhelming. However, there was a group in our society that was going to support O.J. regardless of the logic. Why? Because they hate America and the American system. Thus anytime they can hurt American or the American system it makes them happy.

Hezbollah has killed hundreds of Americans through their terrorist behavior. If I were president, I would tell the world that we are going to help Israel get rid of this terror group. I would use their slaughter of our Marines back in 80's as the reason for going in. Hezbollah is an evil terror group. The sooner they are eliminated the safer the area is going to be.

You see folks, it is simple to see who is the good guys and who is the bad guys. This is how you do it. If Israel disarmed and got rid of all their military might, what would happen? Hezbollah, Iran, Syria, Al Queda, The PLO, and the Islamic Jihad would go in a crush Israel. They would slaughter the Jews, and we would have another holocaust. Now let us reverse it. If Hezbollah put away its weapons and went home, What would happen? Lebanon would survive peacefully with Israel.

The enemy is easy to define. I believe it is time that we defeat them.