“Living a Repentant Life”: 1 Corinthians 5:9-13, by CountrySlicker

⁹ I wrote to you in my epistle not to keep company with sexually immoral people. ¹⁰ Yet I certainly did not mean with the sexually immoral people of this world, or with the covetous, or extortioners, or idolaters, since then you would need to go out of the world. ¹¹ But now I have written to you not to keep company with anyone named a brother, who is sexually immoral, or covetous, or an idolater, or a reviler, or a drunkard, or an extortioner—not even to eat with such a person.

¹² For what have I to do with judging those also who are outside? Do you not judge those who are inside? ¹³ But those who are outside God judges. Therefore “put away from yourselves the evil person.” (1 Corinthians 5:9-13)

The phrase “keep company” could have been translated “mix up together”. The idea that this phrase is conveying is to “mingle with others” or have “a close relationship” with one another. Specifically, in verse 9, Paul is instructing the Corinthians not to have close associations with sexually immoral people. Recall that Paul is addressing how the church has rejoiced in the sexual immorality of a member of the church that is having an affair with his own stepmother.

We have different expectations of other Christians than we have of the unbelievers in the world. When a person repents, they change from a mindset of rejecting Christ to a mindset of accepting Christ. They perform a spiritual about-face. In accepting Christ, this change also involves a change in our view of sin and what it means to honor God. Instead of living a self-serving life filled with sin while rejecting Christ, the Christian recognizes the sin as separating them from God and begins to reject sin in their life. The believer does not become sinless and perfect (at least not while on earth). However, the desire to reject sin and honor God is very much present in the believer’s life. The unbeliever lacks this desire to reject sin and honor God with their life. They are still pursuing worldly and fleshly desires as carnal individuals.

It should not surprise or offend us that those who do not yet know Jesus are covetous. Literally, the word means those “who must have more.” It should not surprise or offend us that those who do not yet know Jesus yet are extortioners (harpax in the ancient Greek). The word describes those who steal by violence. It should not surprise or offend us that those who do not yet know Jesus act as a reviler, describing a person who is a character assassin. We expect unrepentant sinners to act like sinners.

In the same way, we expect repentant brothers and sisters to act like repentant believers. As such, we should not accept for them to pursue or embrace sin their lives. When we accept their pursuit of sin, we are guilty of endorsing their behavior. In doing so, we mislead them and we misrepresent God to the unbelieving world that is watching.

In ancient times, and in many places to this day, eating together is viewed as an expression of very close partnership. Which is why the Pharisees and religious leaders often criticized Jesus for eating with the tax collectors and sinners. Consuming food from the same table was viewed as a very close form of bonding and servers as one of the principles in the establishment of holy communion. Consuming together of the bread and wine symbolizes the joining together of individuals in the message of the cross through the flesh that was sacrificed and the blood that was spilled.

Quoting David Guzik… “Unfortunately, too many Christians are busy judging those outside of the church (which is God’s job only) and are neglecting purity within the church…. The Corinthian Christians were failing to judge where they should have made judgment. They should not have “winked” at the notorious sinner among them, and they should not have considered themselves “loving” for doing so.”

Christians are instructed that they should be known for their love for one another. This is very much true and is a very important characteristic of the faith. Sincere love requires that we speak truth. God’s love is rooted in truth throughout His word. Jesus never shied away from calling sin “sin”. Neither should we. Sincere love puts a higher priority on a person’s spiritual well-being than on their social of physical comfort.

“Deliver such a one to Satan for the destruction of the flesh, that his spirit may be saved in the day of the Lord Jesus.” (1 Corinthians 5:5)

May you have the courage to speak truth into the lives of brothers and sisters that they would be encouraged to turn from sin and to a closer relationship with God.

God Bless,

CountrySlicker