The Unleavened Bread of Sincerity and Truth

By B. T. Byrne

The Lord said in Matthew 13:47 that the kingdom of heaven is like a great net that is cast into the sea and brings in every kind and at the end of the world the angels will separate the good from the bad -- the bad to be destroyed, the good to eternal rest.

The all-inclusiveness of this net was made clear in the character of the church at Corinth. Seeing the debilitating effect of certain individuals on the church, Paul instructed them to deal with them "that the spirit may be saved in the day of the Lord Jesus" (I Corinthians 5:5) and that truth may be kept in the local church.

Then, in the second letter, Paul expresses a consciousness of the severity of the first letter (discipline is by nature severe and a fear that in their zeal to do the right thing, that is discipline wrongdoers, that they might go beyond the true purpose of discipline and destroy themselves in the process. He tempers their zeal with the statement "sufficient to such a man is this punishment which was inflicted of many" (II Corinthians 2:6).

What the apostle says about discipline in these letters to Corinth, in my opinion, is appropriate at this particular time.

In the second letter he seeks to reassure himself of their understanding of the true purpose of discipline and while being careful not to minimize the necessity of their zealous action, he is also careful that they not act on ill advice and run the risk of substituting their own righteousness for the righteousness of God. (See Romans 10:3).

Paul continues on related things that came out of the discipline of the incestuous man (I Corinthians 5) and in II Corinthians 7:11, it is obvious by his language that though their timing was not perfect, they ultimately did the right thing and Paul rejoiced in this. "....what carefulness it wrought in you, yea what clearing of yourselves, yea what indignation, yea what fear, yea what vehement desire, yea what zeal, yea what revenge! In all things ye have approved yourselves to be clear in this matter."

Notice another characteristic of these brethren that Paul commended. "Yea, what indignation!" Christians, like the world, have become almost shock proof. We observe evil things with callused hearts that arouse in us no righteous indignation. Consequently, self-discipline comes very hard for us if at all.

The church at Corinth was fearful, too -- afraid not to do right. By present-day standards, this, too, is a novel idea. We are not too quick to confess that we did what was right because we were afraid to do wrong.

Finally, Paul said, "Yea, what zeal!" (passionate eagerness, earnest enthusiasm). We can hardly imagine being passionately eager or earnestly enthusiastic over doing the Lord's will. This is what Paul had in mind when he said in Galatians 4:18 -- "But it is good to be zealously affected always in a good thing...."

Because the church is made up of people of every characteristic, it is necessary that the elders and others who help to direct the work, watch for their souls, being careful not to act as lord's over God's heritage, but being careful, too, that we manifest the same spirit of care, fear and zeal that Paul found commendable in the church at Corinth. --July 1977, Lubbock, Texas 79416.