1 Corinthians 5

Fornication was reported to Paul. "Fornication" meant "to commit idolatry." One effect of fornication is sexual relations with your father's wife, as Paul used in the example in verse 1.

Critical Point: Paul judged the action (stumblingblock) of this man. The rest of this chapter is easy to misinterpret if the following points are not understood:

1. Paul judged an action (WHAT) that had no possible right HOW/WHY. The son was having sex with a woman who was married to his father. There was no possible combination of events that would make this not sin.

2. Paul was speaking to the church, not to the fornicator. Some will state the rest of this letter was Paul addressing the fornicator and miss the fact that Paul was actually addressing the church, the believers.

3. This sin was so widely known, not only within the church, but the information had made its way to Paul. Paul was upset with the church that a well-known fornicator was allowed to remain in the church, as if he was a believer.

We will see Paul's response to the church, but first Paul instructed them what to do about the fornicator.

Paul said that this person (the fornicator) was to be delivered to Satan for the destruction of the flesh. This was done with the hope that this man can be saved in the day of the Lord. Delivering this man to Satan was actually for the man's benefit. The idea was that since he did not learn from understanding, he would end up learning through experience by being in the devil's snare. Paul also presented this Doctrine in 2 Timothy 2:25-26. This involved removing this man from the church and ceasing to pray for him.

This process did not involve prayer. Some believers think this process involves prayer. To whom would the believers pray? Satan? (I hope not.) God? What would that prayer look like? It would not involve God doing anything. If anything, it would involve God not helping this person, which would be prayed for in what manner? Judging is the equaling out of Justice. Paul used the word "judge" in the beginning of this chapter, and now we see an action was taken to equal out Justice: the fornicator would be removed.

Summary: Paul wanted these people to remove the fornicator from being influenced by the Spirit, which could only be coming from outside the individual (church) because he was no longer a believer that had the Spirit within him.

This man would make the entire church of Corinth unprofitable through his fornication, especially because the church was "glorying" in the fornicator remaining among them, and making their ability to get an influence from the Spirit through the church unprofitable.

Purge out the old leaven meant they should have put away (remove from community) the fornicators (unprofitable cells in the church body). Delivering the fornicator to Satan meant removing him from church, which was an action that would result from "judging."

Paul had already written them to not keep company with fornicators. Notice, this meant that this first letter to the Corinthians was actually not the first! Paul had previously written this church. How many letters did Paul write that we do not have access to? Would the "church" today consider those epistles to be inspired by God if they were found? What is your measure for something being scripture; for something being inspired by God?

Doctrine: Believers need to separate the fornicators from community (church) so that believers can go out to the world to interact with them (fornicators). Paul clarified that having no interaction with fornicators did not mean never interacting with fornicators...otherwise, believers would have to remove themselves from the world. Paul clearly stated that the church ought not to have interactions with fornicators within the church.

Critical Point: If the church knows a person is a fornicator and the church recognizes the person as a believer, the church needs to put the fornicator out of the church so that the individuals in the church can reach out to the fornicator...and so that the fornicator is removed from the influence of the Spirit experienced from the church. Major problems come when a fornicator (unbeliever) is within the church and deceives people into thinking he is a believer.

Doctrine: Believers should not judge unbelievers. Believers do not judge those outside of community (unbelievers). Believers do judge those within community (believers).

However, it should be judging between believers: the issues between believers, the conflicts between believers, the stumblingblocks between believers...not the believers themselves, as individuals. The behavior is judged, not the person. Paul's point was that the church in Corinth was putting a stumblingblock in the path of other believers by declaring a fornicator as a believer.

Theme of Chapter 5: Paul addressed the first doctrinal issue. Paul encouraged the church in Corinth to put away the known fornicator, who was seen by the church as a believer, so that other believers would not stumble in their faith. Paul stated the way to interact with fornicators was to remove them from the church so the fornicator and the church knew they were dealing with a fornicator.