Christians come in all sizes and extremes. The Corinthian Christians allowed a believer to commit fornication (1Co 5:1). The Colossian Christians criticized a believer for consuming food (Col 2:21). Both thought they were spiritual, the Corinthians because they were tolerant of sin and the Colossians because they were tough on sin. In the end, Paul says both groups were “puffed up” (1Co 5:2; Col 2:18).
Without question, only Christ enjoyed perfect balance, never leaning toward license or legalism. John says He was “full of grace and truth” (Joh 1:14). Similarly, God told Him, “Thou hast loved righteousness, and hated iniquity” (Heb 1:9).1 He never compromised truth to show grace, nor did He compromise grace to maintain truth. He was untiring in His pursuit of what was right and unshakable in His posture against what was wrong.
Paul was that way when it came to the gospel. To the Philippians he said, “Some indeed preach Christ even of envy and strife” (Php 1:15). While their motives were hurtful, their message was true. So, Paul said, “I therein do rejoice” (v18). But in Galatia, men were altering the message. Thus, Paul declared, “If any man preach any other gospel unto you than that ye have received, let him be accursed” (Gal 1:9). Paul had that Christ-like discernment to know when to confront and when to say nothing (forebear).
Many today confuse tolerance with love. The ironic contradiction is that they will tolerate everyone except those who are intolerant of wrong. If you express disapproval of sin and error, you quickly become a persona non grata and are labeled as an unloving Christian.
Even worse, this thinking is a blasphemous swipe at the character and conduct of the Savior. The Lord Jesus once called Herod a “fox” (Luk 13:32) and the Pharisees a “generation of vipers” (Mat 12:34; 23:33). He also called the scribes and Pharisees “hypocrites” (Mat 23:13,14,15,23,25,27,29) and “blind guides” (vv16,24). Many today would criticize Christ for being unchristian. However, He was not lashing out with insults. He was courageously confronting their sinful character and conduct. Therefore, if we are going to be like Christ, we need to learn when and how to deal with sin and error.
The Lord Jesus anticipated the need for this in our interpersonal relationships. When He introduced the local church in Matthew 18, He confirmed that conflict is inevitable (Mat 18:7); however, we must make sacrifices (e.g., pluck out an eye or cut off a hand) to avoid sinning against each other (vv1-9). Then He used the Parable of the Lost Sheep to teach that we should help believers who have been sinned against (vv10-14).
Next, He dealt with sin among brothers by saying, “If thy brother shall trespass against thee, go and tell him his fault between thee and him alone” (v15). This is a command, so problems and problematic people must be addressed. The key, though, is that confrontation should only ensue when sin has occurred. Anything other than sin, no matter how irritating a grievance, annoyance or disagreement might be, should be treated “with longsuffering, forbearing one another in love” (Eph 4:2).
The demand to confront sin is so imperative that if the sinning brother will not repent, the matter is then dealt with by an official confrontation with two or three witnesses (Mat 18:16). If that does not produce resolution, confrontation is then carried out by the church (v17).
But what about forgiveness? The Lord Jesus proceeded to teach (vv16-35) about forgiving “seventy times seven” (v22). But He was not asking us to choose between facing and forgiving. Instead, while we must confront sin, we also must prepare forgiveness in our hearts to be received upon repentance. Thus, when it comes to what irritates us, we must graciously forebear. When it comes to sin, we must lovingly confront.
Therefore, both facing and forgiving are required. When it came to immorality in Corinth, Paul said, “Remove the wicked person from amongst yourselves” (1Co 5:13 JND). Likewise, when men developed wrong doctrine, Paul “delivered [them] unto Satan” (1Ti 1:20). In the Bible, sin requires a serious response. Thus, Paul told the Thessalonians, “We command you, brethren, in the name of our Lord Jesus Christ, that ye withdraw yourselves from every brother that walketh disorderly” (2Th 3:6). Later he added, “If any man obey not our word by this epistle, note that man, and have no company with him” (v14). In 2 Timothy, Paul warned of errant teachers with these words, “From such turn away” (2Ti 3:5). Even with elders, Paul commands, “Them that sin rebuke before all” (1Ti 5:20). Would you be willing to do this? Paul did. Even when the great apostle Peter erred, Paul said, “I withstood him to the face” (Gal 2:11).
Even interpersonally, Scripture tells us both to “love one another” (1Jo 3:11) and to “admonish one another” (Rom 15:14). Again, these are not either/or options. If we love, we will admonish. That means that in dealing with a brother who has sinned, we need to “count him not as an enemy, but admonish him as a brother” (2Th 3:15). And, in carrying this out, we need to be “speaking the truth in love” (Eph 4:15).
Clearly, truth and love are complements, and their harmony can be seen in the way the Lord Jesus dealt with Peter. The Savior confronted him by saying, “Thou shalt thrice deny that thou knowest me” (Luk 22:34). And yet, He provided balance with love when He said, “I have prayed for thee, that thy faith fail not” (v32).
In every biblical confrontation, the balance of love and truth is present. In confronting another’s sin, the goal is to have “gained thy brother” (Mat 18:15). An assembly deals with a brother´s immorality so “that the spirit may be saved in the day of the Lord Jesus” (1Co 5:5). The objective in confronting a man walking disorderly is “that he may be ashamed” (2Th 3:14), moving toward repentance. Likewise, Paul balanced confronting sin by saying, “If a man be overtaken in a fault, ye which are spiritual, restore such an one” (Gal 6:1).
So, may God help us to avoid being Corinthian (tolerant) or Colossian (harsh). Instead, may we have the courage of Christ to confront and the compassion of Christ to care. When that pathway is discerned and walked, we will be “ye which are spiritual.” As such, we will honor God and bless others.
1 Bible quotations in this article are from the KJV unless otherwise noted.
