1 Corinthians 5:1-4

1 Corinthians 5:1 ESV

It         is actually reported

that                                    there is sexual immorality among you,

and                                               of a kind

that     is                                                             not tolerated even among pagans,

for                                                                                 a man has his father's wife.

Removed = exairō = to remove: - put (take) away.

1 Corinthians 5:2 ESV
And               you                are                arrogant!

Ought            you                not rather      to mourn?

Let                him

who               has done       this

be removed from     among you.

 

1 Corinthians 5:3 ESV
For     though          absent                     in body,

I          am present              In spirit;

and                          as if present,          

I                    have already pronounced            judgment

Name = ὄνομα = onoma = a “name” (literally or figuratively), (authority, character): - called, (+ sur-) name (-d).

on the one

who              

did such a thing.

1 Corinthians 5:4 ESV
When            you               are assembled         in the name of

the Lord Jesus

See OneNote vs4

and               my spirit        is present,               with the power of

our Lord Jesus,

Power = δύναμις = dunamis =  force (literally or figuratively); specifically miraculous power (usually by implication a miracle itself): - ability, abundance, meaning, might

 

The Church is expected to assess open sin and take action to remove it from its midst. The Church is not given license in these passages to investigate everyone and try to drudge up all the dirt they can find but when the sin is open and flagrant, then action is to be taken.

The action is not the result of one person’s complaint or instigation. The Apostle Matthew describes the procedure laid down by Jesus (Matthew 18:15-17). If the individual or group remains recalcitrant then the whole church is to meet and take action.

The ecclesia in Corinth had not taken action and seemed reluctant to do so.  In fact some were apparently bragging about the fact that they were a “welcoming and affirming” church.  They thought they had taken the right course in allowing such a thing to be openly accepted in their midst.

They obviously were confused and unable to administer judgment since they didn’t seemed unable to recognize sin in their midst and even rejoiced in its presence.

The modern church is much like the one in Corinth.  Sin is accepted and even celebrated in our midst. We have churches, even whole denominations, that openly accept and even celebrate homosexuality and all sorts of sexual confusion; churches that wink at adultery; churches that celebrate and promote greed, whose coffers have multiple millions in them while multiple millions of people go without food, shelter or healthcare.

Shame on them and shame on us who wink at such things in our midst and do nothing to, as the Apostle Paul would say, purge the evil from our midst (1 Corinthians 5:13). I ria time that we stop celebrating our “open-mindedness” and begin to purge evil from our midst.