This is an important and complicated verse. Paul has commanded the Christians in Corinth to remove from among them a man who was sleeping with his father's wife, a form of sexual immorality even their own pagan culture condemned (1 Corinthians 5:1). By tolerating such open sin and perversion, the church was inviting shame and judgment (1 Corinthians 5:2).

Now Paul writes that by the power of the Lord Jesus (1 Corinthians 5:4), they are to deliver—or hand over—the man to Satan. Paul is the one who has commanded this action, but it is the church in Corinth that must carry it out. In doing so, they will take responsibility as a group for confronting the sin that is among them. This openly incestuous person is to be given over "to Satan for the destruction of the flesh." The purpose is not for revenge, or even punishment. Rather, it is "so that his spirit might be saved" at the Lord's judgment.

Bible teachers debate what this means. Most all agree that in practice it means nothing more than excommunication: to reject him from meeting with the other believers, and from identifying with them. It seems likely that by removing the man from the church, they will also be removing him from the protection that comes with being included in the body of Christ. They will be thrusting this man back, exposed, into the kingdom of darkness (Colossians 1:13).

In some way, this will result in the destruction of the man's flesh. Some scholars suggest this means Satan will be given the freedom by God to end the man's earthly life, either quickly or through a long-term illness. Others, however, point to the examples of Job, Paul's own "messenger from Satan" (2 Corinthians 12:7), and Paul's deliverance of others to Satan for their ultimate good (1 Timothy 1:20) to mean that God may use Satan's destructive work in the man's life to lead him to repentance.

For the man, the hope is that this action will result in the eternal salvation of his spirit. It is unclear if the man is understood to be a Christian who will ultimately be saved by God's grace or an unbeliever who may come to genuine salvation by this act of removing him from the church. The goal of this action is not retaliation, but rehabilitation: to convict the man of his sin to encourage repentance and restoration (Galatians 6:1).

Details aside, this verse clearly supports three crucial purposes of church discipline. First, it is necessary in order to convict and correct others so they aren't fooled about their spiritual state (1 Corinthians 10:12). Second, it is necessary for the spiritual health of the other believers (Jude 1:12; Galatians 2:4). Third, it is necessary to prevent the unbelieving world from having legitimate reasons to criticize the body of Christ (1 Peter 2:12; 2 Peter 2:1–2; Galatians 2:14).

First Corinthians 5:1–8 contains Paul's primary example of how the Corinthian's pride and self-sufficiency is hurting their community. He has just asked if they would prefer he come in gentleness, or ''with a rod,'' symbolic of harsh judgment. Here, Paul details a grievous sin: the believers in Corinth have failed to rebuke a member who is committing incest with his father's wife. They must remove him from the church and turn him over to Satan in hopes of his ultimate salvation. This is also crucial for the health of the church—just as tiny bits of leaven eventually spread to an entire batch of dough, sin left unconfronted can poison an entire church.

Paul confronts the church in Corinth for failing to respond to a self-identified believer having a sexual affair with his father's wife. He insists they must remove the man from their community—to refuse his participation in the church—referred to here as delivering him to Satan. As the Jewish people would do during Passover, they must remove the leaven of this man and his sin from among them, to prevent it from spreading to the entire church. Christian congregations should not associate with those who claim to be believers, yet flaunt their sin.

First Corinthians 5 continues Paul's confrontational tone from the previous chapter. There, he warned the arrogant that he might return to them with a rod of correction. Now he points to a specific result of their pride: They have failed to respond to one among them who is openly committing incest. Paul commands them to remove the man from their community by turning him over to Satan for destruction of his flesh, in hopes that his spirit would be saved. They must not even share a meal with a Christian continuing in unrepentant sin. Paul will distinguish between the judgment of believers with that of non-believers. In the next chapter, this will include more details on how to handle conflict, as well as the ability of God to forgive any and all sin.

First Corinthians is one of the more practical books of the New Testament. Paul writes to a church immersed in a city associated with trade, but also with corruption and immorality. These believers are struggling to properly apply spiritual gifts and to resist the ungodly practices of the surrounding culture. Paul's letter gives instructions for real-life concerns such as marriage and spirituality. He also deals with the importance of unity and gives one of the Bible's more well-known descriptions of love in chapter 13.

Accessed 12/21/2024 12:09:41 PM

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