92SermonsofJonathanEdwards
(2) It is reasonable to suppose that God is wont to make the devil the instrument of those peculiar, severe chastisements which their apostasy deserves. As they deserve more severe chastisement than the heathens, and are delivered to Satan, for the destruction of the flesh. So we may well suppose, either that God is wont to let Satan loose, sorely to molest them outwardly or inwardly, and by such severe means to destroy the flesh, and to humble them; or that he suffers the devil to take possession of them dreadfully to harden them, and so to destroy them for ever. For although what men are to aim at, is only the destruction of the flesh, yet whether it shall prove the destruction of the flesh, or the eternal and more dreadful destruction of themselves, is as God's sovereign disposal. — So much for the nature of excommunication.
Secondly, I come to show by whom the punishment is to be inflicted.
1. When it is regularly and duly inflicted, it is to be looked upon as done by Christ himself. That is imported in the definition, that it is according to his will, and to the directions of his word. And therefore he is to be looked upon as principal in it, and we ought to esteem it as really and truly from him, as if he were on earth personally inflicting it.
2. As it is inflicted by men, it is only done ministerially. They do not act of themselves in this, any more than in preaching the Word. When the Word is preached, it is the word of Christ which is spoken, as the preacher speaks in the name of Christ, as his ambassador. So when a church excommunicates a member, the church acts in the name of Christ, and by his authority, not by its own. It is governed by his will, not by its own. Indeed it is only a particular application of the word of Christ. — Therefore it is promised, that when it is duly done, it shall be confirmed in heaven; i.e. Christ will confirm it, by acknowledging it to be his own act. And he will, in his future providence, have regard to what is done thus as done by himself. He will look on the person, and treat him as cast out and delivered to Satan by himself; and if he repent not, will for ever reject him: Mat.
18:18. "Verily I say unto you, Whatsoever ye shall bind on earth, shall be bound in heaven." John 20:23. "Whose soever sins ye retain, they are retained." — I shall now, as was proposed,
II. Endeavor to show who are the proper subjects of excommunication. They are those members of the church who are now become visibly wicked; for the very name and nature of the visible church show, that it is a society of visible saints, or visibly holy persons. When any of these visible saints become visibly wicked men, they ought to be cast out of the church. Now, the members of the church become visibly wicked by these two things:
First, by gross sin. Saints may be guilty of other sins, and very often are, without throwing any just stumbling-block in the way of public charity, or of the charity of their Christian brethren. The common failures of humanity, and the daily short-comings of the best of men, do not ordinarily obstruct the charity of their brethren. But when they fall into any gross sin, this effect follows; for we naturally argue, that he who hath committed some gross sin hath doubtless much more practiced less and more secret sins; and so we doubt concerning the soundness and sincerity of his heart. Therefore all those who commit any gross sin, as they obstruct the charity of their brethren, are proper subjects of discipline. And unless they confess their sin, and manifest their repentance, are proper subjects of excommunication. — This leads me to say,
Second, that the members of the church do especially become visibly wicked, when they remain impenitent in their sins, after proper means used to reclaim them. Merely being guilty of any gross sin, is a stumbling-block to charity, unless repentance immediately succeed; but especially when the guilty person remains obstinate and contumacious. In such a case he is most clearly a visible wicked person, and therefore to be dealt with as such; to be cast out into the wicked world, the kingdom of Satan, where he appears to belong. — Nor is contumacy in gross sins only a sufficient ground of excommunication. In the text the apostle commands us to inflict this censure, not only on those who are guilty of the gross sins of fornication, idolatry, and drunkenness, but also on those who are guilty of covetousness, railing, and extortion, which, at least in some degrees of them, are too generally esteemed no very heinous crimes. And in Rom. 16:17, the same apostle commands the church to excommunicate "them who cause divisions and offenses, contrary to the doctrine they had learned;" and in 2 Thes. 3:14, to excommunicate everyone who should "not obey his word by that epistle." Now, according to these precepts, everyone who doth not observe the doctrine of the apostles, and their word contained in their epistles, and so, by parity of reason, the divine instructions contained in the other parts of Scripture, is to be excommunicated, provided he continue impenitent and contumacious. So that contumacy and impenitence in any real and manifest sin whatsoever, deserve excommunication.
III. I come to speak of the ends of this ecclesiastical ensure. The special ends of it are these three:
First, that the church may be kept pure, and the ordinances of God not be defiled. This end is mentioned in the context, verse 6, etc. "Know ye not that a little leaven leaveneth the whole lump? Purge out therefore the old leaven, that ye may be a new lump, as ye are unleavened. Therefore let us keep the feast, not with old leaven, neither with the leaven of malice and wickedness, but with the unleavened bread of sincerity and truth." — When the ordinances of God are defiled by the toleration of wicked men in the church, God the Father, Jesus Christ the head and founder of the church, the religion of the gospel, and the church itself, are dishonored and exposed to contempt. — And that the other members themselves may not be defiled, it is necessary that they bear a testimony against sin, by censuring it whenever it appears among them, especially in the grosser acts of wickedness. If they neglect so to do, they contract guilt by the very neglect. And not only so, but they expose themselves to learn the same vices which they tolerate in others; for "a little leaven leaveneth the whole lump." Hence that earnest caution of the apostle, Heb. 12:15. "Looking diligently lest any man fail of the grace of God; lest any root of bitterness springing up, trouble you, and thereby many be defiled."
Second, that others may be deterred from wickedness. As the neglect of proper censure, with respect to visibly wicked church-members, tends to lead and encourage others to commit the same wickedness. So the infliction of proper censure tends to restrain others, not only from the same wickedness, but from sin in general. This therefore is repeatedly mentioned as one end of the punishments appointed to be inflicted by the law of Moses, Deu. 13:11. "And all Israel shall hear, and fear, and shall do no more such wickedness as this is among you."
Third, that the persons themselves may be reclaimed, and that their souls may be saved. When other more gentle means have been used in vain, then it is the duty of the church to use this, which is more severe, in order to bring them to conviction, shame, and humiliation. And that, by being rejected and avoided by the church, and treated with disrespect, they may be convinced how they deserve to be for ever disowned of God; that by being delivered unto Satan, they may learn how they deserve forever to be delivered up to him; that by his being made the instrument of their chastisement, they may learn how they deserve to be tormented by him, without any rest day or night, forever and ever. — This, with the counsels and admonitions by which it is to be followed, is the last mean that the church is to use, in order to reclaim those members which are become visibly wicked. If this be ineffectual, what is next to be expected is destruction without remedy.
APPLICATION
I shall apply this subject in a brief use of exhortation to this church, to maintain strictly the proper discipline of the gospel in general, and particularly that part of it which consists in excommunication. To this end I shall just suggest to you the following motives.