Overwhelmed by Sorrow – Interpreting the Law of God (48)

Overwhelmed by Sorrow

Interpreting the Law of God (48)

There is always room for the repentant to return to the community of life and light.

For such a one, this punishment by the majority is enough, so you should rather turn to forgive and comfort him, or he may be overwhelmed by excessive sorrow. So I beg you to reaffirm your love for him. 2 Corinthians 2:6-8

The goal of excommunication is to bring unrepentant sinners to their senses, so that they will turn from their sins and seek the favor of the Lord and His people again.

Paul wanted the guilty man in Corinth to know judgment, rejection, loneliness, and fear. The judgment against him was righteous, as Jesus commanded (John 7:24). His rejection was a decision of the majority (of the leaders) but an act to be enforced by the entire community of faith. He would be without his familiar friends, without an opportunity to worship with other believers, and barred from the table of the Lord—and he would know exactly why.

Plus, he might be vulnerable to a civil judgment that could inflict even more pain.

This man needed to arrive at a broken and contrite spirit; he needed to know deep sorrow in his heart because of what he had done in offending God, sinning against two people, and scandalizing the Church and the faith of Jesus Christ.

And Paul wanted the community of faith to come to sorrow as well, both for their own role in tolerating this outrage for so long, and in having to be separated from one of their own members.

But sorrow being achieved—the man having come to sorrow and the community grieving for their sin and his loss—it was time to bring restoration. Sorrow had evidently led to repentance in this situation. Now it was time for the comfort of the Spirit, the forgiveness of the cross, and the renewal of the Body of Christ.

A lost sheep, having been raised from the dead, was now to be restored to the Lord’s fold.

Order a copy of The Law of God from our online store, and begin daily reading in the commandments, statutes, testimonies, precepts, and rules of God, which are the cornerstone of divine revelation. Sign up at our website to receive our thrice-weekly devotional, Crosfigell, written by T. M. Moore.

–

In the Gates is a devotional series on the Law of God by Rev. T.M. Moore, editor of the Worldview Church. He serves as dean of the Centurions Program of the Wilberforce Forum and principal of The Fellowship of Ailbe, a spiritual fellowship in the Celtic Christian tradition. He is the author or editor of twenty books, and has contributed chapters to four others. His essays, reviews, articles, papers, and poetry have appeared in dozens of national and international journals, and on a wide range of websites. His most recent books are The Ailbe Psalter and The Ground for Christian Ethics (Waxed Tablet).

Scripture quotations in this article are from The Holy Bible, English Standard Version, (c) copyright 2001, 2007 by Crossway Bibles, a division of Good News Publishers. Used by permission. All rights reserved.