Category Archives: Church discipline

How to Preserve Your Pastor (Part 2)—Pastoral Over-Concern about Critics: The Relationship Between “Fear of Man” and the Failure of Accountability

Posted on January 31, 2013 by

This is part 2 of a seven part series on How to Preserve Your Pastor. I have organized this series around Dr. Tom Ranier’s excellent article: The Top Seven Regrets of Pastors. The top regret of pastors has to do … Continue reading →

Posted in Church discipline, Conflicts involving church leaders, Conflicts with our youth pastor, Confrontation | 2 Comments

What difference does church membership make? I do everything in my church except vote …

Posted on September 29, 2012 by

“I am a regular attender, not a member.” Those were the sad words I heard; another person explaining to me the nature of their relationship with the church that they had been attending for eight years. I asked her: “I … Continue reading →

Posted in Church discipline, Disappointment in the church, Lawsuits and Church Conflict | Leave a comment

What Effect Does Church Discipline Have on Evangelism?

Posted on September 20, 2012 by

I was teaching from Matthew 16:15-20 when a man in the audience asked: “What effect does such a plan of accountability and church discipline have on evangelism?”  I was a bit stunned for a moment, especially as he continued to … Continue reading →

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One of the biggest mistakes churches make in conflict is failing to trust Scripture …

Posted on July 28, 2012 by

One of the biggest mistakes churches make in conflict is failing to trust Scripture. In the confusion, hurt, and fear associated with church conflict, even mature Christians sometimes doubt that God’s revealed range of solutions will be adequate to their … Continue reading →

Posted in Biblical peacemaking in the church, Church discipline | Leave a comment

Fencing Over Fights

Posted on June 25, 2012 by

Q. This past Sunday our pastor “fenced the table” (i.e., brought the warning regarding coming to the Lord’s Table in an unworthy manner; 1 Corinthians 11:27-29) by using the Lord’s words found at Matthew 5:23-24 concerning unreconciled relationships and how … Continue reading →

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Must a Church Also Be a Court?

Posted on May 20, 2012 by

As Christian conciliators, Dave and I agree with all four of the Peacemaker Ministries distinctives. Today, I would like to draw your attention to the second distinctive: The Responsibility of the Church: We believe that peacemaking is an essential ministry of … Continue reading →

Posted in Biblical peacemaking in the church, Church discipline, Justice and peacemaking, Lawsuits and Church Conflict, RedeemingLINKS | Leave a comment

Church Discipline: Also Pursuing the Sinned-Against

Posted on April 28, 2012 by

In Chapter 12 of Redeeming Church Conflicts (“Accountability We Should Cherish”), Dave and I  recommend a wonderful book on church discipline by Jonathan Leeman entitled The Church and the Surprising Offense of God’s Love: Reintroducing the Doctrines of Church Membership and Discipline. As I … Continue reading →

Posted in Abusive churches, Church discipline, Confrontation, RedeemingLINKS | Leave a comment

When Change Seems Unlikely in Church Conflicts

Posted on January 13, 2012 by

Tara has suggested to me that we present a short series of stories of hope—positive experiences we have had when working with churches in conflict. The aim of such a series, of course, would be to reveal God’s faithfulness to … Continue reading →

Posted in Biblical peacemaking in the church, Church discipline, Conflicts involving church leaders, HOPE in the midst of conflict | Leave a comment

RedeemingLinks: What Spiritual Abuse IS and Is NOT

Posted on October 2, 2011 by

Tim Challies and Bob Kellemen do an excellent job discussing what spiritual abuse IS and is NOT in this two-part series: Spiritual Abuse More on Spiritual Abuse

Posted in Abusive churches, Church discipline, Conflicts involving church leaders, Disappointment in the church, RedeemingLINKS | Leave a comment

Isn’t church discipline harsh and unloving?

Posted on July 29, 2011 by

Q: “Recently a man in our church was punished for divorcing his wife. He has left the church and so has his wife and family. The pastor said everything was done according to our church’s rules (bylaws) but in this … Continue reading →

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