The Bible says:
“And if any man obey not our word by this epistle, note that man, and have no company with him, that he may be ashamed.”
— 2 Thessalonians 3: 14
“Shunning” is a church doctrine. It is found in the church epistles, but it’s practiced by almost no religious group but the Mennonites.
Shunning “is a practice of completely shutting out from all intercourse with the faithful of those who have been excommunicated from the congregation.” This meant that the faithful were neither to eat, drink, visit, buy nor sell with any excommunicated person.
Shunning was done to remove the disobedient member from the fellowship of other believers that they might be ashamed and repent and return. The fornicator at Corinth was excommunicated and shunned, (1 Corinthians 5) but was later restored. (2 Corinthians
2: 5-9)
Shunning is practiced because “a little leaven (sin, evil) leaveneth the whole lump.” (1 Corinthians 5: 6) In other words, what you tolerate you get more of. And when there is no church discipline, as there is none today, sin grows rampant in the church as it has today.
When sin is not judged in the church and the sinner made ashamed of their sin, then sin will spread and corrupt the whole assembly. To remain holy and useful for God the church must be a judge of all that comes into the assembly.
(1 Timothy 3; Titus 1: 6-9; Matthew 18: 17; 1 Corinthians 5: 9-13; Matthew 7: 15-20; Acts 17: 11; 1 Corinthians 14: 29; 1 John 4: 1; 1 Corinthians 6: 25) The ones that are to be shunned are the brother or sister in Christ that is “a fornicator, or covetous, or an idolater, or a railer (scorner, mocker, trouble-maker), or a drunkard, or an extortioner; with such an one no not to eat.” (1 Corinthians 5: 11) If the church practiced this kind of church discipline and shunning today we couldn’t have a worship service.
And it’s because of this toleration of sin and refusal to exercise biblical church discipline that has allowed sin in the church to where God is now shunning us.
“I (God) will go and return to my place, ’til they acknowledge their offence, and seek my face: in their affliction they will seek me early.”
— Hosea 5: 15
The church may tolerate sin and have fellowship with the rebellious brother or sister, but God won’t.
The church, in order to become “sinner friendly” as she is today, has lowered her standard to where it’s too low for her to have fellowship with our High and Holy God.
James H. Cagle is a Ray City resident who pastored several churches for a total of 11 years. Email him at pastorjameshcagle@ yahoo.
com
