[Dutch: As to shunning, actually the scripture says that SOME of them shunned the evildoer. No all, but SOME. Leading me to believe that it was a matter of conscience. For instance, if I knew someone were a child abuser or a murderer, I would not need an organization to tell me to stay away from such a person. There are some people I just would not want to be associated with. However, the CHOICE is mine.]
Reply: The 1st century Church was actually very judicious, as the following from Smith's Bible Dictionary:
"Excommunication, as exercised by the Christian Church, is not merely founded on the natural right, possessed by all societies, nor merely on the example of the Jewish Church and nation. It was instituted by our Lord (Matt. xviii. 15, 18), amd it was practised and commanded by St. Paul (1 Tim. i. 20; 1 Cor. v. 11; Tit. iii.10). In the Epistles, we find St. Paul frequently claiming the right to exercise discipline over his converts (comp. 2 Cor. i. 23, xiii.10).
...The Nature of Excommunication is made more evident by the acts of St. Paul than by any investigation of Jewish practice or of the etymology of words. We thus find,
(1) that it is a spiritual penalty, involving no temporal punishment, except accidentally;
(2) that it consists in seperation from the communion of the Church;
(3) that its object is the good of the sufferer ( 1 Cor. v.5), and the protection of the sound members of the Church ( 2 Tim. iii. 17);
(4) that its subjects are those who are guilty of heresy (1 Tim. i. 20), or gross immorality (1 Cor. v. 1);
(5) that it is inflicted by the authority of the Church at large (Matt. xviii. 18), wielded by the
highest ecclesiastical officer (1 Corinthians 5:3; Titus 3:10)
(6) that this officer's sentence is promulgated by the congregation to which the offender belongs, (1 Corinthians 5:4) in defence to his superior judgment and command, (2 Corinthians 2:9) and in spite of any opposition on the part of a minority, (2 Corinthians 2:6)
(7) that the exclusion may be of indefinite duration, or for a period;
(8) that its duration may be abridged at the discretion and by the indulgence of the person who has imposed the penalty, (2 Corinthians 2:8)
(9) that penitence is the condition on which restoration to communion is granted, (2 Corinthians
2:8)
(10) that the sentence is to be publicly reversed as it was publicly promulgated. (2 Corinthians 2:10) "
This point is re-iterated by the following:
Excommunicaton
"The permanent or temporary exclusion of a church member from fellowship within the community. This practice, specifically mentioned in Matthew's Gospel (Matt. 18:15-17) and the Corinthian correspondence (1 Cor. 5:5; 2 Cor. 2:6), served 2 purposes. First, it protects the community from the harmful influence of the sinner (1 Cor. 5:6-7). Second, it reminds the sinner of the sin (2 Cor. 2:7) in the hope that repentance (7:9) and redemption occur. Excommunication is never an individual or (2 Cor. 2:6) or judgmental activity (v.8) and it is not a withdrawal of concern for the sinner. It always has restoration as its ultimate goal.
Although the term ‘excommunication’ does not appear in Scripture, the concept is clearly present. Matthew instructs the Church to treat unrepentant members like ‘a Gentile and a tax collector’ (Matt. 18:17), and Paul wants the guilty party delivered ‘over to Satan’ (1 Cor. 5:5), i.e., delivered over to the realm of Satan, the world outside the Church.
Church discipline, ending in excommunication, should only be used for serious matters such as blatant sexual sins (1 Cor. 5:1), unrepentance (Matt. 18:15-17), factiousness (Tit. 3:10-11), and the propagation of heresy (Rom. 16:17). Sinners should be dealt with quickly and seriously for both the health of the community and the spiritual health of the offender.”
p. 438, Eerdman’s Dictionary of the Bible
If you are not part of an organizational structure, who is enforcing
