1 Corinthians 5:1–8 and Matthew 18:15–17
There are many subjects that churches avoid at almost any cost. There is one subject, however, that is probably the most verboten of all: church discipline. Not only is this not mentioned in the vast majority of churches, it’s not even a consideration at all. “What could be more unloving?” it is asked. “What could be more damaging to a person than putting him or her out of the church?” But it is precisely such attitudes that have created the most worldly, unholy, culture-driven, and self-indulgent condition the Church has ever known. Our texts, therefore, present six basic principles of church discipline: its necessity, reason, purpose, method, grounds, and result.