Church Discipline

Theologians correctly teach us that in order to be a true Church, a local church should be marked by three things: the faithful preaching of God’s Word; the administration of the sacraments, and church discipline. It seems that the last of the three – church discipline – is increasingly ignored in today’s world. Dr. Michael Kruger tells us that this push to eliminate church discipline is rooted in the growing belief that when it comes to the Christian faith, pastors, youth pastors, and parents should encourage our kids to engage in a personal search, rather than teaching kids that while following Jesus does involve a process of questioning and exploring, there will be times when shepherds are needed to pull them back in if they are wandering. Church discipline and even parental discipline in the home is for our good. If we lose our way, we need to be gracefully and lovingly corrected so that we might repent of any sinful practices and be brought restored. We need the church and its accountability!