The Nature of the Church: The Church is Holy and Spotless I. Introduction A. Ephesians 5:22-33 B. We often read this passage in a discussion of marriage 1. this is right and proper 2. but verse 32 indicates the purpose of Paul's message 3. he refers to "Christ and the church" C. With this insight we can go back through this passage and note what the church ought to be D. A significant point about the church is found in verse 27 1. The church should have no spot or wrinkle 2. The church should be holy and without blemish E. How can it be said that the church is holy and spotless? F. What must be done to ensure that this church is the reflection of the Church of Christ, the collective of the saved, and therefore holy and spotless? G. Let us examine the Scripture in this regard II. Holy and Spotless A. What does it mean to be holy? 1. Paul talks in Ephesians 5:25-27 regarding the sanctification of the church 2. Sanctification is being "set apart" 3. When we are sanctified, we are "set apart," and must remain pure to remain in such a position 4. hence, we must be "holy," which means purity in all things B. What does it mean to be spotless? 1. To be spotless, one must be without spot or blemish of any form 2. 2 Corinthians 7:1: exhortation to not be defiled in either body or spirit 3. To be spotless, we must avoid the spots or blemishes that may come upon us, which is sin C. To be holy and spotless, therefore, requires us to avoid sin and to be active in obedience to God in all matters D. We must act the part of the sanctified, being immediately evident to all that we are a "peculiar people" III. Individuals Must Be Holy and Spotless A. How can it be said, however, that the church is to be holy and spotless? B. The church is the collective of those who comprise it: individual Christians C. The local church is the collective of Christians in this area who assemble together D. For this local church to be holy and spotless, each member must be holy and spotless! E. Such things are commanded of all of us: Romans 12:1, 2 Corinthians 7:1, Galatians 5:19-23 F. Matthew 5:13-16 applies to individuals! We must all be lights for Jesus! G. If we are going to be true witnesses for Christ and convert souls, we must do as we preach 1. The essence of Pharisaism is to say one thing and do another (Matthew 23:1-3) 2. People are very aware of hypocrisy and it turns them off 3. Many souls-- both previously Christian and never Christian-- have departed from the faith because of the hypocrisy of Christians 4. Is this justifiable? No, but hypocrisy ought not be named in a church! H. We have no excuse if we preach the truth but do not do it-- James 4:17 applies to us all 1. This is true even if we do not "preach" 2. Do you know what is right and yet do not do it? 3. Do you know that you are to do good and yet do you not do it? I. If you desire to be a part of His Body and to be saved, you MUST be holy and spotless! IV. Consequences of Not Being Holy and Spotless A. What if you are not holy and spotless? 1. if your sin is not known to brethren, you are assured that God does know, and while you might deceive yourself and the brethren here on earth, unless you repent you will be shown to not be a part of His Body at the Judgment 2. You will be one of those crying out "Lord, Lord!" and yet condemned for doing iniquity as seen in Matthew 7:21-23 3. You must repent and come back to the truth to be saved! B. What if you know that another member of the church is not holy and spotless? 1. If you know that there is sin in the life of a member, follow the pattern of Matthew 18:15-17 2. First speak to the person, then have two or three witnesses, and then, if necessary, take it to the church 3. What must the church do then if they do not repent? C. The Church must maintain holiness and being without spot 1. Dealing with sin within the church is difficult indeed, but necessary 2. 1 Corinthians 5 3. We see here an example of sin within the church: a member has his father's wife 4. The Gentiles do not even do such things! 5. The church has the responsibility to remove the wicked man from among its members (1 Corinthians 5:9-13) 6. At all costs the local church must remain pure and spotless D. Why is such action necessary? Why must we get into the business of others? Do we think we're better than they are? E. Beyond the fact that God has commanded such things and we thus do them, we can find the reasons for such in the Scriptures F. #1: "A little leaven leavens the whole lump" 1. Thus Paul says about immorality in 1 Corinthians 5:6 and about false teachings in Galatians 5:9 2. If you have ever made bread, you are well aware that only a little bit of yeast is added to make the entire lump of dough rise because of the prolific reproduction of yeast 3. From biology classes we might remember how especially one-celled organisms can reproduce at very fast rates 4. Sin is compared to this 5. The person whose sin is allowed to continue without reproof may get bolder and more confident because no one has rebuked him 6. Others may see this person sinning and yet not rebuked and feel justified in partaking of the same sin or other sins 7. If everybody's sinning, then everyone justifies their sins by everyone else's practice 8. After all, if we start rebuking one person for their sins when there are manifestly other sins among us, are we not hypocritical? 9. So we must by all means remove all sin from our midst, else it infects and destroys the church G. #2: It Works! 1. Church discipline is often denigrated and considered futile 2. How can it work to push someone away? 3. The idea is that the lack of association demonstrates forcefully the lack of acceptance of the sin 4. We know it works because it worked in Corinth! 5. 2 Corinthians 2:1-8, 2 Corinthians 7:6-12: the man of 1 Corinthians 5 repented and returned to the Lord's Body 6. The Corinthians were made sorrowful for accepting the sin and what was wrong in their midst 7. It may not be successful in demonstrating to the sinner that he must repent, but it is necessary for our own sake H. #3: We are held accountable! 1. It is important to make sure that sin is not in our midst because we are accountable for such things 2. 1 Corinthians 5: the Corinthians not only did nothing about the one in sin but in fact gloried in their "tolerance" 3. Paul rebuked them and charged them to turn and do what was right 4. Revelation 2:18-22: Jesus rebuked the faithful brethren in Thyatira for allowing the sinful Jezebel and her followers to remain in the church 5. Do we want to face God in judgment if we have not worked to maintain the purity and holiness of the church? V. The Rewards A. There are rewards to doing this work of God B. If, unfortunately, the person does not come to the truth, the satisfaction should exist that your love for them was truly in their best interest, that they would be saved C. Furthermore, you have diligently worked to make sure that the local assembly of Christians in your area is assuredly named as a part of the universal Church of Christ, the collective of the saved D. James 5:19-20 1. As James ends his letter, he establishes that the one who converts a Christian who had erred has saved a soul from death, and such will cover a multitude of sin 2. Encouraging words for us to do our duty to God, His Church, and our brethren E. Let us remember Galatians 6:1-2 and be gentle and do the work of the Lord VI. Conclusion A. It is hoped that we all have a better understanding of the church being holy and spotless B. To be holy and spotless is to be separate from the world, avoiding sin and obeying God C. For the local church to be holy and spotless, each and every member that constitutes it must be holy and spotless D. If anyone within the body is demonstrably not holy and not spotless, the person must repent or no longer considered a part of the assembly E. Sin is terrible and grows quickly and easily; it must not be named among saints, and unrepentant sin cannot be tolerated within the Body F. Let us strive to be holy and pleasing to God G. If you tonight know that you have sin in your life and you are a Christian, let it be known that even if we as your brethren do not know of your sin God surely does, and unless you repent you are currently deceiving yourself and us, for you are not a Christian in the Lord's Kingdom. H. If you have never named Christ as your Savior and been immersed in water for the remission of your sins, let it be known that you are still in your sins and without repentance will be condemned for them (2 Thessalonians 1:6-9) I. Come to faith in Christ Jesus as we stand and sing