Rethinking Christian Boundaries, Part I:

(A New Testament Look at Expulsion

From Within the Christian Community)

Alwyn Lau

I wish to examine, via a survey of Biblical passages, instances where intra-community

expulsion is explicitly stated or strongly implied (i.e. if someone in the community is found to
behave in the specified negative way, it is more or less assumed that he/she will be expelled). My
attempted focus will be on people who at least were Christians but - for some reason - were
ousted or commanded to be removed by the apostles, or deemed to have ‘wandered from the
faith’. In other words, I am trying to seek Scriptural precedence for expelling people who
generally do or did NOT wish to leave the church.

This I feel is distinct from discussing those who leave on their own accord, were never real
members at all or do not consider themselves as belonging to traditional Christianity (e.g.
Jehovah’s Witnesses, Mormons, and the cults). This is why I have passed over individuals like the
‘false prophets’ depicted in 2Peter 2 and the men in Jude ‘whose condemnation were written
about long ago’ (Jude 4). It is also why I wish to postpone for now the issue of the ‘Judaizers’ in
Galatians (and the ‘anathema’ mentioned therein) and concerns over the antichrist in the
Johannine epistles (very popular letters for Christian boundaries). All these parties presumably
NEVER INTENDED to be a genuine part of the church, and thus for them the threat is not
expulsion but exposure.

To repeat:

• I am not looking at how one ‘gets into’ the Christian community; I’m looking at what
basis one is ‘kicked out’ from it despite being or having been a genuine member
• I am not examining the sins of non-believers or the enemies of God; I’m scrutinizing the
transgression of the child of God who had (or is close to having) this status revoked

I am assuming that, even (especially) when we are dealing with condemnation, it is valid to
distinguish between individuals inside the covenant and those outside it (or those ‘faking’ it
or who are actively seeking to destroy it). This is why we never call the average non-believer on
the street a ‘heretic’, an ‘apostate’ or ‘antichrist’ (with all their implications). No, we reserve this
severe status for long-time professing Christians, for our leaders, our theologians and
philosophers i.e. people whom we think "KNOW BETTER" and thus are considered more
culpable.

The nature of my examination will be as follows:

1. What does the New Testament show about expulsion, disassociation or fatal
condemnation from WITHIN the Christian community? (PART I)
2. Can we fatally/’eternally’ condemn individuals solely over doctrinal issues? This is
tackled in two essays:
• Galatians and Paul’s anathema (PART II)
• John's epistles and the Anti-Christ (PART III)
What does the New Testament show about expulsion or disassociation or fatal condemnation
from WITHIN the Christian community?

This section will be divide into four:

A. The Pauline epistles

B. Acts & the Non-Pauline epistles
C. The Gospels
D. Jesus’ condemnation of the Pharisees

A. The Pauline epistles (excl. Galatians):

Bible verse Cause of Expulsion / Condemnation

Rom 11:17-22, • Arrogance / Superiority over

"Do not be arrogant, but be afraid. For if God did not
spare the natural branches, he will not spare you either. •
Consider therefore the kindness and sternness of God :
sternness to those who fell, but kind to you, provided
that you continue in his kindness. Otherwise, you will
also be cut off."
condemnation of others (in this case,
the Jews)
Failure to realize that one’s salvation is
due to the kindness of God (and not
one’s excellence over and above
another)

1Cor 5:1-2, • Sexual immorality

• Greed
"It is actually reported that there is sexual immortality • Idolatry
among you, and of a kind that does not occur even • Slander
among pagans: A man has his father’s wife. And you • Drunkenness
are proud! Shouldn’t you rather have been filled with • Swindling
grief and have put out of your fellowship the man who
did this? … you must not associate with anyone who
calls himself a brother but is sexually immoral or
greedy, an idolater or a slanderer, a drunkard or a
swindler. With such a man do not even eat."

1Cor 10:7-10, • Pagan indulgence (gluttony, orgies,

etc.)
"Do not be idolaters, as some of them were; as it is • Sexual immorality
written: ‘The people sat down to eat and drink and got • Distrust in God
up to indulge in pagan revelry.’ We should not commit • Grumbling
sexual immorality…we should not test the Lord…And
do not grumble…(as some of them did and were
killed)."

2Cor 12:21 – 13:2 • Non-repentance

• Sexual sins
"I am afraid…I will be grieved over many who have • Debauchery
sinner earlier and have not repented of the impurity,
sexual sin and debauchery in which they have
indulged…I already gave you a warning when I was
with you the second time…On my return I will not
spare those who sinner earlier or any of the
others…"

2Thess 3:14:-15, • Disassociation NOT necessarily

equated with ‘final condemnation’!
"If anyone does not obey our instruction in this letter,
take special note of him. Do not associate with him, in
order that he may feel ashamed. Yet do not regard
him as an enemy, but warn him as a brother."

1Tim 1:18-20, • Overall rejection of Paul’s instructions

in 1Tim 2-6 i.e. denial of apostolic
"…I give you this instruction in keeping with the authority
prophecies once made about you, so that by following
them you may fight the good fight, holding on to faith
and a good conscience. Some have rejected these and
so have shipwrecked their faith. Among them are
Hymenaeus and Alexander, whom I have handed over
to Satan to be taught not to blaspheme."

1Tim 4:1-3, • Hypocrisy and lying

• Compelling others towards legalism
"…some will abandon the faith and follow deceiving
spirits and things taught by demons. Such teachings
come through hypocritical liars, whose consciences
have been seared as with a hot iron. They forbid people
to marry and order them to abstain from certain
food…"

1Tim 5:6-8, • Hedonism

• Non-provision for welfare of family
"But the widow who lives for pleasure is dead even and relatives
while lives. If anyone does not provide for his relatives,
and especially for his immediate family, he has denied
the faith and is worse than an unbeliever."

1Tim 6:20-21, • Probably Gnostic ideas

"Turn away from godless chatter and the opposing

ideas of what is falsely called knowledge, which some
have professed and in doing so have wandered away
from the faith."
2Tim 2:16-17, • Denial of future resurrection (probably
a Gnostic-influenced idea) eliminating
"Avoid godless chatter, because those who indulge in it a crucial point of faith
will become more and more ungodly. Among them are
Hymenaeus and Philetus, who have wandered away
from the truth. They say that the resurrection has
already taken place, and they destroy the faith of
some."

Titus 3:9-11, • Arguing about genealogies and law

(most probably an intra-Jewish
"But avoid foolish controversies and genealogies and dispute, not unlike 1:10-11)
arguments and quarrels about the law, because these are • Inciting division and discord in the
unprofitable and useless. Warn a divisive person once, community
and then warn him a second time. After that, have
nothing to do with him. You may be sure that such a
man is warped and sinful; he is self-condemned."

The most salient feature about the survey above is that ethical and moral issues - and NOT
doctrinal ones(!) - form the overwhelming component of the offenses in question!

Expulsion or exclusion is commanded chiefly as a means of ensuring the community is free /

purged of:

a. Immorality / Hypocrisy / Lying (almost every verse!)

b. Division / Strife (Titus 3:9-11)
c. Dissension / Rebellion / Disobedience (1Tim 1:18-20)
d. Coercion (1Tim 4:1-3)
e. Indifference towards community members (1Tim 5:6-8)
B. Acts and the Non-Pauline epistles (excl. 1st, 2nd and 3rd John):

Bible verse Cause of Expulsion / Condemnation

Acts 5:1-10 (Ananias & Sapphira) • Stinginess and duplicity in giving

(‘short-changing’ God)
"Peter said, ‘Ananias, how is it that Satan has so filled • Lying to God and ‘testing’ Him
your heart that you have lied to the Holy Spirit and
have kept for yourself some of the money you received
for the land? Didn’t it belong to you before it was sold?
And after it was sold, wasn’t the money at your
disposal? (Sapphira, how could you agree to test the
Spirit of the Lord)…You have not lied to men but to
God. When Ananias/Sapphira heard this, he/she fell
down and died."

Acts 8:19-23 (Simon the Sorcerer) • Desire to exploit spiritual gifts for
profit
"Peter answered Simon, ‘May your money perish with • Greed
you, because you thought you could buy the gift of God • Bitterness and bondage to sin
with money! You have no part or share in this
ministry, because your heart is not right before God. • (This passage depicts merely potential
Repent of this wickedness and pray to the Lord. expulsion, see vs. 24)
Perhaps he will forgive you for having such a thought
in your heart. For I see that you are full of bitterness
and captive to sin."

Acts 20:29-30, • Forsaking the community to follow

"I know that after I leave, savage wolves will come in •
among you and will not spare the flock. Even from
your own number men will arise and distort the truth in
order to draw away disciples after them"
‘distorted truth’
Deceived by those with wanton and
active desires to ruin the faith of the
community (i.e. ‘savage wolves’
activity)

Heb 4:1-6, • Disobedience (i.e. hardened hearts,

testing and trying God, see Psalms 95,
"…Let us…make very effort to enter that rest, so that quoted in Heb 4)
no one will fall by following (the Israelites’) example
of disobedience."

Heb 10:26, • Deliberate / willful sins (the opposite

of ‘love and good deeds’, vs.24)
"If we deliberately keep on sinning after we have
received the knowledge of the truth, no sacrifice for
sins is left, but only a fearful expectation of
judgment and of raging fire that will consume the
enemies of God…"

James 2:14, • An absence of good deeds!

• Indifference to the needs of others (see
"What good is it…if a man claims to have faith but no Jas 2:16-17)
deeds? Can such a faith save him?"

Rev 2:4 (Church in Ephesus) • Falling intimacy towards God

(‘forgotten your first love’)
"Yet I hold this against you: You have forsaken your
first love. Remember the height from which you have
fallen! Repent and do the things you did at first. If you
do not repent, I will come to you and remove your
lampstand from its place."

Rev 2:14, 15 (Church in Pergamum) • Balaam’s teaching (sexual immorality

• Nicolaitans (probably a quasi-Gnostic
"I have a few things against you: You have people there cult heavy into cult prostitution, mystic
who hold to the teaching of Balaam, who taught Balak revelations, etc.)
to entice the Israelites to sin by eating food sacrificed to
idols and by committing sexual immorality…you also
have those who hold to the teaching of the Nicolaitans.
Repent there! Otherwise, I will soon come to you and
fight against them with the sword of my mouth!"

Rev 2:20 (Church in Thyatira) • Jezebel’s teaching (sexual immorality,

idolatry, adultery)
"I have this against you: You tolerate that woman • Refusal to repent
Jezebel, who calls herself a prophetess. By her teaching
she misleads my servants into sexual immorality and
the eating of food sacrificed to idols. I have given her
time to repent but she is unwilling…I will make those
who commit adultery with her suffer intensely…"

Rev 3:1-3 (Church in Sardis) • ‘Sleeping’ Christians (those whose

ministry/service seems devoid of life,
"Wake up! Strengthen what remains and is about to die, done less than half-heartedly,
for I have not found your deeds complete in the sight of slothfully, etc.)
my God…if you do not wake up, I will come like a • Low commitment or lack of service
thief, and you will not know at what time I will to (‘incomplete’ deeds)
you."

Rev 3:1-3 (Church in Laodicea) • Indifferent and dispassionate about

their faith (it would be better for them
"I know your deeds, that you are neither cold nor hot, I to be mistaken yet passionate instead
wish you were either one or the other! So, because you of being devoid of enthusiasm
 altogether)
are lukewarm – neither hot nor cold – I am about to • Self-deceit over wealth and security
spit you out of my mouth. You say, ‘I am rich; I have
acquired wealth and do not need a thing’. But you do
not realize that you are wretched, pitiful, poor, blind
and naked…"

Not unlike the Pauline corpus, the chief warnings regarding inner-community falling away and
apostasy focus on:

a. Deliberate sin (duplicity, exploiting the faith, etc.)

b. Lack of good deeds
c. Disobedience
d. Sexual immorality
C. The Gospels

There is some ambiguity in deciding on the relevance of Jesus’ teachings for intra-community
condemnation of Christians, not least because the gospels focus on the creation of the new
community of God (i.e. the person and works of Jesus himself). Needless to say, we need to be
very careful about analyzing the transgression of a certain group’s boundaries by using
documents that do not yet presume the formation of this group.

Wright cautions against the temptation to understand Jesus’ warnings (especially in the Synoptic
gospels) apart from the specific historical situation in which they are set :

"The warnings…are manifestly and obviously, within their historical context, warnings
about a coming national disaster, involving the destruction by Rome of the nation, the
city and the Temple…The ‘normal’ way of reading these passages within the Christian
tradition has been to see them as references to a general post mortem judgment in hell;
but this betrays a fairly thorough lack of historical understanding. Jesus’ warnings
thus take on a quadruple character within the context of his times:

"First, they fit naturally into the wider context of the Jewish sectarianism of the day.
To pronounce judgment on the present regime was not unusual…it was a sign of deep
loyalty to Israel’s true god and true vocation, and of deep distress at the corruption which
seemed endemic in the national life.

"Second, the story Jesus told was one in which Israel’s intransigence led to judgment :
to the judgment of angry imperial Rome, provoked once too often; and at the same time
to the judgment of Israel’s own god, returning to his people at last only to discover that
they had been untrue to their vocation… Jesus’ warnings belong perfectly within the
context of Palestine under threatening and heave-handed Roman rule.

"Third…Jesus’ warnings carried a constant reference to the present generation…(he)

seems to have stressed the signs of the times’ : the story he was telling was not about
some general or abstract truth, of which the present moment just happened to be
one example. His message was specifically directed to that very moment in Israel’s
history.

"Fourth, Jesus’ warnings…cut against several strands within the complex and pluriform
Judaism of the time…he warned against violent revolution (and therefore against the
stricter Pharisaic agenda)…his warnings provoked the chief priest (who controlled the
Temple, the symbol of national inviolability)…his message was not one that the
majority of his contemporaries were particularly disposed to hear.

"Putting together these four elements of Jesus’ warnings, we find a classic prophetic
profile, a classic example of critique from within. Israel’s story is retold so as to reach a
devastating climax, in which the present Jerusalem regime will be judged, and the
prophet and his followers vindicated. The covenant god will use the pagan forces to
execute his judgment on his people, and a new people will be born, formed around
the prophet himself." (Jesus & the Victory of God, N.T. Wright, p.323-5)
Thus, MANY Gospel judgments and warnings probably contained specific socio-political
referents and were primarily targeted at those in historical Israel who opposed the formation of
this new people around the strange prophet from Galilee (there’ll be more to say about this when
we get to Galatians). On the other hand, epistles like 1st Corinthians already assume the existence
of this new group and seek to sustain it. Whilst a post-Resurrection (not to say 21st-century)
church obviously can and must use our Lord’s recorded words for decisions about community
boundaries, we need to bear in mind the qualifications required of the gospel context.

The following, therefore, represent the verses I believe best apply to our purposes here, which is
to seek guidelines to removing formerly genuine members of the Christian faith from the
Christian community :

Bible verse Cause of Expulsion / Condemnation

Matt 5:13, Mk 9:50, Lk 14:34-35 • Permanent ineffectiveness in

impacting world with Christian virtues
"You are the salt of the earth. But if the salt loses its / message?
saltiness, how can it be made salty again? It is no
longer good for anything, except to be thrown out and
trampled by men."

Matt 5:22, • Possessing an attitude of hatred or

cursing towards a brother
"…anyone who says ‘You fool!’, will be in danger of
the fires of hell."

Matt 5:28-29, Mk 9:43-47 • Lust

• Sexual immorality
"But I tell you that anyone who looks at a woman
lustfully has already committed adultery with her in his
heart. If your right eye/hand causes you to sin, gouge it
out / cut if off and throw it away. It is better for you to
lose one part of your body than for your whole body
to be thrown into hell."

Matt 6:13, (Lord’s Prayer) • Non-forgiveness, vindictiveness

"But if you do not forgive men their sins, your Father

will not forgive your sins." (see also Lk 6:37)

Matt 6:19-24, Lk 11:34-35 • Greed

• Life determined by the pursuit of
"Do not store up for yourselves treasures on earth…but wealth
store up for yourselves treasures in heaven…for where
your treasure is, there your heart will be also. The eye
is the lamp of the body. If your eyes are good, your
whole body will be full of light. But if your eyes are
bad, your whole body will be full of darkness. If
then the light within you is darkness, how great is
that darkness!…You cannot serve both God and
Money."

Matt 10:32-33, Lk 12:8-10 • Apostasy (symbolic, verbal, etc.)

"Whoever acknowledges me before men, the Son of

Man will also acknowledge him before the angels of
God. But he who disowns me before men will be
disowned before the angels of God."

Matt 13:20, Mk 4:16-19, Lk 8:13-14 • Apostasy (in the case of persecution)

• Rejection / Fatal compromise of Jesus’
(Parable of the Sower) teachings in one’s life

"The one who received the seed that fell on rocky

places is the man who hears the word and at once
receives it with joy. But since he has no root, he lasts
only a short time. When trouble or persecution comes
because of the word, he quickly falls away."

Matt 18:15-17 • Refusing to acknowledge culpability

for sin
"If your brother sins against you, go and show him his • Refusing to change one’s lifestyle or
fault, just between the two of you. If he listens to you, repent of sin
you have won your brother over. But if he will not
listen, take one or two others along, so that every
matter may be established by the testimony of two or
three witnesses. If he refuses to listen to them, tell it to
the church, and if he refuses to listen even to the
church, treat him as you would a pagan or a tax
collector."

Matt 18:32-35 (Parable of the Wicked Servant) • Non-forgiveness

• Demanding extremely burdensome
"Then the master called the servant in. ‘You wicked repayment of debt or compensation
servant…I canceled all that debt of your because you over trouble caused, which reflects a
begged me to. Shouldn’t you have had mercy on your callous heart
fellow servant just as I had on you?’ In anger his
master turned him over to the jailers to be tortured,
until he should pay back all he owed. This is how my
heavenly Father will treat each of you unless you
forgive your brother from your heart."

Matt 24:9-12, 24; Mk 13:9-13, 22 • Apostasy

 • Betrayal of fellow Christians
(Olivet Discourse) • Hatred of fellow Christians
• Succumbing to deception from false
"Then you will be handed over to be persecuted and put prophets i.e. transferring one’s
to death, and you will be hated by all nations because allegiance from the real Christ to
of me. At that time many will turn away from the Christ-impostors
faith and will betray and hate each other, and many
false prophets will appear and deceive many people.
Because of the increase of wickedness, the love of most
will grow cold, but he who stands firm to the end will
be saved…For false Christs and false prophets will
appear and perform great signs and miracles to deceive
even the elect – if that were possible."

Matt 24:48, Lk 12:45-46 • Bullying, abuse

• Drunkenness
"But suppose that servant is wicked and says to
himself, ‘My master is staying away a long time,’ and
he then begins to beat his fellow servants and to eat and
drink with drunkards. The master of that servant will
come on a day when he does not expect him and at an
hour he is not aware of. He will cut him to pieces and
assign him a place with the hypocrites, where there
will be weeping and gnashing of teeth."

Matt 25:10-13 (Parable of Ten Virgins) • Complacency in the faith reflecting

indifference to God
"But while (the foolish virgins) were on their way to
buy the oil, the bridegroom arrived. The virgins who
were ready went in with him to the wedding banquet,
And the door was shut. Later the others also came. ‘Sir!
Sir!’ they said, ‘Open the door for us!’ But he replied,
‘I tell you the truth, I don’t know you.’ Therefore
keep watch, because you do not know the day or the
hour."

Matt 25:26-30, Lk 17:20-27 (Parable of the Talents) • Disloyalty and Non-commitment in

serving God
"’You wicked, lazy servant! So you knew that I harvest • Definitive / Full-hearted rejection of
where I have not sown and gather where I have not Jesus as Lord
scattered seed? Well then, you should have put my
money on deposit with the bankers, so that when I
returned I would have received it back with interest.
Take the talent from him and give it to the one who has
the ten talents. For everyone who has will be given
more, and he will have an abundance. Whoever does
not have, even what he has will be taken from hi. And
throw that worthless servant outside, into the
darkness, where there will be weeping and gnashing
of teeth.
"…But those enemies of mine who did not want me to
be king over them – bring them here and kill them in
front of me." (Lk 17:27)
Mk 9:42, Lk 17:1-2, Matt 18:6-9
"Things that cause people to sin are bound to come, but
woe to that person through whom it comes. It would be
better for him to be thrown into the sea with a
millstone tied around his neck than for him to cause
one of these little ones to sin."
John 6:60-66
"On hearing (the teaching of Jesus about ‘eating his
flesh and drinking his blood’, John 6:53-58), many of •
his disciples said, ‘This is a hard teaching. Who can
accept it?’…Jesus said to them, ‘Does this offend you?
What if you see the Son of Man ascend to where he
was before! The Spirit gives life; the flesh counts for •
nothing. The words I have spoken o you are spirit and
they are life. Yet there are some of you who do not
believe…This is why I told you that no one can come
to me unless the Father has enabled him." From this
time many of his disciples turned back and no
longer followed him.
John 15:2-6
"(The Father) cuts off every branch in me that bears no
fruit…No branch can bear fruit by itself. Neither can
you bear fruit unless you remain in me…If anyone does
not remain in me, he is like a branch that is thrown
away and withers; such branches are picked up,
thrown into the fire and burned."
John 6:70, 13:21, 17:12 (Judas)
"Then Jesus said, ’Have I not chosen you, the Twelve?
Yet one of you is a devil!’
"I tell you the truth, one of you is going to betray me.
• Encouraging sin within community
• Encouraging / Influencing children to
sin
• Offense at repudiation or negative
evaluation of Jewish traditions ("your
forefathers ate manna and died")
Inability to accept Jesus as one in
whom the hope of eternal life and
resurrection resides ("I am the bread of
life")
Refusal to believe in Jesus’ claims to
unique status ("What if you see the
Son of Man ascend to where he was
before!")
• Fruitlessness in the faith i.e. failure to
manifest the community-transforming
results of a life lived in Christ (e.g.
evangelism, stronger Christ-centered
relationship and policies affecting the
family and society)
• Betrayal of Jesus
• Rejection of Jesus’ vocation and
ministry and preference for an
alternative path towards Israel’s
redemption (Peter wasn’t all that far
behind on this point, too)
• Greed
"None has been lost except the one doomed to • (The case of Judas may be too unique
destruction so that Scripture would be fulfilled." to count as a Biblical portrait of
‘casting out’ from within the
community…)

Even assuming (quite problematically) that my sample of passages above can apply without
qualification to anything OTHER than the historical Israel (and its specific circumstances) among
whom Jesus lived and taught, it seems quite unambiguous that doctrine is NOT a key determinant
to determine who must be ‘taken out’ of the community.

a. Character corruption (greed, lust, vindictiveness, etc.)

b. Refusal to confess and repent (despite repeated and intensifying community ‘show-
causes’!)
c. Complacency and presumptiousness in the faith (reflecting disloyalty to God)
d. Enticing people to sin (esp. children)
e. Apostasy under persecution and trials (VERY different from your average doctrinal
disputes!)
D. What about Jesus’ seven woes upon the Pharisees (Matthew 23:1-36)?

What kinds of crimes did the latter commit, meriting fierce censure from our Lord Himself?

Putting aside the issue of whether Jesus’ woes qualify as an expulsion from God’s true community
or a mere condemnation of God’s enemies (no insignificant difference), and bearing in mind the
gospels’ historical qualifications outlined above, the pattern here doesn’t seem too different from
the above. The offenses condemned were:

• Hypocrisy (vs.3, 5, 25, 29-32,)

• Honor-seeking
• Pride
• Burdening the people
• Disputes over theological minutiae(!) whilst neglecting important/broader responsibilities
(vs.16-17, 23-25,)
• Greed and self-indulgence (vs.25)
• Wickedness
• Murder (vs.34-35)

From a look at arguably Jesus’ fiercest condemnation of his religious opponents, again it seems
the emphasis is on the corruption of character (with its resultant burdening /fracture of the
community) with almost NO mention of abstract disputes about the nature or attributes of God.
Even when ‘theological’ differences (e.g. vs. 16-17) were raised, they were not seen meriting
condemnation in themselves (in fact, the Pharisees' teaching alone seemed in general approved by
Jesus, Matthew 23:3, "So you must obey them and do everything they tell you. But do not do what
they do, for they do not practice what they preach.")

………………………………………………………………………………………………………

Reflections on NT survey:

What strikes me from the foregoing is that we have almost no evidence of Christians being ‘cast
away’ from the church SOLELY over theological disputes!

• All severe threats of condemnation INEVITABLY included serious moral-ethical

elements
• The NT writers seemed concerned less with the actual content of the teaching than the
moral and social corruption of the community resulting from them (e.g. Paul was
MORE LENIENT with Corinthians who doubted the future resurrection than with people
who committed incest with their parents! compare 1Cor 15:34 and 15:58 with 1Cor 5:1-
2)
• Christians were not expelled EXCLUSIVELY over theology; one ought to show how this
theology has soiled/spoiled the person’s character.
• Community cohesion, unity and subordination to authority are the other key criteria for
deciding on expulsion i.e. we need to ask if discord and/or dissention within the church
are being bred.
These problems, and not speculation about the philosophical theology, seem (at least from a
glance at Scripture) the main impetus for ‘kicking out’ people from the church.

Tentative Conclusion:

At the very least, it LOOKS LIKE a Biblical distortion to encourage a severing in Christian
community WHOLLY over abstract disputes in philosophical theology whilst virtually
IGNORING the moral character of both those under threat of heresy and the (more often than not,
self-) appointed guardians of the faith.

If the above is even half-right, then it would be more Biblically correct (though unfortunately less
politically so!) :

• for the Council of Chalcedon to censure Cyril of Alexandria and not Nestorius!
• for evangelicals to rebuke R.C. Sproul’s public rejection of fellowship with Clark
Pinnock instead of the latter’s teaching (ditto for all similar attacks on those not-as-
Reformed as the very Reformed would like, smile), and
• for Protestants to chide themselves for refusing to pray with Catholics rather than
denounce Catholic doctrine per se!)

It would also appear to be un-Biblical to expel genuine Christ-believing people entirely on the
basis of a difference in doctrine.

HOWEVER…this does not mean that a deviant doctrine ALONE cannot result in
condemnation. I propose that if/when this is called for, it would have to be due to either or both
of two reasons:

1. These teachers intend to actively ELIMINATE the defining characteristics of the church
(via persuasion and social pressure) (e.g. Gal). (see PART II)
2. These teachers were never GENUINELY part of the Christian community at all (e.g. 1st
and 2nd John) (forthcoming) (see PART III)