Pt 20 A Little Leaven
A Little Leaven
We live in a time when any mention of sin is turned away from in modern Churches. When this happens it is inevitable that it will inevitably permeate the entire Church, all it takes is a little leaven, a little sin and it acts like yeast in bread to corrupt the whole.
Tragically, when that which is evil (sinful) becomes tolerated in a place where the desire is toward all that is good (holy), it does not take long before it is justified, when sin is justified then all which might condemn it as evil becomes considered at evil. Suddenly, Isiah 5:20 becomes the reality in the Church. Evil is seen as good, good is seen as evil.
If this becomes the common state of the Church (and it is), what then becomes of the world?
1 Corinthians 5:1–8
1 It is reported commonly that there is fornication among you, and such fornication as is not so much as named among the Gentiles, that one should have his father’s wife. 2 And ye are puffed up, and have not rather mourned, that he that hath done this deed might be taken away from among you. 3 For I verily, as absent in body, but present in spirit, have judged already, as though I were present, concerning him that hath so done this deed, 4 In the name of our Lord Jesus Christ, when ye are gathered together, and my spirit, with the power of our Lord Jesus Christ, 5 To deliver such an one unto Satan for the destruction of the flesh, that the spirit may be saved in the day of the Lord Jesus. 6 Your glorying is not good. Know ye not that a little leaven leaveneth the whole lump?
7 Purge out therefore the old leaven, that ye may be a new lump, as ye are unleavened. For even Christ our passover is sacrificed for us: 8 Therefore let us keep the feast, not with old leaven, neither with the leaven of malice and wickedness; but with the unleavened bread of sincerity and truth.
There is a principle that Paul introduces to the Corinthian Churches, a principle that has its origin far back into history when God is dealing with his own people.
It is a principle that recognises that once sin is tolerated among a people, it becomes accepted; once it is accepted, it becomes normalised; and once it becomes normalised, it becomes unlimitable.
The first millennium had witnessed the sin of man develop to a point so rapidly that the only solution was to purge the earth and begin again with one family.
Sodom and Gomorrah was another, these Cities of the Plain had so accepted the perversion of sexual relationships that they normalised and even sanctified them before fire and brimstone fell from heaven to destroy them.
Those Cities today remain as Cities of Ash. Many people have recorded their visits to the sites and dug balls of sulphur from the ruins thereof. Tour busses ensure the ash is dusted off the feet of tourist before entering the buses.
We too, in this life and in this world have now become so putrified with sin that we have sanctified that which God calls “abomination”. Time is drawing to a close for this world.
Paul however is dealing with the Church. It is the Church who is meant to set the standard for the world and so it is the Church that is charged to be purged of its leaven, liberated from the sin of a few, to become a new lump and sanctified for the masters use.
It is this principle I would like to expound to you this morning and I pray that I can do so employing the logic that stems directly from Scripture.
What we are going to note as we consider this doctrine are;
- Firstly that Sin is Never seen in the scripture as isolated to the individual, it is always likened to “A Little Leaven”; as yeast corrupts both bread and wine, so too sin corrupts the person, the church and the world. Sin is NOT Private.
- Secondly, that sin is NEVER permissible. It ought never to be tolerated, not in the person, not in the Church and certainly not is society. It will inevitably destroy all when left unchecked.
- Thirdly, that Sin is Putrefying, as A Little Leaven infest the entire loaf, so too with sin putrefy the whole, whether person, Church or the world.
- Lastly, Sin is Purged. Jesus had come to do this work for the world, he had taken the punishment of the sin of the world upon himself that we need not live anymore therein. This is the reality attended to by Christ first and we ought to attend to the practical aspect of Purging sin, from person to Church, that the world may have hope.
Sin Is Not Private.
1 Corinthians 5:1–2
1 It is reported commonly that there is fornication among you, and such fornication as is not so much as named among the Gentiles, that one should have his father’s wife. 2 And ye are puffed up, and have not rather mourned, that he that hath done this deed might be taken away from among you.
We see from the entrance to this chapter that Paul is addressing sin that is both commonly known AND ought not to be permitted nor tolerated.
You will note that he is directing his attention to the SINNER as needing to be dealt with and not the SIN of the Sinner;
2 ….. that he that hath done this deed might be taken away from among you.
(We will look more specifically at the “fornication” that is spoken of here in the next message when we continue from verse 9 to the end of the chapter, and we will consider more deeply what fornication is and what it is not, and more specifically what Paul is dealing with here as he relates them to those in verse 10.)
But for now we are giving consideration to to the nature of sin in the Church, being most particularly related to “Leven” in verse 6;
6 Your glorying is not good. Know ye not that a little leaven leaveneth the whole lump?
From the beginning of mankind it was understood that there is no such thing as a PRIVATE Sin that affects no other person.
From the time of Adam, sin affected more, much more than the individual concerned.
When Paul writes, “a little leaven leaveneth the whole lump“, he was not speaking a parable that could not be understood.
It is self evident that the sin of Adam had its effect on all of mankind.
Romans 5:12
12 Wherefore, as by one man sin entered into the world, and death by sin; and so death passed upon all men, for that all have sinned:
There are not many sins we commit today that could be thought of as more benign than one person eating of forbidden fruit!
If there was ever a consideration of a private, benign sin, this would be it.
Yet its malignancy was made evident by its effect;
2 … as by one man sin entered into the world, and death by sin; and so death passed upon all men, for that all have sinned:
From this came understanding of the natural progression of sin; just as Leaven leavens the whole lump;
James wrote of it, saying;
James 1:15
15 Then when lust hath conceived, it bringeth forth sin: and sin, when it is finished, bringeth forth death.
Sin has an ongoing effect and even spreads as a cancer.
And so by one man sin entered into the world, …and so death passed upon all men….
SIN IS NOT PRIVATE.
Sin has never been private as to its effect.
While the sin addressed here in 1 Cor 5 is “commonly” known, being “commonly reported“, it had the effect of “A LITTLE LEAVEN“.
Whether we are speaking of the “private sin” of Adam, or the “Private sin” of “…Achar, the troubler of Israel, who transgressed in the thing accursed” in Joshua 7 (1 Chron 2:7), causing the defeat of the children of Israel against AI.
Or the “Private Sin” of King David with Bathsheba, that “by this deed thou has given great occasion to the enemies of the LORD to blaspheme” (2 Sam 12:14).
It is not difficult to RECOGNISE that SIN IS NEVER PRIVATE.
All it takes is A LITTLE LEAVEN!
This is especially true in the Church and Paul addresses it in this way.
As a Pastor I have had to address sin in the Church from time to time.
Most of it is attended to privately as it ought to be.
Over the almost ten years in this Church, I have had to directly remove individuals who would have either corrupted this Church through wanton sin, or harmed the reputation of the Church by leading people astray.
Only one time was I too late in doing so, it is from that experience that I am truly qualified to speak of the nature of such sin in the Church.
IT ALWAYS BEGINS WITH A LITTLE LEAVEN!
SIN IS NEVER PRIVATE!
Paul in these first two verses is disappointed that that sin, so evident to many, and even coming to his ears, had not yet been dealt with but left up to him to administer.
Consider, after he speaks of the nature of the sin, says;
2 And ye are puffed up, and have not rather mourned, that he that hath done this deed might be taken away from among you. 1 Corinthians 5:2
Beloved, Paul is addressing the CHURCH not the minister of the Church alone, it is the responsibility of every member to deal with evident sin.
The gossip in this church two years ago spread like the fire it was, none quenching it.
Rather than putting it out, such sin was mollified and plastered over, even JUSTIFIED AND SANCTIFIED by sinners fanning the flames, with one man adding a blow torch which threatened to engulf the entire Church;
James 3:6
6 And the tongue is a fire, a world of iniquity: so is the tongue among our members, that it defileth the whole body, and setteth on fire the course of nature; and it is set on fire of hell.
It was this time I was too late. It was this experience that we all need to learn from and be sure not to be puffed up but mourn.
So it is with your personal life beloved, do not accept sin to fester, for it will putrefy the whole when it is given opportunity.
SIN IS NOT PRIVATE;
If it is not dealt with privately; if in the church there are none to exhort and none to rebuke it when it appears, it will only take A LITTLE LEAVEN ignored, to corrupt the whole.
Sin Is Not Permissible.
Beloved, SIN IS NOT PERMISSIBLE.
It is not to be tolerated, not in a corporate sense among the people, a church and even a nation, nor is it to be tolerated, permitted in you individually.
Paul did not need to be there to judge the matter, he could judge from afar that sin is sinful, and such a sin ought to be dealt with directly.
1 Corinthians 5:3-5
3 For I verily, as absent in body, but present in spirit, have judged already, as though I were present, concerning him that hath so done this deed, 4 In the name of our Lord Jesus Christ, when ye are gathered together, and my spirit, with the power of our Lord Jesus Christ, 5 To deliver such an one unto Satan for the destruction of the flesh, that the spirit may be saved in the day of the Lord Jesus.
We live in days riddled with personal sin, and as such far too many no longer see sin as exceedingly sinful.
Paul loved Christ, he loved the body of Christ and desired above all that those who are called by his name, would live lives that would reveal the holiness of their Saviour that all men would be drawn to him.
Turn to;
Titus 1:15–16
15 Unto the pure all things are pure: but unto them that are defiled and unbelieving is nothing pure; but even their mind and conscience is defiled. 16 They profess that they know God; but in works they deny him, being abominable, and disobedient, and unto every good work reprobate.
When we excuse sin, when we tolerate it, when we PERMIT BOTH SIN AND THE SINNER, we inevitably see it as acceptable and before we know it, A LITTLE LEAVEN LEVENETH THE WHOLE LUMP.
Turn to;
Ecclesiastes 8:11
11 Because sentence against an evil work is not executed speedily, therefore the heart of the sons of men is fully set in them to do evil.
Just judgement MUST BE meted out quickly against sin, not EXCUSED, not tolerated and certainly not mollified or permitted, for when it is PERMITTED it inevitably becomes SANCTIFIED as we see in this world today.
When an “evil work is not executed speedily“, it does not take long for the entirety of society to do evil.
Turn to;
Isaiah 5:18–25
18 Woe unto them that draw iniquity with cords of vanity, and sin as it were with a cart rope: 19 That say, Let him make speed, and hasten his work, that we may see it: and let the counsel of the Holy One of Israel draw nigh and come, that we may know it!
20 Woe unto them that call evil good, and good evil; that put darkness for light, and light for darkness; that put bitter for sweet, and sweet for bitter! 21 Woe unto them that are wise in their own eyes, and prudent in their own sight! 22 Woe unto them that are mighty to drink wine, and men of strength to mingle strong drink: 23 Which justify the wicked for reward, and take away the righteousness of the righteous from him!
24 Therefore as the fire devoureth the stubble, and the flame consumeth the chaff, so their root shall be as rottenness, and their blossom shall go up as dust: because they have cast away the law of the LORD of hosts, and despised the word of the Holy One of Israel.
25 Therefore is the anger of the LORD kindled against his people, and he hath stretched forth his hand against them, and hath smitten them: and the hills did tremble, and their carcases were torn in the midst of the streets. For all this his anger is not turned away, but his hand is stretched out still.
Whether it be in a person or in a nation, sin permitted to fester will PUTREFY the whole until SINFULNESS REPLACES HOLINESS!
And when the people who govern MOLIFY, JUSTIFY AND THEN SANCTIFY SIN, it is inevitable that society will justify their own crimes, and God all the more hated and rejected as Isaiah predicted long ago.
BUT THIS IS NOT WHERE IT IS TO REMAIN IN A CHURCH, WHICH IS the representation of the Lord on earth and to be seen as THE PILLAR AND GROUND OF THE TRUTH (1 Tim 3:15).
1 Corinthians 5:4-5
4 In the name of our Lord Jesus Christ, when ye are gathered together, and my spirit, with the power of our Lord Jesus Christ, 5 To deliver such an one unto Satan for the destruction of the flesh, that the spirit may be saved in the day of the Lord Jesus.
The last phrase speaks to the motive of all such dealings with those who will not yet repent of sin; that the spirit may be saved in the day of the Lord Jesus.
Individuals may be indeed put out of the Church for their sin, the purpose for it is twofold;
- That the Leven is removed from the Church to purge its corruption.
- AND For the ultimate restoration of the sinner.
While the latter was simple enough in the first century leading all the way up to the popularity of automobiles, it is very difficult in these days to hope for such restoration.
Those who are put out of a Church mostly remove themselves to other Churches, their new pastors none the wiser.
Their sin becomes placated rather than agitated. Pacified and tranquillised rather than alarmed and agitated.
Mollified, then justified until in the end it may indeed become sanctified!
Tragically beloved, in such cases there is little hope of restoration, for sinners today are coddled by corrupt pastors and any hope of restoration of them to the Lord is taken away by the wilfully ignorant.
Not so in Paul’s day.
SIN was NOT PERMISSIBLE
The sinner would be delivered unto Satan, in the hope it may be saved in the day of the Lord Jesus.
When it is permitted, It remains as A LITTLE LEAVEN.
Sin Is Putrefying.
1 Corinthians 5:6
6 Your glorying is not good. Know ye not that a little leaven leaveneth the whole lump?
Just as leaven corrupts by puffing up, so sin putrefies all that accept it.
When sin continues unchecked, whether that be in a nation, among a people, in a church, a family or personal life, its rotting effect cannot help but decompose the life that was made for glory and the re-presentation of God to the world.
When sin is permitted to fester in a nation, that nation becomes corrupt. This is testified to by how commonly sin, in all its obvious forms, is accepted in any given society.
Fornication becomes the expectation not the exception.
First there comes the cry of the sinful for acceptation. Then for inclusion. Then for equality until ultimately it demands exclusivity.
Sin cannot remain at any given level within a civilisation, it ridicules the righteous and violently opposes all that is good.
Beloved this is the reason why the world is afraid today to fight against all who oppose purity;
Titus 1:15
15 Unto the pure all things are pure: but unto them that are defiled and unbelieving is nothing pure; but even their mind and conscience is defiled.
I argue for a Pure Bible, believing God at his word that he promised to preserve it perfectly and that he is not limited by language. The position however is not acceptable to many, even ridiculed by those who believe the position far too intolerable, too narrow, too restricting against personal preference.
This is where sin begins!
The Bible was doubted in the 1800’s, a desire for a new translation in the English was propounded to remove from the Protestant faith its “Paper Pope”. And so we heard “hath God said” once again, that ancient whisper of the devil gave licence to the world to doubt any concept of the absolute.
The 1960’s had seen the Bible removed from the schools and today we live in the darkness of that decision.
Sin PUTREFIES WHEN PERMITTED.
A LITTLE LEAVEN is all it took and the western world has moved well beyond its point of no return.
As in society, so it is in the Church when it is permitted unchecked.
Such was our own experience as already mentioned.
Such is that which Paul addresses with the contemporary Church. The Corinthians Church IS The Contemporary Church, the church that is in line with the culture around it, and even worse;
1 It is reported commonly that there is fornication among you, and such fornication as is not so much as named among the Gentiles
- Not only is the Church NOT EXEMPT, it is the Church that sets the precedent.
- It is meant to be the RE_PRESENTATION of God, and so when sin putrefies the Church, the culture quickly feels justified for EVERY MAN TO DO THAT WHICH IS RIGHT IN HIS OWN EYES.
Israel were set apart, but when it acted like the world, IT BLASPHEMED GOD.
So too the Church, when not even pastors are willing to see sin for what it is, and especially when they justify the wicked
When sin is permitted to fester long enough, known commonly but left unchecked, the Church is putrified from the inside.
A LITTLE LEAVEN doing its job.
Beloved, here is your challenge, the Pastor may very well be the LAST LINE of DEFENCE in a Church, but Paul is not addressing the Pastor in 1st Corinthians is he?
No beloved, the Apostle is addressing the church, the body of Christ.
In the Old Testament, God held the PEOPLE ACCOUNTABLE FOR THE SIN AMONG THE PEOPLE;
Turn to;
Numbers 25:1–11
1 And Israel abode in Shittim, and the people began to commit whoredom with the daughters of Moab. 2 And they called the people unto the sacrifices of their gods: and the people did eat, and bowed down to their gods. 3 And Israel joined himself unto Baalpeor: and the anger of the LORD was kindled against Israel. 4 And the LORD said unto Moses, Take all the heads of the people, and hang them up before the LORD against the sun, that the fierce anger of the LORD may be turned away from Israel. 5 And Moses said unto the judges of Israel, Slay ye every one his men that were joined unto Baalpeor.
6 And, behold, one of the children of Israel came and brought unto his brethren a Midianitish woman in the sight of Moses, and in the sight of all the congregation of the children of Israel, who were weeping before the door of the tabernacle of the congregation. 7 And when Phinehas, the son of Eleazar, the son of Aaron the priest, saw it, he rose up from among the congregation, and took a javelin in his hand; 8 And he went after the man of Israel into the tent, and thrust both of them through, the man of Israel, and the woman through her belly. So the plague was stayed from the children of Israel. 9 And those that died in the plague were twenty and four thousand. 10 And the LORD spake unto Moses, saying, 11 Phinehas, the son of Eleazar, the son of Aaron the priest, hath turned my wrath away from the children of Israel, while he was zealous for my sake among them, that I consumed not the children of Israel in my jealousy.
God continually looks for men and women in the Church to deal with matters of sin that has an evident purifying effect, A LITTLE LEAVEN that would threaten to leaven the whole lump.
Your responsibility beloved is to God not to man, to all the brethren, not to one of them.
If you are aware of Gossip in the Church, you are to deal with it yourself.
If you are aware of division being sown in the Church, rebuke the discordant brother or sister and if there is no repentance, bring the responsibility to the person next in line to deal with the matter. If you are a wife, bring it to your husband, if a man, bring it to the deacon or pastor.
Deal with the matter knowing that there are both temporal and eternal consequences with ignoring it. Much pain can be alleviated when sin is dealt with early.
Cut away that putrefaction that the whole is not rotten;
Purge out the old leaven….
Sin Is Purged
1 Corinthians 5:7-8
7 Purge out therefore the old leaven, that ye may be a new lump, as ye are unleavened.For even Christ our passover is sacrificed for us: 8 Therefore let us keep the feast, not with old leaven, neither with the leaven of malice and wickedness; but with the unleavened bread of sincerity and truth.
Paul has called for the removal of the sinner from among them in verse 5 saying that the Church ought to 5 To deliver such an one unto Satan for the destruction of the flesh, that the spirit may be saved in the day of the Lord Jesus.
In verse 6 he rebukes them for their attitude and their ignorance as to the putrefying nature of sin as that which will inevitably engulf the entire Church;
Know ye not that a little leaven leaveneth the whole lump?
He now affirms the purpose of the work with a medical term originally employed to cleanse the body and so he applies it just as naturally to the body of Christ.
Whether it is employed in a nation, in a society or in the Church, expurgating the sinner by setting him out of the Church or of the society, has a cathartic effect, cleansing and purifying the body that the sinner once found himself accepted in.
Paul does not mince his words beloved.
When a local body is purged from the sins of the sinner, having dealt with the matter by removing the unrepentant from among them, they made the church clean, even NEW;
that ye may be a new lump, as ye are unleavened.
Churches who take this seriously will gain longevity and be blessed by the Lord. Those who do not will find sin will overcome them.
Pastors will no longer be permitted in the Church to preach against any sin. AND;
3 …the time will come when they will not endure sound doctrine; but after their own lusts shall they heap to themselves teachers, having itching ears; 2 Timothy 4:3
Paul here clearly presents the local Church as not only having the authority to attend to such disciplinary actions, but also the RESPONSIBILITY to do so for the preservation and sanctity of the Church.
While Pastors have the ultimate authority, the work belongs to the Body.
CLOSE
Sin has become so common and so excused that it no longer shocks people. Man becomes desensitised the more engaged they are in sin.
Pastors themselves can be identified as entertaining personal sin when they are pleased to entertain sinners in sin.
When a man shrugs his shoulders at evil, it reveals his own level of wickedness.
Sin is NOT PRIVATE, it affects all people one way or another.
Sin is NEVER PERMISSABLE, it ought not be so in a nation, in a society, in a church, nor in a person. We are never to excuse it, we are always to deal with it. Scripture gives to us the manner and means of attending to such matters biblically.
Personal sin is one of confession to the Lord, who is “faithful and just to forgive us our sins, and to cleanse us from all unrighteousness” (1 Jn 1:9)
The Sin of a brother in the Lord, or any charge against any individual is attended to personally and directly in accord with Matthew 18;
15 Moreover if thy brother shall trespass against thee, go and tell him his fault between thee and him alone: if he shall hear thee, thou hast gained thy brother. Matthew 18:15
The passage continues if he will not hear you.
Similar with respect to any elder, or pastor, or deacon in the Church, begin with Matthew 18, but be sure to keep 1 Timothy 5:19 in view; 19 Against an elder receive not an accusation, but before two or three witnesses
You are saved from the penalty of sin beloved, but the natural consequences in this life remains. Pride is the ONLY sin that will keep you from admitting your sin before the Lord.
The end will be a backslidden life of misery and a love for Christ that will wax cold. Jesus himself spoke of it respecting the last days; 12 And because iniquity shall abound, the love of many shall wax cold. Matthew 24:12
These are the days we are living in, determine to yourself that you will not be one of the “many” he refers to brethren. Purge your own sin by testifying to the Lord and rest in him and his grace as “sufficient” (2 Cor 12:9)
Jesus Died TO PURGE OUR SINS, to cast them as far as the East is From the West!
Remember most importantly the danger of A LITTLE LEAVEN.
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