CONTENTS

Constructive Church Discipline
Church Membership Committee Material
Personal Church Discipline
Corrective Church Discipline
Punitive Church Discipline
Local Church Discipline
Neglected Church Discipline
Foot Washing -- Church Ordinance or Church Discipline?

PART III

PERSONAL CHURCH DISCIPLINE

"And be not drunk with wine, wherein is excess; but be filled with the Spirit" (Ephesians 5:18).

"Love not the world, neither the things that are in the world. If any man love the world, the love of Father is not in Him. For all that is in the world, the lusts of the flesh, and the lust of the eyes, and the pride of life, is not of the Father, but is of the world. And the world passeth away, and the lust thereof: but he that doeth the will of God abideth forever. But ye have an unction from the Holy One, and ye know all things. But the anointing which ye have received of Him abideth in you, and ye need not that man teach you: but as the same anointing teacheth you of all things, and is truth, and is no lie, and even as it hath taught you, ye shall abide in Him" (1 John 2:15-17, 20, 27).

"Know ye not that which run in a race run all, but one receiveth the prize? So run, that ye may obtain. And every man striveth for the mastery is temperate in all things. Now they do it to obtain a corruptible crown; but we an incorruptible. I therefore so run, not as uncertainly; so fight I, not as one that beateth the air: But I keep under my body, and bring it into subjection: lest that by any mean, when I have preached to others, I myself should be a castaway" (1 Corinthians 9:24-27).

"For if we would judge ourselves, we should not be judged" (1 Corinthians 11:31).

"Pure religion and undefiled before God and the Father is this, To visit the Fatherless and windows in their affliction, and to keep himself unspotted from the world" (James 1:27).

"Teaching us that, denying ungodliness and worldly lusts, we should live soberly, righteously, and godly, in this present world; Looking for that blessed hope, and the glorious appearing of the great God and our Saviour Jesus Christ; Who gave himself for us, that he might redeem us from all iniquity, and purify unto himself a peculiar people, zealous of good works" (Titus 2:12-14).

"Dearly beloved, I beseech you as strangers and pilgrims, abstain from fleshly lusts, which war against the soul" (1 Peter 2:11).

In this study we are dealing with a phase of church discipline that is most sadly neglected. Some parts of constructive church discipline are practiced by all of our churches, but it is a very small group of individuals in any church who sincerely do much about personal church discipline. If more personal church discipline were practiced, there would be less need for punitive church discipline.

What do we mean by personal church discipline? It is the practice of individual church members in disciplining themselves. How else can we grow in the grace of our Lord Jesus Christ? How else can we live the victorious Christian life? How else will we have a separated church membership? How else can we hope to be trained to be good soldiers who endure hardness for our Lord Jesus Christ?

Our imperfections, our sins, our failures (or whatever other name you may prefer to call them) are numerous. What shall we do about them? Certainly, God wants us to repent of our sins and confess them to the Saviour for forgiveness. But what do many do? They excuse their sins by saying that they cannot be perfect, and then seem to set up a planned program of sinning instead of seeking victory over all sin. He wants to lead every one of His saints through a rigid program of discipline and training. I am referring to a purely personal matter that is a must for every Christian who really follows the Saviour. It is the only way to be a true disciple.

In our church covenant, let us note the following things which involve personal discipline and training:

(1) "We engage, therefore, by the aid of the Holy Spirit to walk together in Christian Love:
(2) To strive for the advancement of this church in knowledge, holiness and comfort:
(3) To promote its prosperity and spirituality:
(4) To sustain its worship, ordinances, discipline, and doctrines;
(5) To contribute cheerfully and regularly to the support of the ministry, the expenses of the church, the relief of the poor, and the spread of the Gospel through all nations
(6) We engage to maintain family and secret devotion;
(7) To religiously educate our children;
(8) To seek the salvation of our kindred and acquaintances;
(9) To walk circumspectly in the world;
(10) To be just in our dealings, faithful in our engagements, and exemplary in our deportment;
(11) To avoid all tattling, backbiting, and excessive anger;
(12) To abstain from the sale of, and use of, intoxicating drinks as a beverage;
(13) To be zealous in our efforts to advance the kingdom of our Saviour;
(14) To remember each other in prayer;
(15) To aid one another in sickness and distress;
(16) To cultivate Christian sympathy in feeling and Christian courtesy in speech;
(17) To be slow to take offense, but always ready for reconciliation and mindful of the rules of our Saviour to secure it without delay.
(18) We moreover engage that when we remove from this place we will, as soon as possible unite with some other church where we can carry out the spirit of this covenant and the principles of God's Word."

"And be not drunk with wine, wherein is excess; but be filled with the Spirit" (Ephesians 5:18).

The Holy Spirit here commands the saint not to get drunk or become intoxicated with wine. The word "excess" as it is generally used expresses the idea of an abandoned, debauched, profligate life. Then on the positive side, God's children are commanded to be filled with the Spirit. The word "filled" means to fill up, to cause to abound, to furnish or supply liberally, to flood, to diffuse throughout. Certainly there is no thought of the Holy Spirit being a kind of fluid to fill some kind of container. It is the idea of His having complete control. The grammatical construction is such that "be filled with Spirit" could be rendered "be constantly being filled with the Spirit."

"Love not the world, neither the things that are in the world. If any man love the world, the love of the Father is not in him. For all that is in the world, the lust of the flesh, and the lust of the eyes, and the pride of life, is not of the Father, but is of the world. And the world passeth away, and the lust thereof: but he that doeth the will of God abideth forever" (1 John 2:15-17).

The word "world" is used in at least three different ways in the New Testament. It is used referring to the hills, valleys, lakes, oceans, rivers, skies, flowers, grass, trees, etc. The Saviour loved the world in this sense, and there is no command anywhere that we are not to do the same. In fact, after we are saved, we love it even more. The following words of the poet illustrate what I mean:

"Heaven above is softer blue,
Earth around is sweeter green!
Something lives in ev'ry hue
Christless eyes have never seen:
Birds with gladder songs o'erflow,
Flow'rs with deeper beauties shine,
Since I know, as now I know,
I am His, and He is mine!"

Then the word "world" is used referring to lost sinners. "For God so loved the world..." He so loved the lost that He gave Christ. We are exhorted, invited, and commanded to do the same as Christians. In fact, our failure to love the "world" in this sense is one of the major sins among Christians today. In the third place, the word "world" is used to refer to the world system man has built in which he seeks to get happiness and peace apart from God. It is seen in the business, social, educational, cultural, and religious areas of human life. And it is this "world' which John has in mind as he commands us to love it not! This passage also deals with the three channels through which come all man's enticements to sin.

(1) the lust of the flesh
(2) the lust of the eyes
(3) the pride of life

It was through these three channels that the Saviour was tested in the wilderness. It is one of these three through which we are always tested, but in contrast to Him, we turn the tests into temptations and are enticed and sin. And all three, the lust of the flesh, the lust of the eyes, and the pride of life are of this world system. It all passes away and instead of bringing happiness and peace it brings just the opposite. But in obedience to His will there is lasting joy; there is endless gladness. In this light, who would not say,

"Take the world, but give me Jesus,
All earth's joys are but in name,
But His love abideth ever
Through eternal years the same."

There are many who have trusted Jesus as their Saviour from judgment, who have never learned to know Him as the rejected One with Whom they are called to walk in hallowed fellowship separated from the world.

"But ye have an unction from the Holy One, and ye know all things, But the anointing which ye have received of him abideth in you, and Ye need not that any man teach you: but as the same anointing teacheth you of all things, and is truth, and is no lie, and even as it hath taught you, ye shall abide in him" (1 John 2:20, 27).

In thinking of the anointing of the Holy Spirit, our minds immediately go back to the Old Testament practice of anointing the priests and kings with oil. The oil was a symbol of the Holy Spirit. As those who are saved, we are priests and kings unto God, and we are privileged to have the anointing of the Holy Spirit.

The anointing of the Spirit, like the fulness of the Spirit, is an experience that we, as His saints, are to go on having over and over again. It is not a once for all matter like the baptism with the Holy Spirit.

Here in these verses in the first epistle of John, we read, "ye know all things" and "the same anointing teacheth you of all things;" these expressions can be better understood if one knows that they may also be rendered: "ye all know things" and "the same anointing teacheth all of you things." John is not saying that we shall not study books and go to school to be taught by human teachers. But he is saying that there are some things we are not taught from books and human teachers but by the Holy Spirit alone. It comes through the anointing of the Holy Spirit. Sometimes we find lazy folk who do not want to discipline themselves to study saying that the Holy Spirit will teach them (God will fill their mouths to speak), and they fill their own mouths and heads with hot air -- God has nothing to do with it. In this connection, I believe the following quotation is appropriate: "God can use an ignoramus, but He can only use what the ignoramus knows!"

"Know ye not that they which run in a race run all, but one receiveth the prize? So run, that ye may obtain. And every man that striveth for the mastery is temperate in all things. Now they do it to obtain a corruptible crown; but we an incorruptible. I therefore so run, not as uncertainly; so fight I, not as one that beateth the air: But I keep under my body, and bring it into subjection: lest that by any means, when I have preached to others, I myself should be castaway" (1 Corinthians 9:24-27).

There are two lines of truth running parallel through the Word of God: salvation which is by grace alone, and reward for devoted service. Salvation is not a reward for anything that you or I may do, nor is Heaven a reward for a life of faithfulness here on earth. Salvation is a free gift; eternal life is a free gift. Heaven is the eternal home of all the redeemed, open to every one who puts his or her trust in the Lord Jesus Christ. We cannot pay for a place in Heaven; we cannot earn it by tears, by sacrifices, by our gifts, or by anything which we can do. But while salvation, eternal life, and a place in Heaven are all set before us as God's free gifts to believing sinners, the Word has a great deal to say about the importance of service and about awards for faithfulness. "Behold, I come quickly," says our blessed Lord, "and my reward is with me, to give every men according as his work shall be" (Revelation 22:12). Certainly, the reward is not a place with Himself in Heaven, but it is the special expression of His satisfaction in the believer because of devotedness, because of faithfulness in this life. This subject and its importance is what is being brought out in the passage that is before us.

He speaks of the race; the Holy Spirit gives us a striking illustration of rewards for the Christian by referring to the reward in winning the race. It was a law that to contend in the games one must prove that he was of pure Greek parentage. We are heavenly citizens; we are not born Christians But are born-again Christians. Only those who are born again are permitted in the ace of which Paul speaks. We are running a race for reward for Christian service, Christian responsibility, and if we run our race well, there is a reward at the end. If we fail in the race, we fail in the reward. We do not fail of Heaven, or salvation, because our work is not all it ought to be or all we would like it to be. "If any man's work shall be burned, he shall suffer loss: but he himself shall be saved; yet so as by fire" (1 Corinthians 3:15). In 2 Timothy 2:5, we read, "If any man also strive for masteries, yet is he not crowned, except he strive lawfully." Another way to say it is: "If a man contend in the games yet is he not crowned if he hath not observed the rules." The athlete must discipline himself and follow the rules of training, and so must we if we are to win rewards. Paul says that he is not fighting as one who beats the air; in other words, it is no sham battle. To show how important it really is, he then says, "But I keep under my body, and bring it into subjection: lest that by any means, when I have preached to others, I myself should be castaway." What does he mean? Does he have a haunting fear that he may be lost after being saved? No! Keep in mind that he is speaking of reward for service and saying, "I want to serve that I can have the Lord's approval in that day. I must not be self indulgent. I must not let my physical passions master me, but I must master them and keep under my body." The word "castaway" means "disapproved." Have you not known of those who ran well for years and then little by little began to let down? They were not as prayerful as they used to be; they did not give time to study of the Bible as they did in the early days. They gave freer rein to natural appetites; they thought more of their own pleasure and of taking their ease. Then one day it became apparent that there had been a terrible breakdown. They had become castaways (disapproved).

"For if we would judge ourselves, We should not be judged" (1 Corinthians 11:31).

God's Word teaches that we are not to judge others' motives (Matthew 7:1) but that we are to judge their work and actions (Matthew 5:20; 1 Corinthians 5:12-13). This passage is emphasizing how we need to severely judge ourselves as to motives and actions. When we do so and make the necessary corrections, we are exercising personal church discipline. Oh, that we as God's people would be careful to judge ourselves!

"Pure religion and undefiled before God and the Father is this, To visit the fatherless and widows in their affliction, and to keep himself unspotted from the world" (James 1:27).

Here is one of the first and finest ways to put into practice what we have learned from the Word. It is a pure spiritual service because it is unmixed and unmarred by selfishness, by hope of returns. It is "undefiled before God," a service upon which God looks with joy and finds nothing to mar it. And to keep one's self unspotted from the world is to live so that earthly sordidness does not stain the life and testimony of the individual. This is one who commends the grace of god by a separated, surrendered life, one against whom no sinful practice of the world can be believed or sustained, a man or woman of transparent sincerity, whose life has been cleansed by the washing of His Word.

There is a sense in which succor to the poor is the highest expression of the reality of our faith in Christ! The poor cannot pay. If our giving is based upon some idea of getting in return from men, that is not Christianity. Real religion calls on the orphans and widows in their need, and does so because of the love of Christ which constrains them to "help those who are weak." My, how we Bible loving Christians need a refresher on this point! Many of our unsaved friends -- and the liberals (in theology that is) outstrip us. Oh I know that they do it all too often with the idea of meriting favor with god and stacking a sufficient pile of good works to outweigh their bad deeds and thereby get in. But I repeat -- good works such as James describes here in the Scripture should be the normal fruit of faith. And if they are not there, something is wrong.

Look again at the other expression, "and to keep himself unspotted from the world." I like James' way of saying this. You know there are some Christians who hold tenaciously to the idea that we ought to withdraw ourselves from association with sinners. Our Lord Jesus never taught that. In fact, in His high priestly prayer, He seems to ask for the opposite! "Father... I pray not that thou shouldest take them out of the world, but that thou shouldest keep them from the evil one." Monasteries and asceticism were never a part of His program; men have tried to palm these off on the uninstructed. The Saviour knew that we would have to live among men in order to live, and furthermore that we might tell them of Him! How else can it be done? Of course we understand that our being in the world does not mean our participation in its sin and unbelief -- that is what James has in mind when he calls us to keep from stains and spots. Right here is where Lot failed so miserably. When he chose the plain country of Jordan, and then pitched his tent toward Sodom, I am quite sure that he had no thought of indulging himself in Sodom's sin. But it was not long before the sin of Sodom got in Lot, and the spots appeared. They became so numerous and notorious that angels had to take Lot in hand, and deliver him by the "nape of his neck." The Apostle Peter had this scene in mind when he wrote of the deliverance of just Lot, who had been vexed with the "filthy conversation of the wicked." He did not keep himself unspotted from the world. He did not exercise personal discipline!

"Teaching us that, denying ungodliness and worldly lusts, we should live soberly, righteously, and godly, in this present world; Looking for that blessed hope, and the glorious appearing of the great God and our Saviour Jesus Christ; Who gave himself for us, that he might redeem us from all iniquity, and purify unto himself a peculiar people, zealous of good works" (Titus 2:12-14).

He is saying here that a divine message has been sent from Heaven to earth, showing us that denying, or refusing, ungodliness and worldly lusts, we should live soberly, righteously and piously in this present world, "looking for that blessed hope and glorious appearing of the great God and our Saviour Jesus Christ." This last expression could be read this way, according to the judgment of many sober authorities, "He is our great God, and It is He Who became in grace our Saviour." So God's grace saves us, and He teaches us personal discipline. He trains us to be separated from sin, ungodliness, unrighteousness, and worldly lusts. These things from which He teaches us to be separate are seen in immodesty (whether wearing shorts, bathing suits, basketball suits, cheer leader uniforms or dressing so as to be identified with the liberated woman and/or unisex), drinking, gambling, dancing, movies, a lot of T.V. programs, tobacco, filthy literature, honkytonks, mixed swimming, night clubs, bars, and a lot of hellish practices in love, courtship, and marriage. It calls for personal discipline. So few practice it that there is no wonder that many churches are hotbeds of worldliness. And it is the return of the Lord which is here put before us to influence our daily lives. It is one thing to hold the doctrine of the Lord's return, but quite another to be held by that blessed hope.

"Dearly beloved, I beseech you as strangers and pilgrims, abstain from fleshly lusts, which war against the soul" (1 Peter 2:11).

God's saints are here reminded of their pilgrim character and their position in Christ which call for them to refrain from participation in that which is detrimental to them. It is a call for Christians to personal discipline.

Fullness of the Holy Spirit

In one of our Scripture (Ephesians 5:18) for this study, we see two commands:

(1) Do not be drunk with wine.
(2) Be filled with the Spirit.

As we teach and preach, should we not be as careful to emphasize the second of these commands as we are the first? It is surely true that some emphasize the second more than the first, but I fear, with the majority, the first command is given a greater place than the second. Should you and I not feel just as ashamed of not being filled with the Holy Spirit as we would at being drunk with wine? This is personal church discipline to which we should give careful attention!

The Holy Spirit fills us -- that is, controls us -- when we yield unconditionally and ask Him to do so. The prevalent powerlessness and fruitlessness of most Christians today is evidence of a lack of fullness of the Holy Spirit. Have you ever been filled with the Holy Spirit? Once? Twice? Three times? He does it over and over, if we meet the conditions. The New Testament Christians were filled with the Spirit; they went out, spent themselves in witnessing, and came back to the place or prayer to be filled again. There is joy in being filled with the Holy Spirit, but He does not fill us that we may merely feel good. He fills us that we may have grace, power, and boldness to witness; read Acts 4:23-33.

Some have mistakenly thought that the filling with the Holy Spirit is some strange, ecstatic, emotional experience that comes to them at a given moment and is then gone. The man who is filled with Holy Spirit does not go off into some wild fanatical state, but works thoughtfully and carefully with God, and his testimony has power with men. If you turn to Colossians 3:16, you will find that by letting the Word of Christ dwell in you richly you get the same results as you do in Ephesians 5 by being filled with the Spirit. There is an old rule in mathematics that "things equal to the same thing are equal to one another." If to be filled with the Word is equal in result to being filled with the Spirit, then it should be clear that the "Word-controlled" Christian is the Spirit-controlled" Christian. As the Word of Christ dwells in us richly, controls all our ways, as we walk in obedience to the Word, the Spirit of God fills, dominates, and controls us to the glory of our Lord Jesus Christ.

Anointing of the Holy Spirit

The anointing, like the filling of the Holy Spirit, is ours over and over again as we meet the conditions. And the conditions are the same: unconditional yieldedness and requesting Him to do it. He fills us primarily that we may have grace, power, and boldness to witness. He anoints us primarily that we may have wisdom in study, appropriation, and teaching of the Word. We know things because He lives in us and anoints us. Potentially we know all things because He does, and He indwells us. Actually, it is different because He is still teaching us!

Preachers, teachers, and other Christians can testify of experiences in reading, studying, and giving out the Word when through the Holy Spirit's anointing, they had wisdom to see and understand truth regarding certain matters which they had never before seen in the same passages. How He longs to constantly do this for all of us. God forgive so many of us for missing so many of His blessings. Would you daily seek His anointing? The problems brought on by false teachers will be averted, if we are constantly under His unction!

Overcoming Temptation and Self Control

Thank God for His promise to us regarding our temptations. "There hath no temptation taken you but such as is common to man: but God is faithful, who will not suffer you to be tempted above that ye may be able to bear it" (1 Corinthians 10:13). The Christian who does not exercise personal church discipline will not be prepared to depend upon the Lord for victory, as he faces tests. In the wilderness, as Satan tested Jesus, our Lord answered his every suggestion with a quotation from the Word of God.

So, the Heavenly Father promises us victory in tests. We can have victory by the Word, but what if we have not disciplined ourselves to study it and to hide it in our hearts that we might not sin against God? Read the Word, study it, memorize it that you may be prepared to use it and be a victorious Christian. Scripture memory work is not just for boys and girls or just for men and women; it is for all of us.

Peter exhorts God's children, in his second epistle, to add the seven Christian virtues to their lives after having been saved by His matchless grace. These seven are as follows:

(1) virtue (manly courage)
(2) knowledge
(3) temperance (self control)
(4) patience
(5) godliness (God-like-ness)
(6) brotherly kindness
(7) charity (love in action)

Self control is one of these seven. In Galatians 5, Paul lists temperance or self control as the fruit of the Spirit.

Bad tempers, gossip, fussing, suspicion, overeating, and many other sins prove that too many Christians have not the Christian virtue of self control. Do you? Are you willing to exercise personal church discipline that you may be victorious in tests and have self control?

Judging Ourselves and Pressing Towards the Goal

In 1 Corinthians 11:31, Paul wrote these Spirit inspired words, "For if we judge ourselves, we should not be judged." One would almost think that he said that if we excuse ourselves (instead of judge) we should not be judged. It is much easier to excuse ourselves because of our personal weaknesses; we excuse ourselves because we say that others did as bad or worse. God wants us to judge and confess our sins. What revival would come if each Christian began honestly judging himself and exercising personal church discipline.

Our Father not only wants us to judge ourselves, He also wants us to press toward the goal. What is our goal? Paul expressed it this way in Philippians 3:13-14: "Brethren, I count not myself to have apprehended: but this one thing I do, forgetting those things which are behind, and reaching forth unto those things which are before, I press toward the mark for the prize of the high calling of God in Christ Jesus." Today people scorn high standards of morality and spirituality. They speak of churches being too legalistic and too strict. But what is our goal; He is Christ Jesus, the perfect Son of God. What gross ignorance then is it to speak of being too strict or having standards that are too high when our goal is to be like Him! Daily let us press toward the goal and that will require personal church discipline.

Simple Living and Willingness to Be Different

Men are slaves to fashions and customs. Sad to say, even God's saints get caught in this trap. If the fashions of clothes are immodest and sinful, some so fear the censure of others that they do what everybody else is doing. Some do not want to drink, smoke, dance, wear shorts, etc., but they do not want to be called a "wall flower" or "Sunday school pupil" or maybe a "religious fanatic." It is true that living godly in Christ Jesus will bring persecution. Our Lord was absolutely sinlessly perfect; well why was He so disliked, persecuted and even crucified? Among other reasons, it was because He was willing to be different and was not concerned about what others thought or said about Him! The young man Daniel was a good example for young and old today; read chapters one and six of the book of Daniel. He was willing to be different for the glory of God, and he did not let the opinion of others change him. Social pressures will cause us to be swallowed up in sin, If we are not fortified by disciplining ourselves in prayer, study of the Word, and constant fellowship with Him. God help us to let the Master, not public opinion, determine our practices. Some would like to have a New Testament church, but they cannot because to have one requires a willingness to be different.

Along with our willingness to be different, we need more simple living. Certainly, God does not forbid us to buy clothes, cars, houses, furniture, or even jewelry. He wants us to buy those things that are needful and can be used for his glory. But He is so often dishonored in His saints' efforts to become too luxurious. With so many millions in our world going to Hell, we would do well to spend more in getting out the Gospel and less to be used selfishly. Many Christians are looking at stolen televisions, riding in stolen cars, and living in stolen houses. What do we mean by this statement? They robbed God of tithes and offerings and then bought things for themselves with the stolen money. What a shame! And if we tithe and give offerings, there should still be a limit to our emphasis on luxury, if we will best glorify Him! Oh, for disciplined saints who would be willing to be different and to do more simple living to His honor.

Courage and Faith

God constantly tests us. That is the reason James wrote in the second verse of the first chapter of his epistle: "My brethren, count it all joy when ye fall into divers temptations (tests)." This within itself is a disciplinary experience; He wants us to advance in courage and faith. In these days of attacks on the Bible and all that is high and holy, we need Christians of great courage and faith. When Shadrach, Meshach, and Abednego were called upon to fall down and worship the golden image or be cast into a burning fiery furnace, they proved themselves to be men of courage and faith. They told the heathen king that their God was able to deliver them. But they added, that if He did not choose to deliver them, they still would not dishonor Him by worshipping the image. At home, on the job, at school, on the playground, downtown, etc., we constantly face situations that call for courage and faith. Have we been so disciplined as to meet the tests?

We may live long enough to see Christians lose their lives because they are Christians. It happened in the past and may happen again. God knows we need to so live and practice personal discipline as to ever be children of great courage and faith.

Conclusions

1. Personal church discipline is grossly neglected.

2. If we had more personal church discipline, we would seldom, if ever, have to withdraw fellowship from members of our churches.

3. Personal church discipline is a great testimony to the lost because they are constantly watching the lives of the Christians.

4. Personal church discipline is only one form of church discipline.

5. Achievement in any field of honorable activity is the result of personal discipline; how much more in the Christian life!

6. God's greatest saints have been those of rigid discipline and training.

7. Personal discipline is right, honorable, and without substitute, but one who practices it sins grossly, if he becomes self-righteous about it.

8. High standards do not make one legalistic; legalism is depending on works to save you or rules to make you spiritual.

9. Separation is from sin and to Christ; separation from sin but not unto Christ leaves one self-righteous.

10. Who is a spiritual person? "A spiritual person is one who is saved, in the center of God's will, content with how god made him, (or her), with what He gave him, and where He put him, and not jealous of how He made others, what He gave them, or where He put them."

11. Some folk are self-righteous over being separated, and some are self-righteous in not being separated.

12. Meeting the standards to teach does not in itself make one spiritual, but one should have a standard high enough to be a good example before being trusted to teach.

13 Parents who do not practice personal discipline have a very bad influence on their children.

See New Testament Church Discipline Part IV -- "Personal Church Discipline"