This week's episode of The White Horse Inn is a must-hear for everyone who is serious about bringing Christ's Kingdom to bear on earth. It's titled, Immorality in the Church, and its focus is on the Biblical instruction of church discipline.

Kristin and I continue to hear heart-breaking stories of friends we have known and loved our entire lives that have hardened their hearts toward the words of God and stubbornly have decided to live their lives according to their own desires. We fear for many of these friends, that God may "[give] them over to a depraved mind, to do what ought not to be done (Romans 1:28)."

As heart-breaking as this has been, we probably have been even more shocked by the obvious lack of church discipline that may have been able to steer some of these friends toward repentance and reconciliation to God.

We all have images of what we think church discipline looks like. This week's White Horse Inn talks about what church discipline is and what it isn't. It compares the church in Corinth to the American church today and allows us to learn from the Biblical warning of sin and its consequences. This week's episode is full of helpful information like this quote from Michael Horton:

The goal of church discipline is always absolution and reconciliation. It's not penance. It's not, 'after you've jumped through these hoops, and proved you're really, really sorry, and you've made amends, then you will be absolved.'

There is a difference between repentance - which is changing your mind - and the fruit of repentance. We're always inconsistent in bearing the fruit of repentance. But if you're not repentant, you're not a Christian. If you think you have the right to live how you want to live, and believe what you want to believe, you're not a Christian.

It's a great lesson and well worth the 30 minutes it takes to hear. You can click here to listen to the lesson right on your computer.

It's another reminder for us that the only thing worse than being caught in our sin, is not being caught in our sin. We pray that if, in a season of rebellion, our hearts are hardened in our sin, that our church will love us enough to discipline us and come get us.

Aren't you thankful that we belong to a God who doesn't leave us on our own when we're in over our heads? Our God is a wonderful God, indeed.