Walking Together: A Congregational Reflection on Biblical Church Discipline Book

Foreword     ix
Preface     xi
Acknowledgements     xiii
Introduction     1
To Be A Congregation: Who/What Exactly Are We?     8
Isn't The Church A Hospital For Sinners?     17
The Already/Not Yet Church     18
Membership (A): The Death of An Idea     19
Membership (B): Entry and Continuance     20
Membership (C): But Will They Come?     21
Rethinking the Familiar: The Painful Joy of Allowing the Bible To Speak     22
Our Presuppositions and the Bible     29
Concerning Exegesis and Eisegesis     30
When You Dislike What You Just Read     31
A Further Word on 'Judge Not'     32
On The Throwing of Stones     33
Jesus' Plan for Prodigal Members I: Loving Enough to Speak     34
But We All Sin!     42
The Silent Treatment     43
What God Wants You To Win     44
Who Are The One or Two More?     45
Expanding Circles of Involvement     46
Jesus' Plan for Prodigal Members II: Widening the Circle     47
Looking at Five Objections: Objection 1     51
Looking at Five Objections: Objection 2     52
Looking at FiveObjections: Objection 3     53
Looking at Five Objections: Objection 4     54
Looking at Five Objections: Objection 5     55
Jesus' Plan for Prodigal Members III: Involving the Church     56
Must It Be Public     62
The Forgotten Step     63
So What?     64
The Very High Cost of Doing Nothing     65
The Church Before the Watching World     66
Jesus' Plan for Prodigal Members IV: Excommunication     67
The Great Privilege of Our High Calling     74
When and How?     75
A People Set Apart     76
Gentiles and Tax Collectors     77
Handing Him Over     78
Jesus' Plan for Prodigal Members V: Restoration and Fellowship Renewed     79
Keeping an Eye on the Goal     85
Grief: The Cure for Legalism     86
It's Not Over Until It's Over     87
Amazing Grace, How Sweet the Sound     88
Celebration!     89
Being the Body: Where Do We Go From Here?     90
Further Acknowledgements     94
Endnotes     96