1 Corinthians 5:2
And you are proud! Shouldn’t you rather have gone into mourning and have put out of your fellowship the man who has been doing this?
There is only one proper response to sin: sorrow. If we take sin lightly, it will begin to infiltrate our lives until it becomes acceptable and even habit forming. Sorrow is the first sign of repentance. If there is no genuine sorrow, have we really repented? The second step, as this verse outlines, is to reject sin. This will involve getting rid of those things in our lives that cause us to sin. This is exceedingly difficult when something has become part of our lives or is a habit. It feels like ripping out part of yourself. Habits provide security and comfort. They are familiar habits, activities, food, drink, medicines, drugs, and so on, that bring some degree of satisfaction, even if this is only fleeting and a temporary high. To break a habit, one must form new habits, which takes time and discipline. The Corinthians had become so comfortable with the situation of the sinful man in their midst that they became to be proud. Sin can drag us down so far that our outlook is distorted. Right no longer looks right and wrong looks right. Sin and habitual activities can distort our view of reality. When this happens, it takes even more significant struggle to develop the mind of Christ. God does not leave us along but gives us abundant resources, include the Bible, other Christians, and the Holy Spirit, who works through the Bible and other Christians. We have to look deeply into our own lives as we study 1 Corinthians 5. It is easy to condemn this man, but we may find that if we are honest, the Holy Spirit starts looking into our own dark corners.
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