I recently read a story about a family photograph that sat on a shelf for many years. It showed happier days—a time before conflict, disappointment, and broken relationships.
Then something happened that fractured the family. Words were spoken. Trust was damaged. The picture was taken down and placed in a drawer.
Years later, after repentance, forgiveness, and reconciliation, someone brought the photograph back out and placed it on the shelf again.
The picture had not changed. The past could not be erased. But the family had chosen to restore what had been broken.
That is what Christian love does.
It does not pretend that sin never happened. It does not minimize the seriousness of wrong. But when repentance occurs, love opens the door for restoration.
This is exactly what occurred in the Corinthian church regarding a man openly flaunting an immoral lifestyle. In 1 Corinthians 5, the apostle Paul reprimanded the church for allowing this sin to continue without correction.
The brethren were instructed to discipline the offender and withdraw their fellowship from him because of his sinful conduct.
The purpose of this action was not revenge or rejection, but redemption. The goal was not to destroy the sinner, but to bring him to repentance.
Apparently, their corrective love accomplished its intended purpose, and the man repented of his sin. In 2 Corinthians 2:1-11, Paul then describes the attitude the brethren should have toward him:
“Forgive and comfort him, lest perhaps such a one be swallowed up with too much sorrow.”
Then he adds this exhortation:
“So I beg you to reaffirm your love for him” (2 Corinthians 2:8).
Notice that Paul did not simply tell them to forgive him. He urged them to reaffirm their love.
Forgiveness releases a person from the debt of their wrongdoing. Reaffirming love restores their sense of belonging.
The text offers three motivations behind reaffirming love.
#1 For the sake of the penitent man.
The Bible says his sin was so gross that it was not even tolerated among the first-century pagans. He was, as one writer described him, “a moral mess.”
But he came to his senses and repented.
No doubt he was filled with guilt, shame, and embarrassment. After experiencing the consequences of his sin, he needed to know that he was not forever defined by his failure.
So, Paul urged the church to reaffirm their love so he would not drown in guilt and give up in despair.
A repentant sinner needs more than correction. He needs compassion. He needs encouragement. He needs to know that restoration is possible.
#2 For the Lord’s sake.
When sin occurs, God is grieved. His sin was not just against the church or his family, but ultimately against the Lord.
The discipline exercised by the Corinthians was a matter of obedience to the Lord’s command (1 Corinthians 5).
However, when a sinner repents, the Lord rejoices, as Jesus illustrated in the trilogy of parables in Luke 15—the lost sheep, the lost coin, and the lost son.
Indeed, there is joy in heaven when one sinner repents.
God is honored not only when the church takes sin seriously but also when it celebrates repentance and restoration.
A church that refuses to discipline ignores God’s holiness. A church that refuses to forgive ignores God’s mercy.
Both correction and restoration are expressions of faithful love.
#3 For the sake of the church.
The text refers to “Satan’s devices” that seek to ensnare and entrap us.
One of those devices is whitewashing sin and failing to discipline unruly members.
Another is refusing to forgive when they repent.
Satan is equally pleased when sin is tolerated and when sinners who repent are treated as if they have no hope of restoration.
Reaffirming love expresses itself in both attitude and action—in word and in deed.
It is the demonstration of a tender heart of encouragement. Severed fellowship is restored. Broken hearts are repaired. Spiritual engagement is regained.
Like the father in the parable of the prodigal son, we welcome with open hearts and warm embraces the return of an erring brother.
Sadly, in too many cases, some brethren have acted like the older brother—failing to receive and refusing to forgive the repentant sinner.
Reaffirming love not only has its application in cases of church discipline, but also in personal disputes among brethren, in the marriage relationship between husbands and wives, and in the parent-child relationship.
Human beings make mistakes. They disappoint us. They hurt us. And sometimes they err egregiously in a repulsive way.
Yet, when wrongs are admitted, confession is offered, and a penitent spirit is demonstrated, we are called upon to exercise reaffirming love.
In the words of the British poet Alexander Pope:
“To err is human. To forgive is divine.”
–Ken Weliever, The Preacherman
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