Shunning is Not Always Wrong – by Jeff Crippen
UPDATE Sept 2021: I have come to believe that Jeff Crippen does not practise what he preaches. He vilely persecuted an abuse victim and spiritually abused many other people in the Tillamook congregation. Go here to read the evidence. Jeff has not gone to the people that he spiritually and emotionally abused. He has not apologised to them, let alone asked for their forgiveness.
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Rather than putting Paige Patterson out of the SBC for all the cruel ways he has treated victims of abuse, the Southwest Baptist Theological Seminary have just given Paige Patterson a golden parachute. They ought to have put him out of the church altogether and be shunning him for his facinorous (extremely wicked) pattern of conduct.
This is a repost from Ps Jeff Crippen’s blog.
(Shunning is Not Always Wrong [Internet Archive link])
Jeff resigned from the ACFJ team last year.
He now blogs at Light For Dark Times [Internet Archive link].
Many times I have heard people criticize churches and Christians for “shunning” someone. And in many of those cases the criticism is valid because the person being shunned is in fact a victim of some evil which the church refused to confront. Instead, they blamed the victim and gave threw them under the bus.
Somehow the idea of “shunning” someone has become something that is thought to be always evil and wrong. But that is not so. The Bible is quite plain that there are people who we are to have nothing to do with. Who we are, you can say, to shun. Here are some scriptural examples:
1 Co 5:11-13 But now I am writing to you not to associate with anyone who bears the name of brother if he is guilty of sexual immorality or greed, or is an idolater, reviler, drunkard, or swindler–not even to eat with such a one. (12) For what have I to do with judging outsiders? Is it not those inside the church whom you are to judge? (13) God judges those outside. “Purge the evil person from among you.”
Rom 16:17-18 I appeal to you, brothers, to watch out for those who cause divisions and create obstacles contrary to the doctrine that you have been taught; avoid them. (18) For such persons do not serve our Lord Christ, but their own appetites, and by smooth talk and flattery they deceive the hearts of the naive.
2 Th 3:6 Now we command you, brothers, in the name of our Lord Jesus Christ, that you keep away from any brother who is walking in idleness and not in accord with the tradition that you received from us.
I could go on citing more, but this certainly should suffice to prove that the Christian is to keep away from, avoid, and not even eat with certain people. Namely and especially, people who claim to be Christians but who are walking in evil and therefore are servants of the devil.
This idea that shunning is always wrong and evil in itself is something that is often used to justify keeping the wicked in the church, enabling them in their evil. But to do so is to refuse to obey the clear commands of the Lord. For myself, I simply cannot understand why any real Christian would want to continue in fellowship with a counterfeit believer who has crept in among the brethren to destroy and harm. We are light in the Lord. Why would we want to associate and be bound together with darkness?
Notice once again (you see it in the verses quoted above) that it is not the average, normal unbeliever that is the most serious threat to the church, though of course we are not to be intimately connected with them either. I count numbers of unsaved people as my friends. But I wouldn’t marry one. I socialize with them (as Jesus ate with sinners) but I realize that we are not at all on the same page when it comes to ultimate truths of God’s Word. Nevertheless, the greatest evil, the most wicked and dangerous person, comes to us disguised as a sheep, yet is a ravenous wolf. If someone claims to be a brother in Christ but in fact bears evil fruit as a regular pattern of his life, then that is the person to shun.
So, yes, I shun certain people. Our church shuns certain people. And in doing so we are obeying our Lord’s command.
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For further reading
Churches are sinfully honouring reprobates—Eli and his reprobate sons.
Resources about Domestic Abuse
A Cry For Justice 
Shunning Patterson would seem more appropriate than the retirement package provided.
What I would really like is for the SBC to publicly shun Patterson’s dangerous teaching…something they have not done.
On Counseling Against Divorce [Internet Archive link]
Thank you Barbara and Jeff!
UPDATE Sept 2021: I have come to believe that Jeff Crippen does not practise what he preaches. He vilely persecuted an abuse victim and spiritually abused many other people in the Tillamook congregation. Go here to read the evidence. Jeff has not gone to the people that he spiritually and emotionally abused. He has not apologised to them, let alone asked for their forgiveness.
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Hi Joe, thanks for the encouragement. But Jeff is no longer on the ACFJ team: he resigned last year. Perhaps you knew that but it had slipped your mind. 🙂
Yes, I knew that. I assumed as author of post Jeff was likely monitoring comments.
Thanks!
Understood…
The last ‘c’hurch I attended for any duration had too many wolves, from the pastor on down. When I submitted a request for prayer ministry, the written response quoted Scripture and said maybe it was “time to let it go”. Um, as many on ACFJ can attest, one does not “choose” flashbacks. Nor does one ignore the leadings of the Holy Spirit in crawling out of the fog.
I got the feeling one of the issues was they could not add me to the “instant-fix” list of their prayer ministry – they DID make sure THOSE received much publicity.
When I left, there were some who “warned” me I was falling into Satan’s clutches by leaving “their” ‘c’hurch.
You could say I reversed the verses quoted by Pastor Jeff. I shunned the ‘c’hurch. Followed Jesus and shook their dust from my sandals.
What a gem! TW can you please add it to the GEMS page? Thanks!
A gem indeed!
I’ve added it to the GEMS page.
Bravo and Hallelujah!
A serial spiritual abuser planning to retire is either forced to or agrees to retire a few months early but gets to keep huge already planned benefits. This is a sham con job. Watch for fireworks next month at the SBC national convention. Wade Burleson plans to call them out on this.
Great!
As someone who has experienced shunning it is a horrible thing. I was shunned for talking to an ex-member of my “church”. To this day, even children born after I was removed from fellowship, will see my car or see me and turn the other way. They have no idea who I am, and I have no idea what they were told I did. But somehow they have been taught to recognise me.
I would definitely say remove these guys from leadership. But the shunning verses come alongside verses to woo the sinner back to fellowship.
I don’t think there is an easy answer. They are false shepherds we know. Unintentionally or intentionally they have failed their duty.
I guess that is why the Bible tells us that God judges teachers at a higher level than others.
The Pharisaic ‘c’hurch typically shuns the wrong person…they shun the victim rather than the person the BIble says we should shun – the abuser, the manipulative freeloader, the wolves in sheepsuits.
What they did to you, Sarah, was wrong. And it’s still wrong. I encourage you to take heart from the story of the blind man who was healed by Jesus and then the religious leaders cast the healed man out. You can know and bask in the love of Jesus outside the temple much more than you can know it inside the Pharisaic ‘c’hurch.
Here are some posts you might like to read:
A mark of a true Christian is that he doesn’t always follow those in church leadership
Christ Has His Remnant — There ARE True Christians
And I know this will be a long comment, but here is John 9:10-39 from the New Matthew Bible. The man who was born blind has just been healed by Jesus.
Can I ask how do others manage flashbacks?
This is what happened many years ago but it still affects me; to the point that when I am invited out at night, I force myself to go (especially when it’s windy or raining).
When I do decide to go out at night, I often have flashbacks of the wild night and being asked to get out of the car.
We were driving home from a meal with friends who live in a rural area about an hour away. While there, a wild electrical storm passed over. On the drive home there were branches and leaves all over the road. X had too many glasses of wine during the meal, and was driving too fast through the leaves and branches. I was very scared, so I asked him to slow down.
I asked a couple of times, saying I was scared we would hit a branch.
He pulled the car over with the motor running, it was still raining a bit, and he told me that if I couldn’t be quiet and stop all my fear, then I could get out.
I refused to get out. It was dark, wet and windy and few cars go on that road especially in the middle of the night, so I decided it would be safer to stay in the car, and sit in silence for the drive home. But I have never felt safe driving at night since then, even if I am the driver.
Hi Initium Nova,
You might find our PTSD tag helpful. In our top menu go to TAGS (not including Books of the Bible). You will find PTSD in that list.
Thank you very much.