In particular, what the appropriate steps are, when a trial is necessary, why a trial should be public, why a trial should always precede any kind of public censure, when an offense is public, and therefore not private ala Matthew 18.

Any help would be appreciated.

Cheers,

__________________
Adam B., Wine Country, California, PCA

"I fear not to hold with Junius, de Politia Mosis cap. 6, that he who was punishable by death under that Judicial law, is punishable by death still; and he who was not punished by death then, is not to be punished by death now."

Adam, Mark Dever's site has very good articles on Church Discipline

Discipline - 9Marks

__________________
César Proença

there is no will nor running by which we can prepare the way for our salvation, it is wholly of the Divine Mercy Jean Calvin Institutes II . V. 17

Reformed Churches in The Netherlands (liberated) http://www.gkv.nl/main.asp?intTreeviewID=954

Igreja Reformada em Massamá Portugal http://www.igrejareformada.pt

Jay Adams has a brief, but valuable little book entitled The Handbook of Church Discipline that might get you started.

If you can find a copy, James Durham's "A Treatise on Scandal", published by Naphtali Press but now out of print, lays out very skillfully the distinctions you mention concerning public and private matters.

__________________
Todd K. Pedlar
member, First Congregational Church, (CCCC) Cresco, IA
http://inprincipiodeus.solideogloria.com
http://puritanwisdom.blogspot.com

"As God did not at first choose you because you were high, He will not now forsake you because you are low."
John Flavel in Keeping the Heart



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James Dickson Books has copies and Reformation Heritage Books may have it sometimes (I always tell them to order from James as he ahs the only like new copies left). Also check with Gospel Mission as they also know about James as a source and at one pointed indicated they would follow that up. I did make Concerning Scandal into a Kindle book but I wouldn't buy a Kindle just for that if you don't already have one.

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Chris Coldwell, Lakewood Presbyterian Church (PCA), Dallas, Texas.
• Naphtali Press: Presbyterian & Reformed Books
• Westminster Letter Press
• The Confessional Presbyterian Journal
• The Blue Banner Archive

The Regulative Principle: The Scriptures are the “only infallible rule of faith and practice, no rite or ceremony ought to have a place in the public worship of God, which is not warranted in Scripture, either by direct precept or example, or by good and sufficient inference” (Samuel Miller).

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As far as process historically you can see the old Scottish compendium of Pardovan's Collections which is on Google books. I have no idea why the link has it under Minutes of the Westminster Assembly; but it gets there.

Thank you gentlemen!! These are GREAT resoucres!

Any other suggestions?

Cheers,

Adam,

I have not read it yet, but the book Exposition of the Book of Church Order by F.P. Ramsay is cited frequently in SJC decisions. Since the PCA's BCO is in large part a revision of 19th century BCOs, it is relevant.

I found it on archive.org:

Internet Archive: Free Download: An exposition of the form of government and the rules of discipline of the Presbyterian Church in the United States

__________________
Fred Greco
Senior Pastor, Christ Church PCA (Katy, TX)
Christ Church Blog

"The heart is the main thing in true religion...It is the hinge and turning-point in the condition of man's soul. If the heart is alive to God and quickened by the Spirit, the man is a living Christian. If the heart is dead and has not the Spirit, the man is dead before God." (J.C. Ryle)

Thank you so much Fred! I will definitely utilize this resouce.

Cheers,

I'm reading through "Handbook of Church Discipline" by Jay Adams. Some provocative thinking there and would like to interact with some of the thoughts in there and on the topic generally.

Mr. Adams has 5 steps, and some ideas about church "hopping" and what "excommunication" means that are worth discussing.

__________________
Scott
PCA
North Carolina


"Let us hold fast the profession of our faith without wavering; (for he is faithful that promised)"
Hebrews 10:23

The Adams book is excellent, so add my recommendation there.

There is also another very short treatise on discipline, but I cannot think of the author or title (it's currently at the church and I'm at home). I'm pretty sure it is put out by Banner of Truth and has a picture of a shepherd and sheep on the cover. Discipline is in the title (I think). Does anybody recall the work of which I'm speaking?

__________________
Tim Phillips
Pastor, Midlane Park Presbyterian Church (ARP)
Louisville, KY
Husband of Scottish Lass
My Blog: Gairney Bridge
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"Wherever the gospel is preached, it is as if God Himself came into the midst of us." ~ John Calvin

Yup, I've got that too. It's Daniel Wray's "Biblical Church Discipline". I think it's out of print though - but Amazon seems to have some copies. His "The Importance of the Local Church" is also a very nice little booklet.

The relevant section from Ramsay's Exposition is plugged into each page of the BCO Project here

For instance, see his comments (scoll down the page a bit) on the nature and ends of discipline, here.

[shameless self-promotion. mea culpa]

__________________
Wayne Sparkman, Th.M.
Director, PCA Historical Center, St. Louis, MO
Blogs: The Continuing Story and PCA History Blog

Yes, that's it! Thanks, Todd!

Adam, as is evidenced by the responses to your OP, I'm convinced that someone, somewhere, knows of a good book summarizing biblical church discipline.

__________________
Josh Hicks, Chloë's Dad
Christ Covenant Reformed Presbyterian Church, RPCGA
Facebook - The Calvinist Vent
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It is God that multiplies our sorrows.... God, as a righteous Judge, does it, which ought to silence us under all our sorrows; as many as they are, we have deserved them all, and more: nay, God, as a tender Father, does it for our necessary correction, that we may be humbled for sin, and weaned from the world by all our sorrows; and the good we get by them, with the comfort we have under them, will abundantly balance our sorrows, how greatly soever they are multiplied. - Matthew Henry

Wayne,

Are you still looking for help with this project?

Just want to add my two cents here endorsing Daniel Wray's pamphlet.

It is one of the best brief summaries of biblical church discipline that I have ever seen, printed in a small pamphlet format that can be given to basically any biblically knowledgeable fundamentalist who is used to "tracts." It will explain from the Bible the need for church discipline and the steps that must be followed to do the discipline.

Obviously it isn't an exhaustive document, but it is helpful to give to Bible-believing people in this modern age of no church discipline whatsoever who sincerely believe in biblical inerrancy but often do not understand the most basic principles of what church membership means.

The Durham is on google books.

The dying man's testament to the ... - Google Books

__________________
Boliver
Future Chaplain
EPC
Hankamer, TX