1 Corinthians 5: Should I stop associting with a friend?

[ChristianKitsune]

Okay... this is kinda strange...so bear with me, please.

Last summer God really answered my prayers...and my very best friend accepted Christ at a Church camp...

...only...he has sense "come out of the closet" and claims that he is homosexual...

Now... I am really confused by him right now, but I am not going to judge him. Whatever decision he made is between him and God. I pray that his decision to accept Christ was real...but I am not going to judge him

Anyways... He and I carpool to school everyday..and this morning we were running late so I decided to have my Bible time while I was riding the 20 or so miles to school.

Anyways...I am currently reading in 1 Chorinthians and today I read chapter 5-7... and I was a bit..scared about what I read. (especially in chapter 5)

For ease I am posting the chapter here, and highlighting what freaked me out, mmkay?

1 Chorinthians: 5 1 I can hardly believe the report about the sexual immorality going on among you—something that even pagans don’t do. I am told that a man in your church is living in sin with his stepmother.[a] 2 You are so proud of yourselves, but you should be mourning in sorrow and shame. And you should remove this man from your fellowship.
3 Even though I am not with you in person, I am with you in the Spirit. And as though I were there, I have already passed judgment on this man 4 in the name of the Lord Jesus. You must call a meeting of the church.[c] I will be present with you in spirit, and so will the power of our Lord Jesus. 5 Then you must throw this man out and hand him over to Satan so that his sinful nature will be destroyed[d] and he himself[e] will be saved on the day the Lord[f] returns.

6 Your boasting about this is terrible. Don’t you realize that this sin is like a little yeast that spreads through the whole batch of dough?[color="Red"] [B]7 Get rid of the old “yeast” by removing this wicked person from among you. Then you will be like a fresh batch of dough made without yeast, which is what you really are. Christ, our Passover Lamb, has been sacrificed for us.[g] 8 So let us celebrate the festival, not with the old bread[h] of wickedness and evil, but with the new bread[i] of sincerity and truth.[/color]
9 [color="Red"]When I wrote to you before, I told you not to associate with people who indulge in sexual sin. 10 But I wasn’t talking about unbelievers who indulge in sexual sin, or are greedy, or cheat people, or worship idols. You would have to leave this world to avoid people like that. 11 I meant that you are not to associate with anyone who claims to be a believer[j] yet indulges in sexual sin, or is greedy, or worships idols, or is abusive, or is a drunkard, or cheats people. Don’t even eat with such people.[/color]
12 It isn’t my responsibility to judge outsiders, but it certainly is your responsibility to judge those inside the church who are sinning. 13 God will judge those on the outside; but as the Scriptures say, “You must remove the evil person from among you.”[k] - NLT

By this it says that I shouldn't hang out with my friend anymore...but I feel as though I would be leaving him to fend for himself. I mean, I don't even think he understands what the Bible says about homosexuality... Would it be right of me to just let him continue what he is doing?

Also... as his older sister in Christ, is it my responsibility to try to tell him that the direction he chose isn't a good one? I want him to have a good relationship with Christ...but I don't want to sound like I am judging him. I mean...isn't it wrong to leave new Christians alone? Aren't we supposed to love them, and encourage them to keep on learning?

I just want to keep my friend from pain...he is really like a little brother to me...and I really dont' know how to talk to him anymore.

I guess it doesn't help matters that I feel like I made him this way...since I was actually, his first, and last girlfriend.... (we didn't date long though)

I dunno...=_= sorry to bug you guys.

NO DEBATES please.

[LadyRushia]

To me, it sounds more like God's telling you that you need to confront him with this issue a) to find out if his faith is sincere and b) if it is sincere, then you need to call him on it. Also, if his faith is sincere, after you call him on the issue, you need to nurture him, especially if his faith is young.

[uc pseudonym]

I do not think that is what this passage is saying for your situation. There are several major differences between today and the community to which Paul was writing. Most specifically, in that context a Christian really could be expelled from the messianic community (which wouldn't be the same as shunning them) whereas that can't happen today. A single individual not associating with someone is not the same.

Furthermore, in another passage on a similar subject, Paul says that the reason for this is to bring them back to the church. Shock some sense into them, perhaps. He explains that you should treat the wayward person "as an unbeliever"... which would imply graciously. The point is not an iron-clad commandment to avoid everyone who does Bad Things.

Lastly, recall that in Corinthians Paul is giving specific advice to a specific church. It was put in the canon because it is more useful than just that, but keep in mind the spirit of the law instead of the letter. In the case of homosexuality there is far too much hate and judgment, so I think the current situation needs more understanding and friendship.

[Kaligraphic]

This isn't talking about a first response. It's talking about people who continue, time after time, to do things destructive to the body. Remember, that when Paul wrote this letter, the things were addressing were not new. Rather, they had been going on for a while, until a member of this church sent Paul a letter telling him how messed up things had become.

Rather, the first response should be to pray for your friend. Try to help him. Remember, in Galatians, it says "Brethren, even if anyone is caught in any trespass, you who are spiritual, restore such a one in a spirit of gentleness; each one looking to yourself, so that you too will not be tempted." Clearly the correct course of action is neither complete leniency, nor immediate judgment, but rather an attempt to restore in love. If a person is expelled, it is because they have refused to acknowledge and issue - not simply because they have various faults. After all, none of us is perfect.

The thing is, people can't fix themselves. We need God to fix us. That is why we rely so heavily on 1 John 1:9 - "If we confess our sins, He is faithful and righteous to forgive us our sins and to cleanse us from all unrighteousness." That is, by agreeing with God when he reveals our flaws, we can trust not only that he forgives us, but that he himself will cleanse us from our faults. That is the beauty of the simplicity of the gospel - not what we do, but what God does. The whole Christian walk is an act of God, not of man.

Encourage your friend in his pursuit of God. That is the course of action that I recommend.

[ChristianKitsune]

I was worried, because I didn't think that I should just "drop him because of his decision to be homosexual.." I never thought that God would have wanted me to do that... ^^;

I really want to help nurture my friend, but I don't want to force it on him...but I reall want him to have the wonderful relationship that he can have...

I guess this switches over to a prayer request, more than anything, prayer that If I am to talk to him, that he will listen to what God has to say...

Thanks you guys... I really appreciate the advice.

[Sheol777]

Heh, I was going to post in this thread...but the best advice is the advice already given..

..and it seems you have the right heart in this. So I doubt you will do the wrong thing.

If I was a Mod, I would lock this post, nothing more needs to be said