Hmm, gosh this sounds just like Father Orthoduck at times. We have this tendency to misuse Scripture to our benefit whenever we can. “Proof-texting” is not simply a favorite tactic of those who are trying to convince you of their viewpoint. Sadly, it is a tactic that all of us use whenever we sin, in order to deflect at least some of the punishment from us. Sometimes this is nowhere more evident than in a church setting. A person is caught in a sin, and promptly tries to convince the pastor that he should not discipline him under any circumstance because then the pastor would be guilty of judging others in a way that he, himself, would not wish to be judged. And, should the pastor proceed with discipline, the person will then go around telling people how “he’s obviously not a religious man” otherwise he would have known that the member should not have been disciplined.

But, that is not what we find in Scripture, in either the Old Testament of the New Testament. The reality is that in both covenants there was a plenitude of mercy. Though it appears as though punishment was harsher in the Old Testament, that is because we often overlook the parts of the New Testament that speak of judgment, either by Jesus or by the Apostles and disciples. It was Jesus who foretold the destruction of the Temple due to the refusal of all too many of the people to not follow God. In fact, the Temple was destroyed twice, once in 70 AD and once in 130 AD. Jesus also used an acted parable in telling a fig tree to wither as a way of pointing out the judgment that was coming. Let’s not even speak about his cousin, John the Forerunner (the Baptist) who spoke about the axe being laid to the root of the trees.

Saint Peter speaks words of death to Ananias and Sapphira. Saint Paul speaks of throwing someone out of the church and turning them over to Satan. A “magician” is blinded by Saint Paul’s word as a result of his opposition. Saint John speaks in his third epistle about coming to judge an elder. Saint James speaks of the coming judgment to those who are rich and not open to the Lord.

Father Orthoduck does not dispute that at first reading the New Testament appears to be about love and little judgment. But, one has to read Saint Paul’s Epistle to the Romans to see that the Law was a schoolteacher designed to lead to to Christ. But, it is also clear in the New Testament that the coming of Jesus did not invalidate the handing out of discipline when necessary. It is true that there is a significantly larger emphasis on mercy in the New Testament. But, that emphasis is built on the foundation of the Law, which was a schoolteacher to prepare us to understand and receive that mercy. Sadly, there are people who do not either understand nor know how to truly receive that mercy. Those are some of the people who receive some old-fashioned judgment and discipline in some of the Epistles.

So, let us be a people who do not excuse our sin, but who bring it to the throne of grace for forgiveness. And, let us not forget that either God or our spiritual leaders may decide to assign “two weeks’ detention” should they consider that to be an appropriate response to our failure to understand mercy. In some ways, the Law is still a bit of a schoolteacher, would you not say?