Excommunication is the formal removal of an individual from the fellowship of the local church due to unrepentant sin or heresy. It is not done out of personal offense or revenge but as a last step in church discipline meant to protect the church and call the offender to repentance.
Jesus outlined the process in Matthew 18:15–17:
“Moreover if your brother sins against you, go and tell him his fault between you and him alone… But if he refuses even to hear the church, let him be to you like a heathen and a tax collector.”
Paul instructed the church at Corinth to excommunicate a man involved in blatant immorality:
“Deliver such a one to Satan for the destruction of the flesh, that his spirit may be saved in the day of the Lord Jesus.” (1 Corinthians 5:5)
Excommunication is both corrective and protective. It corrects the sinner by making the seriousness of sin evident and aims to bring about repentance. It protects the church by removing leaven that could corrupt the entire body:
“Do you not know that a little leaven leavens the whole lump?” (1 Corinthians 5:6)
The goal is always restoration, not permanent rejection. If the person repents, they are to be welcomed back in love and forgiveness:
“You ought rather to forgive and comfort him… lest perhaps such a one be swallowed up with too much sorrow.” (2 Corinthians 2:7)
Biblical church discipline, including excommunication, is grounded in Scripture, involves multiple steps, and must be carried out with humility, truth, and love. It seeks the repentance of the individual and the health of the body.
This differs sharply from the misuse of excommunication by cult groups, which often employ it as a means of control, isolation, and manipulation. In those settings, individuals may be expelled for questioning leadership, expressing doubts, or failing to conform to unbiblical rules. Such abuse of authority is not biblical and does not reflect the heart of God or the pattern given in Scripture.
Excommunication, when practiced biblically, is not about condemnation, but about preserving holiness in the church and demonstrating that sin is not to be tolerated among God’s people. It affirms the church’s commitment to God’s Word and calls all believers to walk in righteousness.
