
You don't want someone who will tell you anything just to make a sale (or worse, completely ignore you and not give a hoot about what you are doing there!).
The same is true when it comes to the church you choose.
Like the salesman who has the courage to tell you your shirt is ugly, you should want a church where the leadership is willing hold the brethren accountable for the ugliness of sin in their lives.
Church discipline is not one of those things that might come to mind when you are choosing a church. It ought to be, however. That's because it is an extension of the gospel ministry.
You might say church discipline is the practical side of the ministry of the Word. It is a way of applying the Scriptures in real life situations.
A church that practices discipline is a church that is serious about the purity and protection of its membership. Sin can easily spread like gangrene, infecting you, your family, or your friends. Scripture also shows that the sin of one can result in God's wrath coming upon the corporate body (e.g. Judges 7).
But church discipline will preserve a congregation from such miseries. That's why you'll want to make sure you put this in the checklist when choosing a church in Ashland, Richland, and Wayne Counties.