Meph, since you wanted to get the other "Hustle and Flow" thread back on track, I thought I'd just post my thoughts here because I listened to your sermon and it got me thinking about a few things.

First, I didn't get the sense that you were conveying a message as "just love the sinner and ignore the sin."  I didn't hear you saying any part saying to ignore the sin, but it seemed you were emphasizing "love the sinner."  Agape.  And I'm sure you'd agree that when a person admits a sin, such as child pornography, the group shouldn't just say "hallelujah, now let's go sing kumbayah (however it's spelled)" and ONLY be a fan club to that person and let them continue on down the sinful and destructive path.  But instead, you’re saying to help the person toward the right direction, right?

As far as I know (and call me naiive or whatever), when people confess something, especially of THAT magnitude, they WANT to recover, make ammends, do whatever necessary to stop.  But we know many of those people NEED that support group in order to take the appropriate steps.  And suppose the sin requires going to prison, such as in the case of child pornography, or being a rapist, or things of the like. The person who has no support to do the right things is more likely to repeat, to hide, to run away... why? Fear, anxiety, debilitating guilt that drives them down even more, etc.

Now hear me out: we shouldn't casually brush off the sin after confession, we should aim to convince the person to take the right steps in repentance--including turning oneself in to the authorities, even if it comes down to saying to the confessor "Bro (or sis), you know where my heart is and that I truly care for you as God knows, but if you don't turn yourself in as the law requires, I'm going to have to take action for your sake and the sake of others, but remember we are with you supporting you 100% of the way."  THAT'S Agape (IMHO). 

For the person who does not wish to turn from their sin and goes on sinning all the more, then yes, there's the alternative of tough love that hopefully would shake them out of that mentality.  But once they show that they truly repented and are taking appropriate actions to demonstrate the changed heart, the community should open their arms to that person and help them along.  (You know the guy mentioned in 1 Corinthians 5 who Paul said to kick out of the church? In 2 Corinthians 2:5-11 Paul says basically "ok, now that guy's repented... show him love." Right?)

Here's one of the big reasons in my mind: as far as I know, statistics tell us that there is a high rate of repeat offenders.  From what I've learned from Prison Fellowship is that those who have a support group or a confidant when going through prison and getting out have a MUCH lower likelihood of committing another offense than those without support.

I agree that we should still take self-protective precautions with any sin.  Here's what I mean: for a person who gets out of prison for, say, child porn--they should not be allowed around any kids, for the rapist--he should not be in any situation where they'd be alone with females, for the wife-beater--he should live separate from his wife for a while until after enough counciling, for the sex-addict--he or she should develop close friendships only with those of the same gender.  And all these people need someone who would hold them accountable in a loving way... who can encourage them.  Agape.

One more thing you got me thinking about is, where’s my limit?  

Is there a type of crime that one could commit that would cause me to absolutely avoid that person, even after extreme repentance?  What type of people would I have a difficulty showing agape?  

I came to the conclusion that there are many types of people… something I realized I really have to work on.