Jesus said that “wisdom is proved righteous by its results.” (Matthew 11:19, footnote) Let us consider three reasons why it is a wise decision to disfellowship a person if he does not repent.

Disfellowshipping protects Jehovah’s name from dishonor. What we do will bring either honor or dishonor to Jehovah because, as his Witnesses, we bear his name. (Isaiah 43:10) Just as a son’s conduct can honor or dishonor his parents, the conduct of Jehovah’s servants can honor or dishonor Jehovah. In Ezekiel’s time, people of the nations linked the Jews with Jehovah’s name. (Ezekiel 36:19-23) Similarly today, people link Jehovah’s Witnesses with Jehovah’s name. So if we obey Jehovah’s laws, we will bring honor to him.

The apostle Peter counseled Christians: “As obedient children, stop being molded by the desires you formerly had in your ignorance, but like the Holy One who called you, become holy yourselves in all your conduct, for it is written: ‘You must be holy, because I am holy.’” (1 Peter 1:14-16) For example, if we practiced sexual immorality, we would dishonor God’s name. But when we keep our conduct clean, we honor Jehovah.

If one of Jehovah’s Witnesses practices what is bad, people who know him will probably become aware of what he is doing. So when they learn that he is no longer one of Jehovah’s Witnesses, they will realize that Jehovah’s people obey what the Bible says and keep the congregation clean. For example, a man came to a meeting in Switzerland and said that he wanted to become a member of the congregation. His sister had been disfellowshipped for immorality and now he wanted to join an organization that “does not tolerate bad conduct.”

Disfellowshipping keeps the Christian congregation clean. The apostle Paul warned the Corinthians of the danger of letting an unrepentant sinner stay in the congregation. He compared the bad influence of these sinners to that of leaven that causes a batch of dough to rise. Paul said: “A little leaven ferments the whole batch of dough.” Then he counseled them: “Remove the wicked person from among yourselves.”​—1 Corinthians 5:6, 11-13.

That “wicked person” practiced sexual immorality without any shame. Some in his congregation had even begun to excuse his bad conduct. (1 Corinthians 5:1, 2) This was dangerous because other Christians could have been affected by the immoral lifestyle that was common in Corinth. Similarly today, if the congregation ignores serious sin, some could begin to view Jehovah’s standards as unimportant. (Ecclesiastes 8:11) Just as “rocks hidden below water” can cause shipwreck, unrepentant sinners can destroy the faith of others in the congregation.​—Jude 4, 12.

Disfellowshipping may help the sinner realize he is wrong. Jesus used an illustration of a young man who left his father’s home and spent all his inheritance living an immoral life. The young man eventually realized that life away from his father’s home had no meaning. So he repented and decided to go back to his family. The father was very happy when he saw that his son had changed his attitude, and he welcomed him home. (Luke 15:11-24) This illustration helps us understand how Jehovah feels when someone repents. He says: “I take no pleasure in the death of the wicked, but rather that someone wicked changes his way and keeps living.”​—Ezekiel 33:11.

The Christian congregation is our spiritual family. When someone is disfellowshipped, he is no longer a part of that family. After experiencing the results of his bad conduct, he may realize his mistake and remember how much happier he was when he had a good relationship with Jehovah and the congregation. This may encourage him to come back to his spiritual family.

To help a disfellowshipped person come back to the congregation, we need to show him love by being firm. For example, imagine two hikers waiting to be rescued on a cold winter day. Because it is so cold, one hiker gets very tired and wants to sleep. But if he falls asleep in the snow, he will die. To help him stay awake, his friend slaps him in the face. Even though this hurts, it could save his life. David expressed a similar idea when he said: “Should the righteous one strike me, it would be an act of loyal love.” (Psalm 141:5) David recognized that even though discipline was painful, it would help him.

Just like that slap, disfellowshipping is often what a person needs to come back to Jehovah. Julian’s son, mentioned at the beginning of this article, changed his life and returned to the congregation ten years after he was disfellowshipped. Now he is an elder. He admits: “Being disfellowshipped brought me face-to-face with the consequences of my lifestyle. I needed that sort of discipline.”​—Hebrews 12:7-11.