VERSION, NIV Copyright 1973, 1978, 1984, 2011 by Biblica. he is as a religious person F26.''. Jesus isn't like some today who say, "Well, the crowd's too small. rev2023.3.3.43278. Has 90% of ice around Antarctica disappeared in less than a decade? He tells the believers in those churches not to associate with those who have resisted correction. Matthew does assume the church will endure (Matt. After this, in the chapter we have the positive hindrance asserted of what man counts good. Nevertheless, the Lord did not withhold the infinite boon, though He knew too well their thoughts; He spoke the word of forgiveness, though He read their evil heart that counted it blasphemy. And his lord was angry, and delivered him over to the tormentors, until he should pay all that was due from him. The Scriptural, patristic and historical records demonstrate that this Church could only be the Catholic Church. Those letters were sent to church leaders, but also circulated among the church as a whole. What I'm wondering, though, is whether "the church" necessarily refers to the whole gathered assembly, or whether the phrase can be properly read as a metonym, similar to a phrase like "waiting for an answer from the White House" where "the White House" obviously doesn't refer to the building, but to the president and his staff. Connect and share knowledge within a single location that is structured and easy to search. Or thou mayest, if thou wilt, break off thy friendship and familiarity with him; though thou must by no means study revenge, yet thou mayest choose whether thou wilt have any dealings with him, at least, in such a way as may give him an opportunity of doing the like again. The disciples were struggling to grasp Jesus deity, His suffering servant role, and His passion. They may also take their concern to a pastor or other superior, shirking their responsibility to deal with it directly. Now, it was an established principle, that in the mouth of two or three witnesses every word should be established. I think that it is important that we have, and somehow can conceptionalize this. (2) In Matt 18, the sin in question is, by the authority of the church, excommunicablein at least two senses. Why are they postponed here? He can only be treated as one outside the church, not hated, but not held in close fellowship." essayed to destroy the testimony with their utmost and blasphemous contempt. And when he had agreed with the labourers for a penny a day, he sent them into his vineyard . And that's very typical. As James had it, "For judgment is without mercy to one who has shown no mercy" ( James 2:13). (iii) The love of God is a seeking love. 28:18-20), but "gates" here has a different sense. The Lord, while thoroughly proving that He forgot nothing, owned everything that was of grace in Peter or the rest, while opening the same door to "every one" who forsakes nature for His name's sake, solemnly adds, "But many that are first shall be last; and the last shall be first." He never set limits to human forgiveness. "The offender is a brother, one that is in Christian communion, that is baptized, that hears the word, and prays with thee, with whom thou joinest in the worship of God, statedly or occasionally." But to talk matters over with some wise and kindly and gracious people present is to create a new atmosphere in which there is at least a chance that we should see ourselves "as others see us." Drowning was sometimes a Roman punishment, but never Jewish. The Lord hints at what the man's real desires were not Christ, not heaven, not eternity, but present things. It might be well enough for a Pharisee; it might be worthy of a legal formalist, but it would never do for God; and the Lord Jesus was come here not to accommodate Himself to their thoughts, but, above all, to do God's will of holy love in an evil, wretched world. Browse other questions tagged, Start here for a quick overview of the site, Detailed answers to any questions you might have, Discuss the workings and policies of this site. Thus the great tree and the leavened mass are in fact the two sides of Christendom. Most clearly it is not so much a question of sin in the aspect of uncleanness (typifying deeper things, but still connected with the ceremonial requirements of Israel, as we find from what our Lord said in the chapter to the cleansed leper). (iii) But this phrase can have another and very wonderful meaning. What can be conceived so perfectly to illustrate the great design of the gospel of Matthew? What is to be done in this case. Gehenna ( G1067) was the valley of Hinnom, a valley below the mountain of Jerusalem. Oh, boy how they longed for this. We have noted that the terms "lord," "disciple," "apostle," and others came to have more specific meanings as Gods kingdom plan unfolded. Jesus said, "Unless you turn." Are all Christians hypocrites? Jesus used the word Church only two times in the New Testament: once in Matt 16:18 (where Jesus builds the Church upon the rock of Peter), and once in Matt 18:18. The one or two, in conjunction with the offended person that shall hear the ease, and admonish and reprove; if he takes no notice of what they say to him, but remains stiff and impenitent, tell it unto the church: which some understand, of the , or "multitude", before whom it was lawful to reprove, after such private methods had been taken: others, the political magistrates, or sanhedrim; who took cognizance of cases between one person and other, either by themselves, or messengers; and gave admonitions and reproofs, as to parents, when they did not provide for their families x, and to wives that were perverse, and provoked their husbands y, c. others, of the presbyters and governors of the Christian church others, of the church itself, and so the Ethiopic version renders it, "the house of Christians"; to which it is objected, that as yet a Christian church was not formed: but what were the twelve apostles of the Lamb? Matthew 18:15-20 The New King James Version (NKJV) 15 "Moreover if your brother sins against you, go and tell him his fault between you and him alone. If all this avail not, then. So, then, they believed that every child had his guardian angel. It is a thousand pities that this appointment of Christ, which was designed to end differences, and remove offences, should itself be so much a matter of debate, and occasion differences and offences, through the corruption of men's hearts. And so, for example, there's a governing body that has authority to make judgements on . There are two senses in which this passage may be taken. Where private admonition does not prevail, there public censure must take place. 4. And besides, this is given, not as a rule to the church, but as advice to the offended person, how to behave towards the offender: after he has come under the cognizance, reproof, and censure of the church, he is to look upon him as the Jews did one that disregarded both private reproof by a man's self, and that which was in the presence of one or two more, (twxp rbx) , "a worthless friend", or neighbour; as a Gentile, with whom the Jews had neither religious nor civil conversation; and a "publican", or as Munster's Hebrew Gospel reads it, (hrbe leb) "a notorious sinner", as a publican was accounted: hence such are often joined together, and with whom the Jews might not eat, nor keep any friendly and familiar acquaintance: and so such that have been privately admonished and publicly rebuked, without success, their company is to be shunned, and intimate friendship with them to be avoided. It is not only the fact that God slighted matters of prescriptive ordinance because of the ruined state of Israel, who rejected His true anointed King, but there was this principle also, that certainly God was not going to bind Himself not to do good where abject need was. He is there wherever faithful hearts meet, however few they may be, for he gives all of himself to each individual person. Fourthly, "If he neglect to hear the church, if he slight the admonition, and will neither be ashamed of his faults, nor amend them, let him be unto thee as a heathen man and publican; let him be cast out of the communion of the church, secluded from special ordinances, degraded from the dignity of a church member, let him be put under disgrace, and let the members of the society be warned to withdraw from him, that he may be ashamed of his sin, and they may not be infected by it, or made chargeable with it." Christian kindness and Christian forgiveness do not mean that a man who is in error is to be allowed to do as he likes. That is why the Kingdom of Heaven can be likened to what happened when a king wished to make a reckoning with his servants. He desires for the members of his body to be in unity with one another. It spares him from the possibility of judgment from the wider community. God is not content to wait until men come home; he goes out to search for them no matter what it costs him. Subsequent, considerably, to this was the case of the centurion's servant, preceded a good while before by the cleansing of the leper. In particular, to those requests that are put up to God about binding and loosing; to which this promise seems more especially to refer. To lose all for heavenly treasure, to come and follow the despised Nazarene here below what was it to compare with that which had brought Jesus to earth? He prayed to be released from the dread situation which confronted him, he was not released from it; but he was given power to meet it, to endure it, and to conquer it. He forgives others even as God, for Christ's sake, has forgiven him. Stumbling-blocks are bound to come; but alas for the man by whom the stumbling-block comes! For He loved Peter felt for him, and his wife's mother was precious in His sight. At 18:6 He shifts and talks about interpersonal trespassesoffenses literally: scandals. We can imagine how the other shepherds would return with their flocks to the village fold at evening time, and how they would tell that one shepherd was still out on the mountain-side seeking a wanderer. The power of agreement in prayer.Then Jesus goes on with His two or three concepts. Concerning the maintenance of the unity of the community, just ask, it will be done for you. They could follow their track for miles; and they would brave the cliffs and the precipice to bring them back. At this point, Jesus is on a road trip to Jerusalem for Passover. we have in Peter what man is, even after all this. Take a leader or two along. Hence, here it is a question not merely of cleansing, but of forgiveness, and forgiveness, too, as that which precedes power, manifested before men. I get what you're saying. Can Martian Regolith be Easily Melted with Microwaves. In the Old Testament Law we find instruction on handling a sinner much the same way with accusation confirmed by investigation and witnesses then followed by all the people dealing with the sin. The "Church" could just refer to a few members in the locality. In its biblical context, sin was treated more harshly than it is today. Thus it was not merely that there was an evil heart of unbelief in the Jew particularly, but law and grace cannot be yoked together. This utter, growing rejection of Jesus was coming out now rejection, at first allowed and whispered in the heart, soon to be pronounced in words like drawn swords. Copyright 2023, Bible Study Tools. It is nice to see so much scripture support the Catholic faith or Catholic faith support Scripture. He sets forth the sign of the prophet Jonah, the repentance of the men of Nineveh, the preaching of Jonah, and the earnest zeal of the queen of the South in Solomon's day, when an incomparably greater was there despised. "There arose a great tempest in the sea, insomuch, that the ship was covered with the waves; but he was asleep." "Oh, I forgive you, but you do that again, you're going to get it. Read the Scripture: Matthew 18:20 Three of the vital areas of our lives are the church, the home and the nation. how is it that ye have no faith? The overall emphasis seems to be, "don't make the correction any severer or more public than it has to be." The situation is this: a "brother" (or member of your congregation) commits a sin that only you are aware of. A mere Jew would have been defiled. This question is accordingly put to the proof in the ninth chapter. All these passages use the word aionios ( G166) ; but we must be careful to remember what it means. So long as a man considers his own self as the most important thing in the world, his back is turned to the Kingdom; if he wants ever to reach the Kingdom, he must turn round and face in the opposite direction. Forgiveness is a matter of heart. I am to have the spirit of forgiveness.And then Jesus went on to illustrate it. But if he neglect to hear the church, let him be - The Jews gave the name heathen or Gentile to all other nations but themselves. Stack Exchange network consists of 181 Q&A communities including Stack Overflow, the largest, most trusted online community for developers to learn, share their knowledge, and build their careers. It is always thus. Scripture is clear: The church must practice biblical church discipline toward professing Christians who persist in known sin. Making statements based on opinion; back them up with references or personal experience. Telling the elders, the deacons, or the preacher, or anyone else, of the evil detected in another is wrong (until after the first admonition); and even after the first admonition, the greatest number to be acquainted with it is two others (see Matthew 18:16). All Reading Plans / Revised Common Lectionary (Semicontinuous) / Isaiah 7:10-16 (The sign of Immanuel); Psalm 80:1-7 17-19 (Show the light of your countenance); Romans 1:1-7 (Paul's greeting to the church at Rome); Matthew 1:18-25 (Our God near at hand) ( English Standard Version) December 18, 2022. Come unto me, all ye that labour and are heavy laden, and I will give you rest." Now, God would not command us to do the impossible. Descending then upon the plateau, He delivered what is commonly called the Sermon on the Mount. 2. (i) It can mean, not so much to receive a child, as to receive a person who has this childlike quality of humility. How He loves that simple faith and trust that is in the heart of a child. Read full chapter. The Jews ground corn by crushing it between two circular stones. He will own them. There is a tradition that the child grew to be Ignatius of Antioch, who in later days became a great servant of the Church, a great writer, and finally a martyr for Christ. the sight of the Lord your God, by transgressing His covenant, and But at the same time it is plain, although He bore the consciousness of the vast change He was introducing, and expressed it thus fully and early in the history, nothing turned away His heart from Israel. 20 For where two or three gather in my name, there am I with them.". The first question a leader should ask is, have you brought your concerns directly to the person?. Your life depends on it, you got to cut it out." If he has indeed done thee a considerable wrong, endeavour to make him sensible of it, but let the rebuke be private, between thee and him alone; if thou wouldest convince him, do not expose him, for that will but exasperate him, and make the reproof look like a revenge." Why are all Christians hypocrites? If a first attempt at peacemaking has been unsuccessful, involve others in the community. But I have not found the tax-gatherers and the Gentiles hopeless. No doubt Jesus was thinking of these things; but wonderful as they are they are not the main things in his mind. Paul tells the Thessalonians to admonish the sinner as they would a brother (2 Thessalonians 3:6-15). He who brings Jesus and the blessing of Jesus to a child is doing a Christlike work. The picture is of a great royal court where only the most favoured courtiers and ministers and officials have direct access to the king. St. Paul speaks in the person of Christ, when he saith, To whom ye forgive any thing, I forgive also,2 Corinthians 2:10. Thus He sets forth both the past, the present, and the awful future of Israel, before the day of His own coming from heaven, when there will be not only the return of idolatry, solemn to say, but the full power of Satan associated with it, as we see in Daniel 11:36-39; 2 Thessalonians 2:1-17; Revelation 13:11-15. Why Are There So Many Angry Pastors in the Church? Nevertheless, His ear was open to the call on behalf of Israel perishing, dying, dead. As far as the idea of elders being anachronistic with the moment the Lord mentioned. How New is the New Covenant? He was not taken by surprise; He knew it from the beginning Man's implacable hatred is brought about most manifestly in the ways and spirit of His rejectors. It brings me to the real crisis; that is, the final presentation of our lord to Jerusalem. Had she not such confusion of thought that, if the Lord had heeded her words, it must have been destruction to her? Thus, the present dealings of God in grace, the actual shape taken by the kingdom of heaven, the calling of the Gentiles, the formation of the Church, are all passed completely over. Understanding the Prophetic Mind, Temperament, and Calling is a life changing seminar! "If he shall hear thee" --that is, "heed thee--if he be wrought upon by the reproof, it is well, thou hast gained thy brother; thou hast helped to save him from sin and ruin, and it will be thy credit and comfort," James 5:19; James 5:20. To help a child to live well and to know God better is to help Jesus Christ. (ii) If we feel that someone has wronged us, we should go to see him personally. It is not a statement that some men are hopeless; it is a statement that Jesus Christ has found no man hopeless--and neither must we. The delivered demoniacs are, to my mind, clearly the foreshadow of the Lord's grace in the latter days, separating a remnant to Himself, and banishing the power of Satan from this small but sufficient witness of His salvation. This was, and is always to be, the first business in disciplining an offending brother. Thus, in the scene of the leper, we have Jesus presented as "Jehovah that healeth Israel," as man here below, and in Jewish relationships, still maintaining the law. If this also fails, the entire community of believers should appeal to the offender. This is surely the simplest of all the parables of Jesus, for it is the simple story of a lost sheep and a seeking shepherd. It was not more truly Christ's kingdom as man than He was God's own Son, His beloved Son, in whom He was well pleased, who was now to be heard, rather than Moses or Elias, who disappear, leaving Jesus alone with the chosen witnesses. You do not go to court/jail for insensitivities toward another believer in the community! A man often hates those whom he has injured most of all; and it may well be that nothing we can say can win him back. We often mistake grace for silence. Homily LX on the Gospel According to St. Matthew. How can this new ban on drag possibly be considered constitutional? What could be said of her intelligence then? Receiving a little child in Jesus' name refers to complete acceptance of a child-like believer because of his innocent and unrestrained trust in the Lord. This made it to be plainly and only a difficulty for God to solve. However, you do have your local chapter where there is a group of members you are vital with and have a relationship. If this article has been a blessing to you, would you prayerfully consider making a contribution through our Paypal button to help? All rights reserved worldwide. The Power Of The Presence ( Matthew 18:19-20), 18:19-20 "Again, I tell you, that if two of you agree upon earth upon any matter for which you are praying, you will receive it from my Father who is in Heaven. Subsequently to that, the scribe offered to follow Jesus whithersoever He went. Why don't we just sort of take aspirin, so you won't feel the pain and forget about it." 18:22). Jesus says that whoever receives one such little child in his name receives himself. woe unto thee, Bethsaida! The next chapter (Matthew 18:1-35) takes up the double thought of the kingdom and the Church, showing the requisite for entrance into the kingdom, and displaying or calling forth divine grace in the most lovely manner, and that in practice. One passage, "And I tell you, you are Peter, and on this rock I will build my church" (16:18), has become the basis of Roman Catholic belief in the divine institution of the papacy. It is important Christians take the necessary steps to promote reconciliation and peace rather than strife and tension. Your Father is watching over them. Chapter 8, which opens the portion that comes before us tonight, is a striking illustration as well as proof of the method which God has been pleased to employ in giving us the apostle Matthew's account of our Lord Jesus. The first impression is that the man must be abandoned as hopeless and irreclaimable, but that is precisely what Jesus cannot have meant. And the fellowservant fell down at his feet, and he begged him, saying, Have patience with me, and I will pay you everything. Nor was it only a difference in the forms the truth took; but the vital principle which Christ was diffusing could not be so maintained. THE HOLY BIBLE, NEW INTERNATIONAL
It is more particularly sin, viewed as guilt, and consequently as that which absolutely breaks and destroys all power in the soul towards both God and man. This was a very Jewish/Semitic practice. At 18:6 He shifts and talks about interpersonal trespassesoffenses, If a first attempt at peacemaking has been unsuccessful, involve others in the community. God had given his soul a deeper, fuller sight of Christ; for the Gentile's words prove that he had apprehended God in the man who was healing at that moment all sickness and disease in Galilee. There is no greater mistake than to suppose, because there is the richest development of God's grace in new things, that He abandons or weakens natural relationships and authority in their place. If he will not listen to you, take with you one or two more, that the whole matter may be established in the mouth of two or three witnesses. That is to obey the word of our Lord Jesus given in Matthew 18 concerning the handling of a serious moral failure in a member of this church. The civil magistrate, say some; The Jewish sanhedrim then in being, say others; but by what follows, Matthew 18:18; Matthew 18:18, it is plain that he means a Christian church, which, though not yet formed, was now in the embryo. Handbook on Church Discipline by Jay Adams. It was the Father's revelation of the Son; flesh and blood had not revealed it to Peter, but, "my Father, which is in heaven." Particular epochs in Luke are noted with great care; but, speaking now of the general course of the Lord's life, a little attention will discover, from the immensely greater preponderance paid to the consideration of time in the second gospel, that there we have events from first to last given to us in their consecutive order. 19:15 and refers to witnesses of the subsequent confrontation . Men are apt to have so little patience with the foolish ones. There is far more in aionios ( G166) than simply a description of that which has no end. Here I close tonight. They that are shut out from the congregation of the righteous now shall not stand in it in the great day, Psalms 1:5. At the beginning of Matthew 10:1-42 He Himself sends forth themselves as labourers. I never thought it would happen to me. Ask students to silently rate each offense on a scale of 1 to 10, with 1 being the easiest to forgive and 10 being the hardest. He didnt blackball them. It will be thirteen years ago, this month, that I came fresh from Dallas Seminary to the Bay Area and to the work here at Peninsula Bible Fellowship, as it was known then. In his defilement he came to Jesus and sought to be cleansed, before the delivery of the sermon on the mount. Then says the unclean spirit, "I will return into my house from whence I came out; and when he is come, he findeth it empty, swept and garnished. Little Jewish mothers wanting to set up their boys. This, of course, is not the moment to unfold it. We are dealing in these passages with civil/criminal trespasses in a Mosaic context. He could do it, you know He can do it. 4) THE SPIRITUAL COMPOSITION OF THE CHURCH (MATTHEW 16:18) a) The Lord Jesus builds the church out of living stones. The sin that Matthew addresses can be any sin. [3.] Matthew 16:18 and Acts 2:47 have nothing to do with us. Whoever humbles himself as this little child, he is the greatest in the Kingdom of Heaven.". (ii) Second, there is the quality of responsibility ( Matthew 18:5-7). He gives sight to the blind. Set up a meeting with the person in a private setting and allow the pastor to confront that person with at least one witness present. So, on the other hand, the centurion sets forth with no less aptness the characteristic faith that suits the Gentile, in a simplicity which looks for nothing but the word of His mouth, is perfectly content with it, knows that, whatever the disease may be, He has only to speak the word, and it is done according to His divine will. It is always to be given with the desire for reconciliation and never with the desire for vengeance. When the Rabbis taught that heathen and Gentile objects were to be utterly destroyed they said that they must be "cast into the salt sea." I am sure Peter was thinking, "Well, I might be able to forgive a guy a couple of times, but it sounds good to the other disciples if I say 'seven'". We need to understand that in the spiritual realm and with the Lord, the time element is treated differently or maybe is non-sequitur. This was the very blessing that aroused, above all, the hatred of the scribes. He is in the midst of them, that is, in their hearts; it is a spiritual presence, the presence of Christ's Spirit with their spirits, that is here intended. That is why the Catholic Church has been around for 2,000 years, and the Protestant sects continue to splinter by the thousands each year. That is fatal. Matthew 18 is far more specific and narrow than is often recognized. Many promises we have in scripture of a gracious answer to the prayers of faith, but this gives a particular encouragement to the joint-prayer; "the requests which two of you agree in, much more which many agree in." It is a just prefiguration of what will be in the close of the age the mass of the unbelieving Jews, now impure, but then also given up to the devil, and so to evident perdition.