Learn more about Stack Overflow the company, and our products. Then the Lord of that servant was moved with compassion, and he freed him, and he forgave him the debt. 17: If he refuses to listen to them, tell it to the church; and if he refuses to listen even to the church, let him be to you as a Gentile and a tax collector. I call it "the Matthew 18 principle" for solving school problems. Matthew 18:17 In-Context 15 "If your brother or sister sins, go and point out their fault, just between the two of you. Of its peace and order, that every member may know his place and duty, and the purity of it may be preserved in a regular way and not tumultuously. However, it seems to be going too far to put the offender in a situation in which it would become impossible for him or her to repent and experience restoration later. I believe Jesus is teaching us to set healthy and compassionate boundaries in our relationships and releasing us to move on from intractable situations or irreconcilable relationships (rather than obsessing with fixing what we cant repair). Not merely were there many pieces of value, but one pearl of great price. There is something about their innocence and simplicity that is absolutely glorious. . Because troubles are never settled by going to law, or by Christless argument. If he had left them with no guardian he would have come back to find still more of them gone; but he could leave them in the care of his fellow-shepherds, while he sought the wanderer. [Note: Wiersbe, 1:66. Christianity.com is a member of the Salem Web Network of sites including: Copyright 2023, Christianity.com. to forget His ancient people. In the kingdom so much the less sparing is the retribution of those who despise or abuse grace. Then comes the boast of Peter, though for others as well as himself. Proceed in this method: First, "Go and tell him his fault between thee and him alone. They are hereby appointed; the church of Christ in the world exists most visibly in religious assemblies; it is the will of Christ that these should be set up, and kept up, for the honour of God, the edification of men, and the preserving of a face of religion upon the world. Of its purity, that it might have an expulsive faculty, a power to cleanse and clear itself, like a fountain of living waters, which is necessary as long as the net of the gospel brings up both good fish and bad. All rights reserved. As you correctly note, the Church has a local and universal aspect. He will remember the genuine love of his spiritual family. ], PERSONAL RELATIONSHIPS ( Matthew 18:1-35 ). Treat Them as Unbelievers (Tax collectors and Gentiles). In Matthew 17:1-27 another scene appears, promised in part to some standing there in Matthew 16:28, and connected, though as yet hiddenly, with the cross. Elders indeed were not part of the picture at this point. What can a lawyer do if the client wants him to be acquitted of everything despite serious evidence? The fact is, beloved brethren, there is but one Jesus; and whoever it may be, whether John the Baptist, or the greatest in the kingdom of heaven, after all it is divinely-given faith which alone sustains: else man has to learn painfully somewhat of himself; and what is he to be accounted of? It was His meat to do the will of God. 2. 16 But if he will not hear, take with you one or two more, that 'by the mouth of two or three witnesses every word may be established . And if he refuses to listen to them, tell it to the church; and if he refuses to listen even to the church, he is to be to you asa Gentile anda tax collector. It might even be put that Christians are people who pray together. They have not seized the aim of each gospel. Then if he or she won't accept the church's decision, treat that person as a pagan or a corrupt tax collector. Jesus blessedly answered their thoughts, had there only been a conscience to hear the word of power and grace, which brings out His glory the more. But one that never was of a religious society, could not be driven out of it. Here was a debt which was greater than a king's ransom. "This man blasphemeth." We seem completely borne away from the ordinary level of our gospel to the higher region of the disciple whom Jesus loved. Conflict resolution is never easy. The Matthew 18 principle tells us the first step when someone sins against you or has offended you. The Spirit of God has been pleased to cull and class facts otherwise unconnected; for here follow conversations that took place a long time after any of the events we have been occupied with. We may take this great promise of Jesus into two spheres. 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. The reason I consider to be plain; and the same principle applies to various other parts of our gospel where we have two cases mentioned, where in the other gospels we have only one. Jesus says, "That is perfectly true; this world is full of temptations; that is inevitable in a world into which sin has entered; but that does not lessen the responsibility of the man who is the cause of a stumbling-block being placed in the way of a younger person or of a beginner in the faith.". [2.] The Terrible Responsibility ( Matthew 18:5-7; Matthew 18:10 Continued). He didnt blackball them. Those letters were sent to church leaders, but also circulated among the church as a whole. I say to them point blank, "cut it off, not tomorrow, right now, cut it off, "Oh, but I"- don't, cut it off.I said, "If I were a surgeon and you came to me, and you said, "Oh, I am having these lumps under my arm, and they are sore, and they really bother me." 2. What Matthew 18 Says Matthew 18:15-17 gives some guidelines as to the proper steps to take when a fellow brother or sister in Christ commits a sin against you: "If your brother or sister sins, go and point out their fault, just between the two of you. (i) First and foremost, there is the quality which is the keynote of the whole passage, the child's humility. He didn't want to see a person stuck in sin but instead enjoy the freedom afforded to them through Christ Jesus, just as he had experienced. but if he neglect to hear the church: Only one option remains if all of the above steps are followed and the sinner still refuses to repent. document.getElementById( "ak_js_1" ).setAttribute( "value", ( new Date() ).getTime() ); Subscribe here to receive blog publication notifcations in your email inbox. Jesus isn't like some today who say, "Well, the crowd's too small. Why? Treating the sinner as a tax-gatherer or Gentile would be difficult for only leadership to carry out as the rest of the church (without being briefed on the circumstance) may wonder why he/she is being treated that way. This passage speaks of the Gehenna ( G1067) of fire. This is not a make-a-wish prayer formula for three people in a circle singing praise songs and reveling in some spiritual phenomenon of the Lords presence. Rather, the peace of the community is so important to Christ that He makes this promise (my expanded translation): Wherever two are three of you are concerned about the unity of the community, where you had to make judgment in a case, and you are in agreement on it, I will stand behind your judgment. Hence, he waits to present their rejection of the Messiah, as morally complete as possible in his statement of it, though necessarily not complete in outward accomplishment. If I didn't bother to take the biopsies and determine whether or not you had cancer of the lymph nodes, but I just said, "Oh, probably you've got cancer in your lymph nodes. . Indeed he grew, for that baby became William the Conqueror of England. But he would not: he had him cast into the debtors' prison, until he should pay the debt. But if this be so, there is here absolute certainty that our Lord, on the very Sabbath in which He cast out the unclean spirit from the man in the synagogue of Capernaum, immediately after quitting the synagogue, entered the house of Peter, and that there and then He healed Peter's wife's mother of the fever. Peter was not without warrant for this suggestion. It is the glory of Christ; not so much as Son of the living God, but as the exalted Son of man, who once suffered here below. These instances appear to be a walking out of "telling the church". Not so. There is nothing in this world more terrible than to destroy someone's innocence. It was Rabbinic teaching that a man must forgive his brother three times. Follow Christ's journey to the Cross. This furnishes occasion to the Pharisees to vent their unbelief: to them nothing is so offensive as grace, either in doctrine or in practice. Your book brings it altogether in depths I had not yet seen. Examine the Scripture, and you will see for yourselves. Basically it means that we must never tolerate any situation in which there is a breach of personal relationships between us and another member of the Christian community. Have we, spite of superior privileges, such unwavering faith, that we can afford to treat the matter as incredible in John, and therefore only capable of solution in his staggering disciples? When we are children we set out on a journey with no means of paying the fare, and with no idea of how to get to our journey's end, and yet it never enters our heads to doubt that our parents will bring us safely there. To receive the child is also a phrase which is capable of bearing more than one meaning. In fact, even the mothers of the disciples sometimes got in on this. This was a very Jewish/Semitic practice. He is talking about behaviors of a scandalous nature between individuals that would breach the community shalom: corporate well-being. When the king heard of his servants behaviour, he withdrew his forgiveness (Matthew 18:31-34). Wretched we, that we should need such proof of it; wretched, that we should be so slow of heart to answer to it, or even to feel its immensity! So we have a farther scene. Jesus Christ teaches His disciples principles that will help them lead the Church. "All the more I weep now that they are about to lead me before the King of kings, the Holy One, blessed is He, who lives and abides for ever and for ever and for ever; whose wrath, if he be wrathful, is an eternal wrath; and, if he bind me, his binding is an eternal binding; and if he kills me, his killing is an eternal killing; whom I cannot placate with words, nor bribe with wealth.". Only if these steps fail is the matter opened to public scrutiny. He who had just confessed the glory of the Lord would not hear His Master speaking thus of His going to the cross (by which alone the Church, or even the kingdom, could be established), and sought to swerve Him from it. And if he shall neglect to hear them 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 (Mybr) , 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 F24, and to wives that were perverse, and provoked their husbands F25 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? 8, could not deny what was done in the case of the leper, who showed himself duly, and brought his offering, according to the law, to the altar. The Lord, no doubt, knew the heart of His servant, and could feel for him in the effect that circumstances took upon him. yea, they may forget, yet will not I forget thee. Note, We should think no pains too much to take for the recovering of a sinner to repentance. "See that you do not despise one of these little ones; for, I tell you, their angels in heaven always look upon the face of my Father who is in heaven.". You may unsubscribe from Bible Gateways emails at any time. Silence is not allowing grace to occur, but rather a cowardice to pervade the church body. 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's appropriate to follow that model in that situation . Times without number God's people have agreed to pray for the conversion of their own land or the conversion of the heathen and the coming of the Kingdom, and even yet that prayer is far from being fully answered. We have to be clear what that punishment involves. Although reconciliation is the ultimate goal of Matthew 18, if there is no repentance for sin, believers "must gather evidence in the proper order in case they later need proof of what transpired."665 The final disposition would be removal from the fellowship of the church (vv. This all points to the local church as the context of Jesus' detailed model for solving sin problems within the church. 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. They were always wrangling about well, I am going to be bigger than you. This, I believe, is a great lesson, and too often forgotten. [2.] But that discipline is always to be given in humble love and not in self-righteous condemnation. But a mulos onikos ( G3684) was a grinding-stone of such a size that it needed an ass pulling it (onos ( G3688) is the Greek for an ass and mulos ( G3458) is the Greek for a millstone) to turn it round at all. It is bound to happen. Lastly, we have the Lord rebuking the ambition not only of the sons of Zebedee, but in truth also of the ten; for why was there such warmth of indignation against the two brethren? What generates Peter's question may be an exchange not recorded in the Gospel of Matthew. However, it seems that if the whole church gets involved in reproving the offender, some sort of communal, as well as individual, punishment would be involved. The Lord then had been shown such as He was towards Israel, had Israel in their leprosy come to Him, as did the leper, even with a faith exceedingly short of that which was due to His real glory and His love. Moreover [Jesus said] if your brother trespasses against you, go and tell him the fault between you and him alone: and if he hears you, then you've gained your brother ( Matthew 18:15 ). Let those who have so little experience of what man is, even in the regenerate, beware lest they impute to the Baptist such an acting of a part as shocks us, when Jerome imputed it to Peter and Paul in the censure of Galatians 2:1-21. Your website has helped me greatly over the past 2 years. So likewise shall my heavenly Father do also unto you, if you [careful note] if you from your hearts forgive not every one his brother their trespasses ( Matthew 18:23-35 ). In this highly competitive world it is very easy to pay most attention to the person who is pugnacious and aggressive and self-assertive and full of self-confidence. J. Salza: Paul, thanks for your kind words. In my opinion then this word assembly was probably not referring to the pharisee, but rather those disciples (not just the 12) that were following; much then like the question, "who is my neighbor," we need not ask who our "all" our sisters and brothers are. (2.) God is like that; God cannot be happy until the last wanderer is gathered in. Here we have what was Jesus' favourite picture of God and of God's love. 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. I am so thankful I have discovered your site and books. The second is, "So the last shall be first, and the first last; for many are called, but few are chosen." He knew this would be the church as we know it, but the disciples must have thought He meant just themselves in a collective sense. Josephus calls hell an everlasting prison. The Jew would gladly agree that, if the sinner came crawling wretchedly home, God would forgive. He will own them. In Galatians 2:11 what is meant by "I opposed him to his face"? The servant fell on his face and besought him: 'Sir, have patience with me, and I will pay you in full.' When God intends special answers to prayer, he calls for a solemn assembly, Joel 2:15; Joel 2:16. (2) In Matt 18, the sin in question is, by the authority of the church, excommunicablein at least two senses. (ii) If we feel that someone has wronged us, we should go to see him personally. I feel like Ive been spinning my wheels for years and now like a babe relearning everything fresh and new. However, you do have your local chapter where there is a group of members you are vital with and have a relationship. That is God's commandment! - Matthew 18:15-17 NIV. Your email address will not be published. Start FREE. The manner, too, was in itself remarkable. On the other side of the picture, behold the Lord leading on a soul to draw on divine grace in the most glorious manner. 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. As time passes, the process expands to involve more Christians. Your teaching on praise and worship has given articulation to what I have been thinking for ten years! Some issues do not require Matthew 18. Your book on praise and worship was one of the most influential books of my life. Filed Under: Catholic Q&A Tagged With: church, Your email address will not be published. But if he does not listen, that is, if he chooses to justify his sin Note, People are loth to see their faults, and have need to be told of them. What special mercy and tenderness, not only in the end, but also in the way the Lord deals with Israel! One great baron smiled and Duke Robert asked him why. And I will receive God's help, if I am willing. Should Christians use mediation to settle disputes? Were you watching my life when you wrote the New Testament Prophet? I love that. It is human never to forget a man's past and always to remember his sins against him. This ministry is sustained by the freewill offerings of those believe in the message of a radical grace in a new covenant understanding. The Scriptural, patristic and historical records demonstrate that this Church could only be the Catholic Church. Matthew 16:18), this word means "a called out assembly of people." Matthew 18:17 "the church" does that mean elders/overseers or the church body? Then goeth he, and taketh with himself seven other spirits more wicked than himself, and they enter in and dwell there: and the last state of that man is worse than the first. Tell it to the church - See the notes at Matthew 16:18. This done, with a word for the conscience appended, He takes up and pleads the cause of John. This means that it is not only a sin to put a stumbling-block in another's way; it is also a sin even to bring that person into any situation, or circumstance, or environment where he may meet with such a stumbling-block. Sorrow would come full soon when He, the Bridegroom of His people, should be taken away; and then should they fast. If thy eye offend thee, pluck it out, and cast it from thee: it is better for thee to enter into life with one eye, rather than having two eyes to be cast into hell fire. Here there may be a difference. None should come under the censure of the church as obstinate and contumacious, till it be very well proved that they are so. That is the saying which Matthew has in mind. let him be unto thee as an heathen man and a publican: To illustrate His point regarding unrepentant sin, Jesus uses two classes of people who are particularly despised in His day. For the Son of man is come to save that which was lost ( Matthew 18:11 ). Controlling authoritarians use Matthew 18 to silence dissenting speech, prophetic criticism, and to label people as trouble makerssources of contamination in the assembly that must be purged. Suppose they were paid in sixpences. On the other hand, it is not too much to say, that the same Scriptures which convince one unbiassed mind that pays heed to these notes of time, will produce no less effect on others. Peter asked how many times Jesus followers should forgive before taking the severe action that Jesus had just outlined. I can't understand it, but, man I am involved in an affair, and I don't know what to do. It is only after careful prayer and consideration for the other person should we go to and point out their sin in the hopes they will be restored. But still, it was His carrying on the great process of shewing out more and more the total rejection of His rejectors. Our human pictures, and our human time-scheme, fail; this is in the hands of God. Next, He lays bare the capricious unbelief of man, only consistent in thwarting every thing and one that God employs for his good; then, His own entire rejection where He had most laboured. Matthew 16:18 and Acts 2:47 have nothing to do with us. Accordingly, here we have a witness of it, and a witness so much the sweeter, because the present total rejection that was filling the heart of the leaders surely testified to the Lord's heart of that which was at hand. . There are no recriminations; there is no receiving back with a grudge and a sense of superior contempt; it is all joy. I cant express to you how much you have helped free me. "Of whom do the kings of the earth take custom? the apostle directs there (Matthew 18:5; Matthew 18:5), Is there not a wise man among you? Does this passage apply to how Christians and churches should handle public sins, including moral trespasses and false teaching? Whoso shall offend one of these little ones which believe in me, it were better for him that a millstone were hanged about his neck, and he were drowned in the depth of the sea ( Matthew 18:6 ). Mt 18:21-22 correspond to Lk 17:4; the parable and the final warning are peculiar to Matthew. Better to go through life maimed, than into hell whole. Deuteronomy 19:15. But Israel had no sense of their leprosy; and they valued not, but despised, their Messiah, albeit divine I might almost say because divine. There certainly is a protocol that Jesus outlines in Matthew 18:15-17 about correcting brethren in sin, but when should it be applied? On The church is different from the world and its organizations, the church is easy to enter but difficult to leave. I am sure when he said "seven times", he was going far beyond what he knew he could do. And so the disciples came and said, "Who is going to be the greatest in the kingdom?". Drowning was sometimes a Roman punishment, but never Jewish. So He meekly retires, healing, yet forbidding it to be blazed abroad. 137.]. There Jesus says, "If your brother or sister sins, go and point out their fault, just between the two of you. So take heed that you despise not one of these little ones; for I say unto you, That in heaven [and I love this] their angels do always behold the face of my Father which is in heaven ( Matthew 18:8-10 ). Even so, Father, for so it seemed good in thy sight." . If all this avail not, then. but what a heart was His! We are dealing in these passages with civil/criminal trespasses in a Mosaic context. Disagreeing with someone is not scandalous behavior. At the beginning of Matthew 10:1-42 He Himself sends forth themselves as labourers. Accordingly, here we have, first, the Lord judging the wrong thoughts of "Scribes and Pharisees which were of Jerusalem." To assist thee; they may speak some pertinent convincing word which thou didst not think of, and may manage the matter with more prudence than thou didst." 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. Heats and animosities, among those whose work it is to remove offences, will be the greatest offence of all. But when the Lord was here, no matter what the unbelief of others, it was only an opportunity for the grace of Jesus to shine out. Now most of our prayer is done in private, but there are times when agreement in prayer is extremely valuable. This little book about Matthew 18 is a great little treasure. It was the rule that, if a sheep could not be brought back alive, then at least, if it was at all possible, its fleece or its bones must be brought back to prove that it was dead. The presence of Christ in the assemblies of Christians, Matthew 18:20; Matthew 18:20. (Matthew 18:15-17 KJV) William Burkitt's Commentary In these words our Saviour gives us an excellent rule for the duty of fraternal correction, or brotherly admonition. But it is expressly the pattern after which He was to deal, and will deal, with Israel. If he hears you, you have gained your brother. It is not possible that Jesus said this in its present form. New International Version (NIV). Effective prayer must be the prayer of agreement, from which the element of selfish concentration on our own needs and desires has been quite cleansed away. "To be witnesses of his conduct, in case the matter should afterward be brought before the church." When that servant went out, he found one of his fellow-servants, who owed him L5. What Does the Bible Say about Resentment? "Verily, I say unto you, That a rich man shall hardly enter into the kingdom of heaven." The Biblical proof that this was correct was taken from Amos. Jesus anticipates the congregations that His own apostles will establish after Pentecost. If he listens to you, you have gained your brother. Now what you need to conceptionalize and to realize is the fact that Jesus is here tonight.Now if you have a real need and you knew Jesus was there, what would you do? Some consider that John the Baptist enquired solely for the sake of his disciples. This person may receive undue shame, embarrassment, and humiliation and may fall away from the faith as result. All rights reserved worldwide. These three steps demonstrate again the truth of verse 14 in this chapter. New American Standard Version "A religious person indeed, that becomes a collector of taxes, they first said, is to be driven from the society; but they afterwards said, all the time that he is a tax gatherer, they drive him from the society; but when he goes out of his office, lo! 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." disagreements. How to prove that the supernatural or paranormal doesn't exist? So it was here; and our Lord turns to eternal account, in His own goodness, the shortcoming of John the Baptist, the greatest of women-born. We believe if we simply don't say anything to someone, we are being gracious with them. The unparalleled grace of the Saviour must form and fashion the saints henceforth. The sin that Matthew addresses can be any sin. And he ordained twelve, that they should be with him, and that he might send them forth to preach." Then, after the parable of the mustard seed (ver. We are, in fact, in the presence of that which John so loves to dwell on Jesus viewed not merely as Son of David or Abraham, or Seed of the woman, but as the Father's Son, the Son as the Father gave, sent, appreciated, and loved Him. The old people and work then closed in principle, and a new work of God in the kingdom of heaven was disclosed. Nothing that we have to forgive can even faintly or remotely compare with what we have been forgiven. Thus, whatever the peculiarity of the new blessings, the old thing could be taken up, though upon new grounds, and, of course, on the confession that Jesus is Lord, to the glory of God the Father.