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| Chapter 18 |
| Bible Text | Notes and Thoughts |
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1 ¶ At the same time came the disciples unto Jesus, saying, "Who is the greatest in the Kingdom of Heaven?" 2 And Jesus called a little child unto Him, and set him in the midst of them, 3 and said, "Verily I say unto you, unless ye be converted and become as little children, ye shall not enter into the Kingdom of Heaven. 4 Whosoever therefore shall humble himself as this little child, the same is greatest in the Kingdom of Heaven. 5 And whoso shall receive one such little child in My name, receiveth Me. 6 But whoso shall cause one of these little ones who believe in Me to fall, it were better for him that a millstone were hung about his neck, and that he were drowned in the depth of the sea. 7 ¶"Woe unto the world because of offenses! For it must happen that offenses come, but woe to that man by whom the offense cometh. 8 Therefore if thy hand or thy foot cause thee to fall, cut them off and cast them from thee; it is better for thee to enter into life halt or maimed, rather than, having two hands or two feet, to be cast into everlasting fire. 9 And if thine eye cause thee to fall, 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. 10 "Take heed that ye despise not one of these little ones; for I say unto you that in Heaven their angels do always behold the face of My Father who is in Heaven. 11 "For the Son of Man is come to save that which was lost. 12 How think ye? If a man have a hundred sheep and one of them be gone astray, doth he not leave the ninety and nine, and goeth into the mountains and seeketh that which is gone astray? 13 And if it so be that he find it, verily I say unto you, he rejoiceth more over that sheep than over the ninety and nine which went not astray. 14 Even so it is not the will of your Father who is in Heaven that one of these little ones should perish. 15 ¶ "Moreover, if thy brother shall trespass against thee, go and tell him his fault between thee and him alone. If he shall hear thee, thou hast gained thy brother. 16 But if he will not hear thee, then take with thee one or two more, that ‘in the mouth of two or three witnesses every word may be established.’ 17 And if he shall neglect to hear them, tell it unto the church; but if he neglect to hear the church, let him be unto thee as a heathen man and a publican. 18 Verily I say unto you, whatsoever ye shall bind on earth shall be bound in Heaven; and so whatsoever ye shall loose on earth shall be loosed in Heaven. 19 "Again I say unto you, that if two of you shall agree on earth concerning anything that they shall ask, it shall be done for them by My Father who is in Heaven. 20 For where two or three are gathered together in My name, there am I in the midst of them." 21 ¶ Then Peter came to Him and said, "Lord, how often shall my brother sin against me, and I forgive him? Until seven times?" 22 And Jesus said unto him, "I say not unto thee, until seven times, but until seventy times seven. 23 "Therefore is the Kingdom of Heaven likened unto a certain king who would settle accounts with his servants. 24 And when he had begun to reckon, one was brought unto him who owed him ten thousand talents. 25 But inasmuch as he could not pay, his Lord commanded him to be sold, and his wife and children and all that he had, and payment to be made. 26 The servant therefore fell down and did homage to him, saying, ‘Lord, have patience with me, and I will pay thee all.’ 27 Then the Lord of that servant was moved with compassion, and loosed him and forgave him the debt. 28 But the same servant went out and found one of his fellow servants who owed him a hundred pence. And he laid hands on him, and took him by the throat, saying, ‘Pay me what thou owest.’ 29 And his fellow servant fell down at his feet, and besought him, saying, ‘Have patience with me, and I will pay thee all.’ 30 And he would not, but went and cast him into prison till he should pay the debt. 31 So when his fellow servants saw what was done, they were very sorry and came and told unto their Lord all that was done. 32 Then his Lord, after he had called him, said unto him, ‘O thou wicked servant, I forgave thee all that debt, because thou desiredst me. 33 Shouldest not thou also have had compassion on thy fellow servant, even as I had pity on thee?’ 34 And his Lord was wroth, and delivered him to the tormentors till he should pay all that was due unto him. 35 So likewise shall My heavenly Father do also unto you, if ye from your hearts forgive not every one his brother’s trespasses." |
18:1-35 Life in the New Kingdom. Who is the greatest in the kingdom of heaven. Mark 9:33-37; Luke 9 46-48. This passage deals with relationships between Christians. This follows an argument between the disciples, Mark 9:33,34; Luke 9:46. This may have been as a result of the special treatment to the three at Caesarea Philippi, Matt 17:1ff or Peter in the temple tax problem, Matt 17:24-27. v2-5 Jesus calls a child to Him, turning to the disciples He tells them that they must become like a young child who seeks no power or position, they must stop trying to get a high position, exalting themselves because it could affect their entrance into the kingdom of heaven. v6,7 Jesus is referring to young childlike believers, anyone who causes harm to a believers faith will be subject to punishment. A ‘millstone,’ the larger top stone used for milling corn. v7 Some believers will ‘stumble,’ possibly as part of God’s preparation or moulding (shaping) of the believer to what God wants for the person. However, any human offender, believer or non-believer must expect punishment if they harm spiritually another believer in any way. v8,9 Jesus must be talking about other believers doing the offending here, only a believer can enter into ‘life.’ A person must be prepared to take some very drastic, far reaching action to avoid offending. See Matt 5:29,30. v10 Not children but believers. This does not indicate that each individual believer has a specific angel watching over them. See Heb 1:14, angels care for groups of believers. v12-14 This parable shows that the lowest believer is important, the shepherd is concerned over even one lost sheep. Jesus used the same parable to show salvation of sinners, Luke 15:4-7. v15-20 Behaviour to offending brothers. At the time the ‘Church’ did not exist, so Jesus is talking to Jewish followers, but the message also applies to Believer’s and the Church. Even with the above warnings there will be problems between believers. The verses shows how the believer who has been hurt should behave. First approach the other believer privately, explain the problem, hoping for them to realize their faults and confession, this should result in an apology and restoration of fellowship with the Lord and the church. v16 If it becomes necessary to take the matter further it must involve several witnesses’s being present. v17 "Tell it to the church." If the person is still not ashamed or has not any regret, and the matter is sufficiently serious to affect the church, then the church must consider the matter. Jesus cannot be referring to a synagogue, because of the absence of Jesus as indicated in v20. This must be the Christian church, which did not exist at the time. If the offender failed to accept the counsel of the church then the person was to be treated as an outsider, (Gentile, publican). This must be only as a last resort and all effort should be made to restore the person to fellowship with Christ. v18-20 Any decisions which are based upon these conditions must be reached through seeking God’s will on the matter by prayer, The Word of God and the guidance of the Holy Spirit. See Matt 16:19; John 20:23. v19 "If two of you shall agree," shows the importance of a church membership always having a prayerful way of working. See also 1 John 5:14. v20 "I am in the midst of them." A promise of the special presence of Christ in the smallest congregation. v21-35 Forgiveness. Instruction on forgiveness. v21 "How often?" Following on the previous verses Peter now wonders how often forgiveness should be offered for repeated offences. "Seven times?" was the religious teaching based on Amos 1:3; Job 33:29,30. v22 Jesus, however, moved the level of forgiveness passed a normal level of counting, "seventy times seven." Christ sets the standard, Col 3:13. v23-35 The servant who cannot forgive. This parable shows that having received forgiveness from God we must be prepared to forgive others. v23 The king represents God the Father, see also v35. The king is checking the financial commitments of his servants. v24 A servant of a king, who has access to the king’s money. He has been borrowing or using the kings money for himself, and now owes ten thousand talents (Talent a valuable coin of the time). v25-27 The king calls in the debt, but by humbling himself and throwing himself at the feet of the king the servant receives forgiveness and the debt is cancelled. v28-34 On leaving the presence of the king the servant finds a servant who owes him a small sum of money. (one penny was a days wages). There was no forgiveness or time given to pay off the debt and the second servant ends up in prison. The other servants take the matter to the king who challenges the behaviour of the first ‘forgiven’ servant. The king punishes the servant for his failure to forgive as he had received. v34,35 "Delivered him to the tormentors," This cannot therefore refer to the eternal loss of one truly saved, that would not agree with other scripture. As the first servant had been forgiven fully from the original debt neither can it be referring to someone who was not truly saved. This must be indicating a temporary punishment by God the Father. The word translated tormentors can also be used to indicate involvement in illness or sickness, see Matt 8:6. Also consider 1 Cor 11:27-30. |
Easy English Translation
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