On Mission - Matthew 26 - 28

There are thirty-nine books in the Old Testament, all written by Priest, Prophets, Kings and others who were chosen by God to look into the future to the day in the life of a virgin girl who would birth the only ‘God-man’ baby ever born. None of these writers ever knew this ‘Messiah’ personally; and therefore they had to rely on the Holy Spirit, signs and wonders, angels and the actual voice of God to direct them in their writing about the creation, and history of the early generations of which there were forty-two in all. In one way or another every word of the OT was written to direct the attention of all nations to that historic day—when The Lord Jesus Christ was born in a manger, in Bethlehem of Judea; who would be the King of Kings, Lord of Lords, and Savior of the world which was lost in sin. For about six-thousand years, people looked forward in faith to that blessed and historic day.

There are twenty-seven books in the New Testament, and every word was written by an eye witness who lived during the time of the birth and life of Jesus which took place in and around the religious capitol of the world, Jerusalem. Every word in the NT conveys the historical truth of the birth, life, death, resurrection and second coming of Jesus as eye witnesses through the resurrection; and then on through the ‘last days,’ the judgment, and eternity by God chosen Christian men who were privilege to listen to and record the message of Jesus Christ regarding our future during time and eternity. We can be assured of the absolute truth as we study this eye witnessed message that points us back to that blessed and historic day when Christ was born.

Jesus had and still has only one mission. He said, “I came to seek and save the lost.” Christ had only about three years to personally seek and save the lost, and for many reasons, including the vast opposition of his own people, he was able to reach only a few people when compared to the multitude that lived during his earthly ministry. Therefore, he had to establish his church to fulfill or complete his mission. We will study today how he dedicated his trial, death, burial, resurrection and the last forty days of his life on earth to the establishment of his church—and how he gave the church the responsibility to carry out his one and only mission.

The ‘gospel’—His ‘good news’ is recorded in the first four books of the NT, as recorded by the eye witness of Matthew, Mark, Luke and John. Think how fortunate we Christians are today as compared to those who could only look forward to an event that had not happened before or during their life time, and could only ‘through their faith’ accept it as truth, established and proven. These four writers [and many more including a throng of witnesses] have recorded for us what actually happened just as it had been prophesied. Without contradiction, they all tell us how all Christians are ON MISSION as our feet, hands and heart united with all of his people everywhere are his only instruments that will bring success. We must sacrifice our life for the very thing that he gave up is life to accomplish. I personally feel so fortunate and give Him all the glory for the fact that my church is ON MISSION—is a mission minded people.

Let us be very specific in determining who is to be responsible for carrying out the Great Commission. Some church members who take no part in Missions must think that they are not responsible—and that only the church staff and appointed leaders are to bear the responsibility. Some may not know how to do mission work and need only study to show themselves approved. For sure, the unsaved need to place their faith in Jesus in order to serve Him as their Savior. In Matthew, our lesson today, the time has arrived for him to ascend back to his father and leave his mission unaccomplished at that time; therefore he designed a way to make sure every person has the opportunity to be saved. He told us—all who are saved—to be involved in everything their churches do to carry out the Great Commission.

Jesus knew that his greatest opposition was concentrated in Jerusalem during this pass-over week. He knew that the Jewish leaders were working around the clock in search of a way to trap him into a final and fatal conflict with the Roman Government. Why do you think he forged ahead and entered the city in a bold last effort to proclaim his Lord-ship—knowing all the while that it would be his last days on earth? Please do not just guess why—you should know for sure that He was there ‘on purpose’ making Himself available to be offered as the Passover sacrifice for the sin of all humanity through his death on the cross. Your faith in Christ’s horrible death, the Old Rugged Cross, with his blood streaming down it to the ground stands now, and will always be your only passport to heaven.

These last three chapters in Matthew contain several major topics; His betrayal and arrest, the trial, the treatment, the last supper, prayer, tears, the cross, His death, burial and resurrection—and finally his appearance and commission just before his ascension. Oh, how I wish we could cover the waterfront, but time prevents... Be sure you read these chapters prayerfully expecting God to reveal in depth even the hidden messages contained. I will add a few thoughts that are relevant, but require extra study.

[Josephus, in Wars of the Jews, 6. 9. 3] says that the governor Cestius was afraid that Nero did not realize the vast numbers of Jews that would be in the City and the problems that this mass of people could cause, so he arranged for a census to be taken. Time would not permit a count of people so he directed the High Priest to take a census of the lambs being slain for the sacrifice. “A company of not less than ten must belong to every sacrifice [for it is not lawful for them to feast singly by themselves] and many of us are twenty in a company.” It was found that on this occasion the number of lambs slain was 256,500. It is Josephus’s estimate that there were in the city for that Passover some two and three-quarter million people. So it is little wonder that Caiaphas sought some stratagem to take Jesus secretly and quietly, for many of the pilgrims were Galileans who considered Jesus to be a prophet and would surely rebel. Plans were made to wait until the masses left the city…but Judas provided them a solution to the problem.

[John 12:6] says Judas was a thief that had stolen money from the money box. Matthew and Mark say that Judas’ betrayal came immediately after the anointing of Jesus at Bethany where Judas complained about the waste of the expensive anointing. Therefore he must have acted because of his greed, and struck one of the most dreadful bargains in history selling out, both Jesus and his own soul, for thirty pieces of silver. He realized his fate, threw the money on the floor at the feet of those who had paid him and went out and hanged himself. It is a strange thing with a sinner, but he usually comes to hate the very thing that causes him to be caught in sin.

We are all aware of Peter’s three denials and the crowing of the rooster, and some may have had harsh thoughts about what he did. There is one thing that I want to point out in behalf of Peter, and that is that he is the only one of the eleven disciples that even had enough courage to go to the temple that night where the trial was in progress. All of the other disciples had already sneaked off into the night…and left Jesus to fight his own battle from here on. They ran away but at least you must give Peter credit for not running. He has one more credit coming. As huge, hard and strong as he was, just at the moment that he realized what Christ had told him he would do, and he realized that it had come true…he went out and cried for forgiveness.

The most of us at one time or another have had some hard things to say about Pilate for his decision to allow the crucifixion to take place; but in-depth study shows that his heart was never really hardened against Jesus. Pilate knew that Jesus was innocent; and the Jews never really convinced him otherwise, but the Jews caught him in crossfire and compelled him to do their will against his wishes and what he knew to be justice. Actually Pilate was clearly impressed with Jesus and did not feel that the charges brought of Him being the King of the Jews was a serious threat to him. He knew a revolutionary when he saw one, had dealt with many in his day, and he knew that Jesus was not a revolutionary. He sought an escape and tried to get them to let Christ go free.
This it is the most compelling story about the most important four days in all of human history. This story contains the most gruesome combination of hatred, mistreatment, carnage, and death, and then finally, it describes the unprecedented resurrection. It is very likely that absolutely no one has ever fully grasped all that is contained in this short scripture—from the trial to Easter morning. Please obtain a good study bible and a commentary [I recommend * bottom of page] and study these four days in depth. Just a few important questions to answer are: Why did another man carry his cross? Who drove the nails? Who recognized him as Savior of the World? Why did he die quickly? Why was there complete darkness? Why earth wake? Why was the vale rent? Where did his soul go? Why was He buried in a borrowed tomb? Why was he for only three days? Why is it imperative that we know and believe this story? “And now the rest of the story.”

Two special women were recognized and rewarded during the four days. Mary Magdalene and the other Mary were at the cross, at the burial in the tomb and now the first to visit the opened tomb. They were the first to get the Good News of the Risen Lord. There are at least three imperatives that resulted because of their faithfulness. First, they were taught the necessity of faith. It is only when we truly believe in the risen Lord that he can enter into our life and work through us. Secondly, they were taught to share. Their first thought was that they should share their good news with others. And last, they were instructed to rejoice. The first word that Christ said to them was “Chairete” which in his language was a greeting which literally means “Rejoice.”

Now we come to the end of our lesson—and to the end of Matthew’s gospel—and hear his last words. [Read verses 16-20] The first thing he did was assure his disciples of his unlimited power proven by his life, death and resurrection. They were now the servants of the Heavenly Master whose authority was beyond question on earth and in heaven.

Then he told them what his mission had been and what their mission was from this day on—“Therefore go into all the world and make all nations my disciples, baptizing them in the name of the Father, Son, and Holy Spirit—And teach them to keep all the commandments that I have given you.” So: We must be saved. We must obey. And we do not have to do it alone because he made us a promise—“And surely I will be with you always [every day, hour and second] to the very end of the age.”

[* Commentaries: Tyndale Commentary by R.V. Tasker; Moffatt Commentary by T. H. Robinson: Black New Testament Commentary by F. V. Filson; if you have a computer, there are several commentaries available for your study.]
MAY GOD BLESS ALL OF YOU AND
PLEASE, LET US ALL EXPRESS OUR THANKSGIVING PRAISE!

Involved in Ministry - Matthew 23 - 25:46

The First Baptist Church of Heber Springs has a new ‘funny book’ just published that lists the names of the active membership and provides the addresses, phone number and a ‘picture’ of each member. If there was 100% attendance on any given Sunday Morning, how many ministers [both active and retired] do you think would be present? If our pastor would ask for a show of hands of all ministers present, how many do you think would raise their hands? Would you be one of those indicating a positive response? Do you consider yourself to be a minister in the church that Christ established while he was here on earth?

By experience as a father of two children and a public school teacher and administrator of thousands of children of other parents I can, and do, here by attest that one of, and may be the first and easiest lessons that children learn, is how to find excuses for their mistakes. They learn how to make excuses before they learn how to read and they improve in this skill faster than any subject they enroll in throughout school life. By the time they reach the age of accountability, they are able to convince their parents some other person is responsible for all of their problems. At any age, unbelievers are even able to convince themselves that they have a good excuse for the commission of both the sin of omission and commission.

Here is your challenge regarding your responsibility as a minister of Christ for Christ. You must read the entire scripture that forms the foundation and structure of today’s lesson—Matthew chapters 23, 24 and 25. They are all in red letters that surely will remind you of his blood that Jesus shed for the sin of all people who will believe in him.

Regarding those above who did not raise their hand—some may not know that they should be involved in Christ’s ministry. Others may know—but just do not want to be involved and they think they have a good reason; however, what they really have is a poor excuse. The sad truth lies in the fact that some do not know—or do not believe—that the results of their final judgment regarding the truth…sincerity…and genuineness of their Christianity will be determined by the extent they are involved in his ministry.

I think that we need to take a moment to look at the overall picture of where we are today. Because of the timing, everything that Christ says grows more important—for these are some of the last teachings that were meant primarily for his disciples first and then all of his followers. His entry into Jerusalem was last Sunday, one week before his crucifixion. This must have been the longest week of His life. What he said, and did in this last week has got to be the most important message in word and action that he gave us to ponder. When he entered the city he went directly to the temple where he found disgrace and dishonor being shown because the Jews had turned the holy temple into a market-place. His anger reached the highest point of his entire ministry—and he used a whip and drove them out of the temple. We must never forget that our ‘church building’ is a proto-type of the Jewish temple and it is never to be used as a commercial building.

The time is near the end of His earthly ministry. The city of Jerusalem is crowded with Jewish worshipers, who have come to observe the Passover, and He and His disciples were in the temple complex [21:23], that was crowded with observers. Jesus knew that the Pharisees and Sadducees were there listening to his every word—looking for something that they could use to bring charges against him [22:15]. This seems like an appropriate time for me to remind you that the Roman Government was in power and they were not interested in getting involved with the religious differences between the established Jewish leadership and the teachings of the Messiah. The Jewish leadership realized this and shifted their charges toward the fact that Jesus claimed to be God on earth, who was interested in the overthrow of the Roman Government. Jesus realized that these false acquisitions would ultimately lead to his destruction and this made it imperative that he convince his followers that they had to be ready to take responsibility for the continuation of his ministry on earth.

Jesus uses the entire twenty-fifth chapter of Matthew to teach us that the future of his church depends upon Christian people and therefore they must be involved in Jesus’ ministry in order for his total plan to work successfully. You will find his examples in the parables he gave us in this chapter.

The first example comes in the story of the ten bridesmaids. All were invited to take part in his total plan of salvation exemplified in a wedding. Five of them took the invitation seriously and prepared their lamps with the necessary oil to keep them lit and working as long as they were needed. The second five did not take seriously their need to prepare to be a part of the wedding and when their lamps burned out there was no provision for them to refuel and still be a part of the celebration. Herein lies a very simple example of a very small and simple ministry. Before the wedding they should have given a few minutes of their time to pour the oil in their lamps. We observe the Lord’s Supper frequently as a solemn celebration of the death of our Savior, in our remembrance of his sacrifice for us. Someone has to obtain the wine [juice] and pour it into glasses before the observance can take place—and that is a necessary ministry. Likewise, the preparation of the unleavened bread is ministry—and for sure the serving process is a ministry. Failure to adequately prepare or properly serve at the Lord’s Supper is similar to the failure of the bridesmaids who neglected to prepare for the wedding.

It is well to note here that the Bridegroom’s wedding was delayed…some extra time went by and this required more oil than was expected. The Bridegroom represented Christ and The Church will be His bride. Christ has already delayed his return to the earth longer than many think he should…but for sure he will come when least expected, and our preparation should be such as is necessary for one day or a thousand years.

The next example of ministry was explained in the parable of the man that was going on a journey and entrusted his wealth to his three servants. To the first he gave five talents of money, to the next he gave two talents and to the third man he entrusted one talent. Note: The man going on a journey represents Christ who was going to ascend back into heaven—and the three men represented three church members. The first has many talents…he can preach, sing, pray, play instruments, and witness, and while his master was gone—he used his time and talents and won five sinners to Christ. The second could only pray and witness—he used his time and talents and successfully won two new converts. The third member of the church was limited in talents and decided to use this as an excuse to just attend the services and Sunday school when it was convenient for him. He was not rewarded, because he could have done more—and he probably wound up praying that God would return unto him the joy of his salvation. Which one of these men represents you?—or which do you represent?

The heart of this lesson today comes without any doubts or need for interpretation in the 31st verse of chapter 25. In order for you to be fully convinced that you are expected to minister, it is imperative that you read this passage. When and where is this setting and what happens? One day soon, and very soon, Christ [The Son of Man] will return to earth in all his glory; He will be seated on his throne and all of his angels will be with him. All nations from Siberia to South Africa…from the north to the South Pole, regardless of whom they say is their god’ will be assembled before Him. Just as a shepherd separates the goats from his sheep—Christ will divide the people, putting the goats on his left and the sheep on his right side. There is no question about it…the sheep represent all who have accepted Jesus as their savior…and the goats will be made up of all people who have served the other gods.

Then the King [Son of Man, Jesus] will speak specifically to the sheep on his right hand, and he will invite them to come unto him because they are the blessed by his father [Jehovah God]. He will invite them to take [receive, occupy, enter in] their inheritance—which is the Kingdom prepared for them since the creation of the world. Then He explains why or how they have inherited the Kingdom. NOTE SPECIFICS.

Christ is speaking…it is in red letters. “For I was hungry and you gave me something to eat. I was thirsty and you gave me something to drink. I was a stranger and you invited me in. I needed clothes and you clothed me. I was sick and you looked after me. I was in prison and you came to visit me.” The righteous [sheep, Christians] will then ask when and how did they do these things. “The king will reply, ‘I tell you the truth, whatever you did for one of the least of these brothers of mine, you did for me.” I now ask you: is there any thing listed here that you could not do as your ministry responsibility? Maybe there are some, but I dare say that every one of us could find at least one of these that we could have, can do, or should do. For example; the stranger represents a non-church going person with no church body interested to minister to him. All of us could invite him to come in to our church; there is no doubt that some one out there is spiritually hungry, and if invited to our church he will be fed on the gospel of Jesus Christ.

The sad side of this explanation of the differences between the sheep and the goats culminates in the last two verses of this chapter. We are still at the same gathering of all nations. Jesus Christ, the Messiah, turns now to his left hand and speaks to the goats. He gives them the same list of needs that he had during their lifetime and then told them that they did not minister to any of his needs. They also wanted to know when this happened and how or why. He will reply, “I tell you the truth, what ever you DID NOT DO FOR ONE OF THE LEAST OF THESE, YOU DID NOT DO FOR ME.”

“Then they will go away to eternal punishment, but the righteous to eternal life.”

At age 83, after much study of God’s Holy Bible, especially the teachings of the New Testament, I truly believe in the ‘Security of the Believer’. And after many years of teaching the Word, and many examples of the necessity to live in loving obedience—I also truly believe that we will be rewarded according to the degree of our obedience. He said, “You must be born again,” Then he told Peter, “If you love me, feed my sheep.” Salvation is an absolute necessity in order to inherit eternal life. And our INVOLVEMENT IN MINISTRY is an absolute necessity in order to please God. Many will be saved ‘as by fire’ because of their lack of obedience. You can know a tree by the fruit it bears!

A Place for All - Matthew 19:1 - 23:46

During those days while our church was under the leadership of two interim pastors, Brothers Swihart and Jerome, they led the church to think in a new direction and suggested that we develop a new constitution and by-laws and a mission statement that would picture where the membership would like to go; and that would help all prospects and new members to visualize us as a growing, caring church where no one is left behind. A committee was elected by the church to work with our new pastor, Dr. DeBusk to assure that the new pastor and the church were of one mind and in accord. This was not an easy task and it took many hours of prayerful study to establish the goal. It is very difficult for a Christ-centered church to explain its mission in a few words that will reveal the enormity of its task.

The moment I opened the LifeWay commentary and saw the title for our lesson for today it made me think that the author had explained our mission in four simple words—A PLACE FOR ALL. Our church is a place that includes but is not limited to a people that really care for others; we are a Christ-like church [people] that are furnishing a beautiful and comfortable place for all who will participate to learn about God and then to be able to teach others. The church has a membership of Christ-centered people who are there FOR ALL. Members are there to praise and worship God and to fellowship with each other—so that we can grow spiritually. However, a vast majority of our budget is spent in the total effort to reach others—especially the lost of our community. Every dedicated member of our church understands that we are striving to use every possible means that we have to meet the needs of the people that will enter in through our doors. Matthew tells us in the 19th chapter that Jesus insisted that his church must be a Godly caring PLACE FOR ALL PEOPLE.

Matthew tells us that the church [a place for all] must embrace at least four major teachings. A] The first fifteen verses deals with marriage and the family. B] Verses 16-28 explain the concept of eternal life. C] Jesus discuses the portrayals of authority in 20: 29 through 21: 27. D] In 21: 28 through 22: 14, He gives parables that emphasize inclusion and exclusion. E] The last part of chapter 22 deals with the answer to four major questions. We will attempt to briefly cover as many of these topics as time will permit.

Back in the 16th chapter we learned that Christ took his disciples away from the crowd and moved them into the area of many gods…Caesarea Philippi where the major emphasis of Christ’s teaching shifted from the general public and became centered on the task of preparing his disciples to take the church he will establish in just a few days and spread it into all nations. Now in the 19th chapter [and in the next two chapters] all events occur while he is on his final trip from Galilee to Jerusalem and the cross where He will die for you and me and who-so-ever will accept him as Lord.

Immediately after he left his hiding place in Caesarea Philippi and started on the last lag of his journey to the cross He left Galilee and went into the region of Judea on the other side of Jordan a multitude of people soon had gathered around him and he continued his public ministry, healing those in need. Just as had happened earlier, he encountered conflict with the religious leaders. Some of the Pharisees reminded him that Moses had ruled that a man could give his wife a certificate of divorce and send her away…and then they wanted to know if he thought it was lawful for a man to divorce his wife. This was ‘lawyer prepared question’ for the sole purpose of causing a conflict between what He was teaching and what Moses had said. Jesus assured them that The Creator made them man and woman and declared that marriage made them no longer two people—but one in marriage. Then he emphasized the truth by saying; “I tell you that anyone who divorces his wife, except for marital unfaithfulness, and marries another woman commits adultery.”

To our sorrow, we are destined to live our lives during a period of history, especially in our US of A, and specifically from 1960 to the present, when the decline of the family unit has hastened toward destruction. No nation will ever be stronger than the families that make up the population. God created the concept of the family unit as the first bastion against evil and tyranny. It was supposed to be successful in this position because of the dedicated love that family members have for each other. In this study of Matthew we are looking at the second bastion against evil and that is Christ’s Church which was to be made up of people who love and care and it is to be that PLACE FOR ALL in which we find Christ, gain eternal life, and reach out to others so that they too may be saved.

The second major topic in this study today is covered, beginning with the 16th verse. Probably the hardest person on earth to be converted, saved, born again would be a rich young man that is living a clean moral life and who shares and cares for his friends and relatives. This rich young man seems to fit this picture because he told Christ that he had kept the commandments regarding his relationship with other people. If you will notice, Christ did not mention the commandment that demands that we have not other gods before Him. It is easy for us to read between the lines and see that this young man loved his family and friends and was doing a lot of good things for others—so much so that he wanted to know what good thing would earn his eternal life. Jesus did not expect this man to give all his wealth away in order to earn life. He does not expect us to give everything we own to others and die a broken hermit. Jesus knew that this man loved his money more than he loved God or man…his money was his god, so he suggested that he sell everything he owned and give it to the poor. He suggested that he give up his false-god and look to the true, one and only God. More important than anything else…he was to come and follow Jesus.

In my mind’s eye I can look back to the Jordon banks and see the expression on Peter’s face when Christ told him to leave everything and come follow him. It is the same concept. Now Peter did not have much wealth to leave behind, but he left all he had and followed Christ. True the rich man had more to give up…but it was only just all he had…like Peter. So then the difference was in his “want-to”…he wanted to live the life of the rich and famous and did not love Christ enough to make the sacrifice.

I have studied the bible teachings regarding wealth and have never found anywhere that everyone must sell all that they own and give it all to God. I think the exception here with this young rich man was to emphasize the fact that everyone must practice the minimum goal that God set for each person so the Lord’s work could progress. There is no doubt in my mind that the minimum requirement is not 100%... BUT IT IS 10% OR MORE…and it includes our time and talents as well as our money. Christ could have told these people that it is as hard for a rich man to be humble as it is for the camel to go through the eye of a needle. Herein is the problem, because the rich have no need to be humble, they do not have to depend on friends, employers, or even God. They have it made!

Peter inquired about the status of those who have left all and followed Christ. He was told that the disciples will sit on twelve thrones and act as judges over the twelve tribes of Israel. And then Jesus included you and me [all Christians] saying that when we have proven faithful we will be rewarded one hundred times more than we have given and also will inherit eternal life. This sounds like the best investment that I have ever made. More important than anything else, our stock is not listed on the Dow, and there will be no failures recorded. We are safe and secure in Jesus Christ!

One more thought on riches is that—Jesus did not say that it was impossible for a rich man to enter heaven. We should remember that Zacchaeus was one of the richest men in Jericho. Jesus called him down from the tree and went home with him and because of his receptive heart and generous attitude he and his house were saved. By-the-way, Zacchaeus only promised to give one half of his riches to the poor…he did not have to sell everything. Joseph of Armathaea was also a rich man…he claimed the body of Christ, and placed it in his new-unused tomb. Nicodemus must have been well off because the spices he furnished to anoint the body of Christ was said to have been worth a king’s ransom. Riches are not sinful but wealth causes many to sin. Man cannot have two gods—both God and money –for he will love one more than the other.

At first glance it may not seem right for the first man to work a ten hour day and receive one dollar. While the second man works five hours and receives one dollar; and the third man only works three hours and receives one dollar; and finally the fourth man works just one hour and receives one dollar. If all agreed before they worked that this was acceptable, how can the latter ones feel slighted? Some of you may not agree with me. Well let me ask you a question. Let us suppose that the farmer that hired them now becomes the Lord Jesus Christ in my parable. Look at it.
The first worker in his kingdom became a Christian at twenty years of age and worked faithfully for 60 years and died. The second one became a Christian at thirty and worked for 30 years and died. The third repented at forty and worked 20 years. The fourth was saved at fifty years of age and worked only one year and died. Will not their pay be the same? Will heaven be 60 times better for the first than for the last? Both young and old will be paid with God’s unmerited grace and I predict that all will be happy with the settlement.

Jesus predicted his coming cruel death for the third time, and must have been very disappointed when the disciples still failed to understand fully that he was correct. They still continued to argue with him and seek another solution.

In chapter 22: 15-41 Jesus answers four questions. 1. Is it right to pay taxes to the government? The answer. Whose picture is on the bill? They said Caesar, Washington, and Lincoln. Then render to Caesar and the United States what they are due but give God what is due him. 2. There were seven brothers. The oldest one married and died. Each of his six brothers married the same woman and each died. At the resurrection, whose wife will she be? None of these, because at the resurrection there will be no marriages. They will be like angels in heaven. 3. Teacher, which is the greatest commandment in the law? Love the Lord your God with all your soul and with all our mind is the first—and the second is Love your neighbor as yourself. 4. Then Jesus ask—“What do you think about the Christ? Whose son is he? “The son of David.” They replied. “How is it then that David, speaking by the Spirit, calls him ‘Lord’? For he says “The Lord said to my Lord: “Sit at my right hand until I put your enemies under your feet.” “If then David calls him ‘Lord,’ how can he be his son?” Don’t miss a blessing, read all four of these chapters—AND GET IN—OR STAY IN CHRIST’S CHURCH.

A Caring Community - Matthew 18

Each one of us is a member of a community of friends and relatives that may often have higher expectations of us than we are really capable of fulfilling. Regardless of our size, talents, or capabilities, Jesus created each person with a specific purpose in his mind for us to fulfill in this life. As I read the closing verses of chapter seventeen I noted that the tax collectors in Capernaum were concerned about whether or not Jesus and the disciples were paying their temple tax—they confronted Peter and ask him if they were paying taxes like others had to do.

Peter assured them that they did pay taxes—but reading between lines—I believe he may have thought that they were delinquent because he went directly to Jesus, who sensed the need to pay the tax. He told Peter to go fishing, and that he should look in the mouth of the first fish he caught where he would find a four-drachma coin; then he told Peter to take the coin and pay their tax. In my distant past I remember reading about this miracle and have always thought it to be one of the most peculiar of the miracles performed by Christ. Imagine the thrill of catching a fish with a very valuable gold coin in his mouth.

As I look back and think about what others may have expected of me—I realize that I was too short to play basket-ball; to light to play foot-ball; lacked the coordination and talent to succeed in golf and although I enjoyed participating in these sports it seemed that I was more successful in a good boat with a rod and reel and a hand full of plastic worms anchored somewhere on Toledo Bend Lake, in Louisiana. This may not have been the purpose that God had in mind for me—because I have looked many times into the mouth of a large-mouth bass and have never found anything that would pay my taxes.

Some of you, my critics, may wonder what this has to do with the lesson for today; and if this crosses your mind, you should read the entire chapter of Matthew 18. You will find that verses 1-14 deals with the humility of the community in which you live—verses 15-20 deals with the ability of your community to practice reconciliation—and the last four-teen verses proclaims the need for a community to be able to forgive even those who prove to be a disappointment.

Beginning back in chapter 16 and concluding in 18, Jesus focuses on the origin of his church and especially on how he expected the members of Christ’s church to act and react with each other and toward the other members of their community. As Christ moved from one community to another, there was a steady increase of the opposition to Him. Therefore, he turned from the general public to his disciples and increased the emphasis on his coming rejection, suffering, death and resurrection that would take place during the final days of his life in Jerusalem—which was about six months. It was imperative that they understand who he was and what he came to earth to accomplish—to seek and save the lost through his death on the cross. He also wanted them to understand that he came to establish a Christian Community that would be known as His Church. This Church community would be a mass of people who confessed him as the Christ, or Messiah, the Son of the Living God. Our lesson today explains some of his instructions given to the church [community of faith] regarding how they are expected to conduct themselves. In a nut-shell—they are to be A CARING COMMUNITY.

Using my humble example; we are not to expect more out of a short, light-weight, with few talents, to defend Larry Bird; to play with the Dallas Cowboys; or defeat Arnold Palmer. I will go one step further—we are not to judge those who may not see eye-to-eye with us in all of our beliefs—and the first 14 verses deals with characteristic of children—which is humility. No man is an island unto him-self and must realize that those around him help to build him up or tear him down—therefore we must choose our friends carefully. General Dwight D. Eisenhower profoundly expressed what I am trying to say in this quote—“Humility must always be the portion of any man who receives acclaim earned in the blood of his followers and the sacrifices of his friends.” If time permits, we will cover three themes found in his lesson—Humility, purity, and mercy.

It is clearly evidenced in the first verse that the disciples did not understand what it meant for a man to be humble. Their question was “Who will be the greatest in your Kingdom?” Again, reading between the lines, we can see that they had no idea that a child would be considered greater than they would be. They had given up everything and followed Christ. They had walked many miles of dusty roads beside Him… hungry, fished all night with no catch, and witnessed hatred and danger of harm from those who opposed them and to date, not one of them had forsaken Christ, but instead had exerted every effort to help him become the accepted Messiah. I believe that they were really honestly concerned about which one of them Christ would pick to be his successor on earth…which of them would Christ trust with the future of his church. To find that a young child was ahead of them in his choosing must have been a shocker. Matthew spends the rest of this chapter explaining to them and us that they had asked the wrong question. It would not be the strongest or most brilliant; it would be the most humble and forgiving.

The question they ask proves that they were striving to be the greatest in His Kingdom. As a member of the Church, what is your aim? Is it your goal to receive fulfillment of your personal ambitions? Are you interested in obtaining greater power and prestige in order to exalt self? These are the exact opposites of what the goals of a CARRING COMMUNITY should be—it should be the church community that cares. It is not easy; in fact, it is very difficult to forget self in your life that should aim at service to others and not power and control over others. Simply said—“Do unto others as you would have them do unto you.” Lou Holtz calls it his “Do right rule.”

Jesus told his disciples that they would have to become as a child or they would never see the kingdom of Heaven. So let us look as some of the attributes of a child which we must emulate in order to be a part of His caring community. First, a child has the power of wonderment—lives in a fantasy world, dreaming, learning and don’t claim to know it all. Even though they may be mistreated, they still can forgive and forget. They are continually interested in learning and too their advantage they do not have to unlearn which is a difficult task.

The central theme is humility, and true and complete humility is found only in the very young, before they become self-centered. I believe that children in that day were humble for more years than they are today. The reason being that, today’s parents force their children into the competitive world at an earlier age. There is more pressure to be number one [#1] at an earlier age and at any cost. It is natural for children to be dependent and they do not resent having those that care for them [parents] to be their safety zone. If Christians would learn to depend completely on Jesus for our strength and success we would find greater peace and success in our lives. How often does a young child in our country worry about being hungry, cold, and without care? I realize that some do. It is sad, but even those that finds them-selves cold and hungry still trust in parents to provide. Parents may fail; but God will not fail [us]…His children.

For some reason Jesus changed his emphasis from the idea of a caring community to the punishment of anyone that would mistreat or mislead a child. I sometimes tremble when I think back to my years in the teens and twenties when I found pleasure in ‘teasing’ and sometimes ‘tormenting’ the kids that were younger—just for the fun of it. [My fun, not theirs.] I also remember being teased to the point of tears. Wish I could remember every case…I would call them and apologize and seek forgiveness. This kind of treatment of a child can lead one to a point where they would be better off if they had a mill stone about their neck and were cast in the sea; folks, that is pretty severe punishment. The point is…don’t mess around with Jesus’ little ones. I believe the danger is greater while misleading children up to about eight to ten years—and ‘babes in Christ for their first four or five years, or anyone that has not studied the Word and established their faith.

There are two warnings against temptation that must be noted. The greatest sin is found in the man that tempts others to sin, as with the one who would tempt the child, tempting a ‘babe in Christ’ to do wrong is even greater than sinning personally against God. The second thought regarding temptation is pertaining to an individual who is giving in to their own desires of lust or greed. The Bible says that by seeing you are tempted to lie, cheat, steal, or otherwise sin against you own body and God—it would be better for you to be blind. I do not advocate actually punching your eyes out—but it is necessary for you to control the thought process that produces the sin and remove it from your thinking. Pluck it out. Cut it off. Anything that causes you to sin should be eliminated.

Looking down on others and living a self-centered life is two nuts in the same shell. Christ emphatically states that children have special angels that look over them and are able to approach God in their behalf at any time. I see this as the Lord’s way of keeping children safe and unaccountable for any sin committed prior to the age of accountability. The next lesson taught by Christ is that if one of these little ones becomes lost, or goes astray, we should be concerned to the extent that we would leave the 99 who are safe and go look for the one that is lost. I am persuaded that this could also refer to a young Christian that has drifted away from the Christian path-way. I am afraid that the members of our Christian Community would be more likely to condemn the stray and let him find his own way back to the flock. Christ indicated that the shepherd—pastor, deacon, or strong Christian brother/sister should be more concerned about the one that is astray. It is dangerous when you judge any person as unworthy simply because they have beliefs and practices in their life that you do not agree with. Just keep in mind that Jesus stated that he came into this world to seek and save the lost. Should we not do likewise?

Things really get serious when one of these undesirables sin against us personally. We have no right to condemn and forget them even when their sin is against us. Always remember that there are two sides to every disagreement, and you need to resolve the difference in a Christian manner. Jesus gave us the method we should follow. Read again verses 15-19. The modern day Christian is usually not willing to negotiate a dispute in order to allow right to win, and bring abut reconciliation between two who have a problem. The Christian Community of yesteryear was more willing to follow the instructions. First, go to your brother and personally try to be reconciled; if successful you have won a brother. If he does not listen, then take two or three witnesses and let them hear the evidence and act as a jury. This will usually settle the matter, but if it is a more difficult one, it is time to take it to the Church Community for a final decision that is binding on both parties. How long has it been since you have seen this kind of effort put forth in order to save one or both lives? Who said for us to do it this way? Christ!

We have looked at the need for humility in the Church Community—not the strong but the child-like humble people will inherit the Kingdom. We have discussed the need for Reconciliation of differences and we are told that if one is guilty and refuses to listen to even the church—he is to be treated as the Jews treated the pagans and tax-collectors. Now we turn to the third and final attribute discussed in this lesson—and this has to do with forgiveness in our Church Community. Some of my readers will use a different name for their Church Community, but I am specifically referring to the Christian members of the First Baptist Church of Heber Springs, Arkansas.

Again we find old Peter at the head of the line, looking for answers to some of his questions. Remember that ‘seven’ [7] is considered the complete number—and Peter must have felt that he would complete his responsibility toward anyone who sinned against him if he was willing to forgive him seven times. He asked Jesus if that was enough. The answer was NO; you must forgive him seventy times seven. [70x7=490]. And it is clear that Jesus simply meant that there is never a time when you should refuse to forgive one who earnestly seeks forgiveness. Think for a moment, how many of us have sinned against Christ more that 490 times, confessed our sins and asked for forgiveness and received it immediately? I dare say that some of us have exceeded that number in just a few months…maybe even weeks.

Please don’t skip over the characteristic of forgiveness discussed in the last thirty-four verses of chapter 18. Read it, because time will not permit a complete recount in this written lesson. Jesus related that the servant of one king owed his master ten thousand talents—and that is so great that no order-nary servant could ever pay the debt. The servant could not pay and was condemned …however he repented, and pled for mercy and received it. His life was saved. He was a sinner saved by the grace [undeserved favor] of the king. The king forgave him. The king cancelled his debt.

The redeemed servant sought another that owed him only a hundred denarii and demanded that the debt be paid. This servant could not pay, and pleaded for forgiveness of his debt. The wicked servant would not relent and had the second servant thrown into prison. Other servants were concerned and reported his evil treatment to the king [master] who called him in and rebuked him; the king changed his mind, and had the unforgiving servant thrown into jail until he could pay.

The final lesson for each of us is to learn from today’s lesson is that God will treat each unforgiving person just as this master treated his servant. If you are a member of a CARING CHURCH COMMUNITY and you personally are an unforgiving soul…you should always remember the day that Jesus Christ through his mercy, forgave you. Do unto others as Christ has done for you!