"If your brother or sister sins, go and point out their fault, just between the two of you. If they listen to you, you have won them over. But if they will not listen, take one or two others along, so that 'every matter may be established by the testimony of two or three witnesses.' If they still refuse to listen, tell it to the church; and if they refuse to listen even to the church, treat them as you would a pagan or a tax collector. "Truly I tell you, whatever you bind on earth will be bound in heaven, and whatever you loose on earth will be loosed in heaven. "Again, truly I tell you that if two of you on earth agree about anything they ask for, it will be done for them by my Father in heaven. For where two or three gather in my name, there am I with them." (Matthew 18:15-20 NIV)
This passage is filled with hard sayings that have divided God's Church for over a millennium. Let's take a look at what is happening here.
Jesus starts out this section talking about a "brother" who sins. How do we know when someone in the Family of God sins? Sin is anything we say or do that displeases God, but how does one person know that another person is displeasing God with his words or actions? Usually, we begin by turning to the Bible. When a person goes against God's instructions from the past, we consider that sin. God is the same yesterday, today, and forever, so that would be a good start.
Remember, though, that the Apostles (being taught by Jesus here) did not have the New Testament. They had the Old Testament Scriptures as well as the new teachings of Jesus. But what if something comes up that Jesus didn't cover in his seminars? He's telling them what to do.
Jesus explains to them that the first two layers of help, Old Testament + Jesus' teachings, will have a third layer added: the Holy Spirit. Once His Spirit is dwelling in them, He will guide them into all truth.
So, when someone sins, they should be able to recognize it. The Spirit will help them. Learning to discern His Spirit, though, takes some work. It's like getting your sea legs - you get used to it over time. It's good, then, to check with someone else with His Spirit to check with. This would be a second witness. This person would not only need to be a "brother or sister" with His Spirit, but also someone else who is a witness to the person's sin. If they agree, they should confront their brother or sister together.
The third step, should the sinner refuse to repent, is to take them to the church. This would be bringing the situation before older, more experienced, wiser people who have been walking with God longer than you. In Biblical days, these were often rabbi/teachers or elder/shepherds. Hopefully, with their wisdom and insight, you can turn the sinner around. This more experienced believer, however, may turn you around - helping you see that it is not sin. If it is, however, you confront the sinner.
The final step, should they still refuse to repent, is to treat them like a pagan or tax-collector. We often call this excommunication - kicking them out of the church. Wait a minute, though. Didn't Jesus hang out with tax-collectors? Wasn't Matthew (who wrote this Gospel) a tax-collector who threw a "sinners and tax-collectors party" to introduce people to Jesus? Why, then, would Jesus tell us to kick this sinner out of His Church? I don't think he does.
Notice what two groups Jesus is describing here. Pagans (or Gentiles in other translations) are simply non-believers. They are not Jewish. The second group, tax-collectors, are Jewish in their town. The Roman Government would recruit people from the local culture to collect taxes for the Government. To make things worse, they were allowed to keep any money they could get out of people that was over and above the taxes owed. In some ways, tax-collectors were worse than Gentiles because they should know better, but they had gone over to the "dark side."
So here's the question: How did Jesus treat non-believers and tax-collectors? He taught them about God. He brought them to God. He helped them overcome their unbelief so they would return to God. Jesus didn't kick out pagans and tax-collectors. He evangelized them - bringing them home like the prodigal son. Jesus wasn't telling us to kick them out of His Church. He was telling us to change our approach. We can't approach them like a believer that knows better. Instead, we need to approach them as a teacher who explains to them. We simply change our approach
Then Peter came to Jesus and asked, "Lord, how many times shall I forgive my brother or sister who sins against me? Up to seven times?" Jesus answered, "I tell you, not seven times, but seventy-seven times." (Matthew 18:21-22 NIV)
With this understanding of the passage, Peter's question makes perfect sense then. Let me say it in another way: "Jesus, you're telling us to hang around people who keep sinning. How often are we going to need to forgive them before we finally give up?" Jesus' answer is simple. Never give up.
Now, I know that some of your translations say seventy seven times and others say seventy times seven. That's just because the Greek language is unclear here. All three words are there (seventy, times, seven) but the word order makes things arguable between language experts. The bottom line for us, though, is simple. Jesus isn't telling us to stop forgiving after 77 times or even after 490. He's telling us to forgive every time. Notice the very next thing he tells them. It's a parable.
"Therefore, the kingdom of heaven is like a king who wanted to settle accounts with his servants. As he began the settlement, a man who owed him ten thousand bags of gold was brought to him. Since he was not able to pay, the master ordered that he and his wife and his children and all that he had be sold to repay the debt. "At this the servant fell on his knees before him. 'Be patient with me,' he begged, 'and I will pay back everything.' The servant's master took pity on him, canceled the debt and let him go. "But when that servant went out, he found one of his fellow servants who owed him a hundred silver coins. He grabbed him and began to choke him. 'Pay back what you owe me!' he demanded. "His fellow servant fell to his knees and begged him, 'Be patient with me, and I will pay it back.' "But he refused. Instead, he went off and had the man thrown into prison until he could pay the debt. When the other servants saw what had happened, they were outraged and went and told their master everything that had happened. "Then the master called the servant in. 'You wicked servant,' he said, 'I canceled all that debt of yours because you begged me to. Shouldn't you have had mercy on your fellow servant just as I had on you?' In anger his master handed him over to the jailers to be tortured, until he should pay back all he owed. "This is how my heavenly Father will treat each of you unless you forgive your brother or sister from your heart." (Matthew 18:23-35 NIV)
How about you? Do you forgive "brothers and sisters" who sin against you from your heart? Do you forgive them every time? Do you use their sin as an excuse to "kick them out" or do you treat them as one who needs to be taught? Do you check with others more wise than yourself to confirm that they really did sin against you? Are you humble enough to change your mind when you are wrong?
No comments:
Post a Comment