Matt 18:1-9
SS Lesson for 03/12/2023
Devotional Scriptures: Luke 14:7-11
By the time of today’s text, Jesus’ disciples had witnessed his divine power through his acts of healing (Matthew 14:35-36) and exorcism (15:21-28; 17:14-18), miraculous provision (14:15-21; 15:32-38), and control over creation (14:22-33). The apostles Peter, James, and John witnessed Jesus’ power personally as they observed Jesus transfigured before them (17:1-13; Mark 9:2). Later, Peter interpreted the transfiguration as showing Jesus’ divine honor and glory (2 Peter 1:16-18). In that event, God’s power was revealed in and through Jesus Christ. Peter acknowledged Jesus as “the Messiah, the Son of the living God” (Matthew 16:16). The title Christ is the Greek equivalent of the Hebrew word Messiah (John 1:41). Both designations refer to the anointed one of God, a phrase describing God’s chosen king (see 1 Samuel 16:1, 12-13; 2 Samuel 7:8-16). When acknowledging Jesus as the Christ, Peter had certain expectations regarding Christ’s work. Hebrew Scripture, also called the Old Testament, traces the contours of God’s anointed one’s liberating his people, sitting on God’s throne, and ruling in righteousness (compare Genesis 49:10; Psalms 110:1; 132:11-12; Isaiah 16:5; Micah 5:2; etc.). Jews assumed that the Messiah would come with power and strength as the anointed servant of God (see Isaiah 42:1-4). They did not desire or expect a suffering and humbled Messiah (see Matthew 16:21-22; compare 20:25-28). The Gospel writers use different names for God’s rule on earth as inaugurated by the Christ. All four Gospels include the designation “kingdom of God” (Matthew 12:28; Mark 12:34; Luke 9:2; John 3:5; etc.). However, Matthew’s Gospel includes a second designation: the “kingdom of heaven” (Matthew 3:2; 4:17; etc.). The reason for Matthew’s unique designation is unknown, but students propose that Matthew used it to avoid writing the holy name of God. Both designations refer to the eternal kingdom established by God where he rules (see Psalms 145:11, 13; 103:19; compare John 18:36). Jesus’ teaching and ministry prepared people to receive this kingdom (see Matthew 4:17; Luke 8:1). To receive the kingdom requires that people be born again (John 3:3-8) and obey the will of God (Matthew 7:21). Today’s Scripture reveals a third condition to enter God’s kingdom. Parallel texts to today’s lesson are Mark 9:33-37 and Luke 9:46-48.
Therefore whoever humbles himself as this little child is the greatest in the kingdom of heaven.
(Scriptural Text from the New King James Version; cross-references from the NIV)
1 At that time the disciples came to Jesus, saying, "Who then is greatest in the kingdom of heaven?"
2 Then Jesus called a little child to Him, set him in the midst of them,
3 and said, "Assuredly, I say to you, unless you are converted and become as little children, you will by no means enter the kingdom of heaven.
4 Therefore whoever humbles himself as this little child is the greatest in the kingdom of heaven.
5 Whoever receives one little child like this in My name receives Me.
12 So, if you think you are standing firm, be careful that you don't fall!
18 Pride goes before destruction, a haughty spirit before a fall.
33 Peter replied, "Even if all fall away on account of you, I never will." 34 "I tell you the truth," Jesus answered, "this very night, before the rooster crows, you will disown me three times." 35 But Peter declared, "Even if I have to die with you, I will never disown you." And all the other disciples said the same.
2 The man who thinks he knows something does not yet know as he ought to know.
18 "Then he said, 'This is what I'll do. I will tear down my barns and build bigger ones, and there I will store all my grain and my goods. 19 And I'll say to myself, "You have plenty of good things laid up for many years. Take life easy; eat, drink and be merry." ' 20 "But God said to him, 'You fool! This very night your life will be demanded from you. Then who will get what you have prepared for yourself?' 21 "This is how it will be with anyone who stores up things for himself but is not rich toward God."
20 For I tell you that unless your righteousness surpasses that of the Pharisees and the teachers of the law, you will certainly not enter the kingdom of heaven.
23 Then Jesus said to his disciples, "I tell you the truth, it is hard for a rich man to enter the kingdom of heaven.
24 "Make every effort to enter through the narrow door, because many, I tell you, will try to enter and will not be able to.
5 Jesus answered, "I tell you the truth, no one can enter the kingdom of God unless he is born of water and the Spirit.
22 strengthening the disciples and encouraging them to remain true to the faith. "We must go through many hardships to enter the kingdom of God," they said.
6 But he gives us more grace. That is why Scripture says: "God opposes the proud but gives grace to the humble."
10 Humble yourselves before the Lord, and he will lift you up.
2 then make my joy complete by being like-minded, having the same love, being one in spirit and purpose. 3 Do nothing out of selfish ambition or vain conceit, but in humility consider others better than yourselves. 4 Each of you should look not only to your own interests, but also to the interests of others.
17 These are a shadow of the things that were to come; the reality, however, is found in Christ. 18 Do not let anyone who delights in false humility and the worship of angels disqualify you for the prize. Such a person goes into great detail about what he has seen, and his unspiritual mind puffs him up with idle notions. 19 He has lost connection with the Head, from whom the whole body, supported and held together by its ligaments and sinews, grows as God causes it to grow.
13 Who is wise and understanding among you? Let him show it by his good life, by deeds done in the humility that comes from wisdom.
6 "Whoever causes one of these little ones who believe in Me to sin, it would be better for him if a millstone were hung around his neck, and he were drowned in the depth of the sea.
7 Woe to the world because of offenses! For offenses must come, but woe to that man by whom the offense comes!
8 "If your hand or foot causes you to sin, cut it off and cast it from you. It is better for you to enter into life lame or maimed, rather than having two hands or two feet, to be cast into the everlasting fire.
9 And if your eye causes you to sin, pluck it out and cast it from you. It is better for you to enter into life with one eye, rather than having two eyes, to be cast into hell fire.
13 "Woe to you, teachers of the law and Pharisees, you hypocrites! You shut the kingdom of heaven in men's faces. You yourselves do not enter, nor will you let those enter who are trying to.
9 Be careful, however, that the exercise of your freedom does not become a stumbling block to the weak.
10 Whoever loves his brother lives in the light, and there is nothing in him to make him stumble.
2 We all stumble in many ways. If anyone is never at fault in what he says, he is a perfect man, able to keep his whole body in check.
6 But if anyone causes one of these little ones who believe in me to sin, it would be better for him to have a large millstone hung around his neck and to be drowned in the depths of the sea.
1 As for you, you were dead in your transgressions and sins, 2 in which you used to live when you followed the ways of this world and of the ruler of the kingdom of the air, the spirit who is now at work in those who are disobedient. 3 All of us also lived among them at one time, gratifying the cravings of our sinful nature and following its desires and thoughts. Like the rest, we were by nature objects of wrath.
6 Let no one deceive you with empty words, for because of such things God's wrath comes on those who are disobedient.
12 For it is shameful even to mention what the disobedient do in secret.
15 To the pure, all things are pure, but to those who are corrupted and do not believe, nothing is pure. In fact, both their minds and consciences are corrupted. 16 They claim to know God, but by their actions they deny him. They are detestable, disobedient and unfit for doing anything good.
2 For if the message spoken by angels was binding, and every violation and disobedience received its just punishment,
6 It still remains that some will enter that rest, and those who formerly had the gospel preached to them did not go in, because of their disobedience.
22 You were taught, with regard to your former way of life, to put off your old self, which is being corrupted by its deceitful desires;
8 But now you must rid yourselves of all such things as these: anger, rage, malice, slander, and filthy language from your lips. 9 Do not lie to each other, since you have taken off your old self with its practices 10 and have put on the new self, which is being renewed in knowledge in the image of its Creator. 11 Here there is no Greek or Jew, circumcised or uncircumcised, barbarian, Scythian, slave or free, but Christ is all, and is in all.
1 Therefore, since we are surrounded by such a great cloud of witnesses, let us throw off everything that hinders and the sin that so easily entangles, and let us run with perseverance the race marked out for us.
21 Therefore, get rid of all moral filth and the evil that is so prevalent and humbly accept the word planted in you, which can save you.
2 Therefore, rid yourselves of all malice and all deceit, hypocrisy, envy, and slander of every kind.
The discourse begins with the disciple’s question about who was the greatest in the kingdom. If we piece the Gospels together, Luke tells us that Jesus detected their rivalry (9:46-48), Mark says he then challenged them and silenced them (Mark 9:33-38), and Matthew reports how they blurted out this question.
The section begins with “At that time.” Jesus had been talking about his suffering and death; but it was as if the disciples were on another wave-length. They are concerned with who would be the greatest. It may be that Jesus’ teaching on distinctions in the kingdom (5:19), or Jesus’ attention to the three disciples and to Peter as the rock, might have set off the rivalry. It would continue in 20:20-23 with the request of the mother of James and John. These kinds of questions came from a group of men who had a limited understanding of the kingdom. If they were thinking of a purely human kingdom like David had, the questions might not have seemed to them out of order. But later when they realized this was the King of Glory who would be seated on the right hand of the Majesty on High, then questions of where they would sit in the kingdom would prove embarrassing by their ignorance.
Jesus responded to their question with a demonstration--a child. The child could have been Peter’s if this was in Peter’s house (17:25; Mark 9:33). Be that as it may, Jesus solemnly warns them (“I tell you the truth”--when did he not tell them the truth?) that they must change and become like little children, for unless they do they will not enter the kingdom of heaven. The point of the child as an illustration is humility (not innocence or faith, for the child would not yet know enough to come to faith). The child is not concerned with social status (although the child quickly learns that from adults). The point is that Jesus advocates humility of mind (v. 4) and not childishness of thought (see 10:16). Then, out of such humility will come the childlike trust.
The point is that the kingdom cannot be gained by merit or force. The disciples have to change, they have to become like children in their heart attitudes. The person who truly humbles himself will be the greatest in the kingdom. The disciples have begun their journey to kingdom greatness by trusting the Lord; but they have to set aside this rivalry and humble themselves.
A good illustration of this is King Solomon. He humbled himself and prayed for wisdom to govern the people of Israel, saying, “I am only a little child” (1 Kings 3:7). And God made him great in every way.
In this section we have a teaching that answers a question. The teaching used the illustration of a child. Such a response would be remembered very well by the disciples who had much to learn.
These verses form a tight unit built around a promise-warning proverb and held together by the “stumbling block” theme. What is new, though, is the reference to believers as “little ones,” clearly building on the teaching of verses 1-4.
The first part of the teaching is a blessing: whoever welcomes a little child in the name of Christ welcomes Christ. Jesus was not meaning “little child” literally, but one who has humbled himself or herself to receive Christ by faith. They are the disciples. And they are not welcomed because they are great--they are welcomed because they are believers in Jesus. That is the basis on which the devout welcome disciples. This goes beyond mere hospitality; it presupposes the animosity of the world and is therefore the spiritual care of the devout followers of Jesus for the disciples of Jesus. To welcome them is to welcome Jesus into their homes.
On the other hand, children are susceptible to danger and can stumble, even the greatest of them. So the warning is given to those who cause these little ones to stumble. The idea is that by rejecting the little ones, by not welcoming them, some will cause them to stumble in their discipleship. It may lead to serious sin; but it immediately concerns their following Jesus. Rejecting them is rejecting Jesus (see 10:40-42; 25:31-46).
Because the crime is so great, that is, because they not only reject Jesus but seek to cause the little ones, believers, to sin and turn away from Christ, the denunciation is strong. It would be better for them to be drowned in the sea before doing this, than to commit these crimes and face eschatological judgment. There is some advantage for a premature death of the wicked. Jesus referred to the heavy millstone, the stone pulled by animals, to make the point forceful; and the description of eternal punishment is likewise severe. The point is that the little ones, the disciples of Jesus, are under his care; and whatever people do to them, they are really doing to Jesus. This too fits the imagery of a family.
Then Jesus announces a woe to the world, especially to those who would do so wickedly (7). This is a proclamation of judgment, not an expression of sympathy. And it focuses on the world and the stumbling blocks. The stumbling blocks are there, but woe to those through whom they come. By this teachings believers know that there will be opposition and occasions for stumbling--Jesus said it is there (which indicates it is a part of God’s [permissive, at least] will for the victory of faith). But Jesus’ words also assure that in the end justice will triumph.
A good illustration of this is in Acts 4:27 and 28. It was the plan of God that the Messiah was to be opposed, rejected and crucified. But Herod and Pilate and the leaders got together to plot how to kill Jesus. By their choice they would become the ones through whom the opposition developed. Here is that strange cooperation of divine plan and human will in the realm of the wickedness of the world. Herod and Pilate did what they wanted to do; and it would have been better for them if they had never been born.
Then in verses 8 and 9 Jesus instructs the disciples to get rid of things that cause them to sin. The language here is extravagant. But the point is that disciples also could become aggressors and not just victims: “ But, if your hand . . . .” Failure to deal radically with sin in their own life, especially sin that harms other believers, betrays their allegiance to the world. It is not enough for Christians to confess such sins and then go their normal way. No, they must determine how to rid themselves of the opportunity and the propensity for such sin.
How do we know that these lines are to be interpreted figuratively? Some have taken them literally and cut off hands and maimed themselves to root out sin. But the root of sin is the heart. We know Jesus did not mean to cut off the land literally, so that one could enter the kingdom maimed, because no one enters the kingdom maimed. We will all be raised and changed and made whole. This is the language of hyperbole. Get rid of the occasion for sin, especially if that sin is destroying the little ones.
And, the passage is not really telling the church to excommunicate sinners. Jesus’ point is very different than that.
So in this section Jesus builds on the teachings of humility introduced before, but he does it now with proverb-like sayings, i.e., what is better and what is worse, to teach what people should do. The teaching is not designed to say throw wicked people into the sea or cut off hands that offend; rather, it is designed to say that people should not sin against others, especially the believers, and cause them to sin. The church has not taken this to heart, for its history is filled with acts of wickedness against other believers, often by those with the power to do so, but not entirely by them. That is not humility; they are not great in the kingdom (those who are in the kingdom).
(Adapted from URL:https://bible.org/seriespage/26-life-under-kingdom-authority-matthew-18)
Most people, at some time or another, desire to have power and be seen as great by the world. We are bombarded with messages and images that celebrate people who appear powerful, prestigious, and famous, great by the standards of the world. The response to these messages requires that believers immerse themselves in Jesus’ teaching regarding the required attitudes toward greatness. Through the power of the Holy Spirit, followers of Jesus must learn to embrace Jesus’ definition of greatness, it must include childlike humility. Further, followers of Jesus must remove those things that would cause themselves or others to stumble in sin. This includes disregarding the world’s messages of greatness, power, and prestige. Believers should also remove the temptations to sin in the things that they see, hear, and do. These are the parts that make up a believer’s actions and habits. Do your actions shape you to desire the world’s definition of power and status? Do your habits lead you to sin or cause others to sin? If so, remove those causes of sin and adjust your habits! Finally, followers of Jesus must embrace an attitude of humility and trust. This is not a sense of naivety, but confidence that God will provide for his people and show mercy consistent with his nature. When we embrace this attitude, we will likely not receive worldly glory. Instead, we will share in the promised, and far superior, glory from God (Romans 8:17).