Matthew 17-19

This week we finished our first reading of The Gospel of Matthew. Notice how the words are fresh and new. No matter how much you've read it in the past, Holy Spirit has a way of breathing new life into the Text. Kind of like breathing for our bodies. You never get tired of oxygen and quite often a "breath of fresh" is quite invigorating. Here are a few comments on the last part of Matthew's Gospel:



Matthew 17-19:

• Chapter 17 starts with the "Transfiguration of Jesus." Right before the eyes of Peter, James & John, Jesus is glorified by His Father. He begins to flash like lightning, sparkle with radiance and shine like they have never seen. I believe it was like the "shekinah" glory that filled the Tabernacle and Temple in the Old Testament. The glory of God that descended back then is now resting upon Jesus. Moses & Elijah come and speak with Jesus to confirm and encourage Him - Moses representing The Law and Elijah representing The Prophets. Remember, Jesus said He came to fulfill 'The Law and The Prophets'. But the msot compelling witness came when The Father spoke from heaven - "This is My Beloved Son, in whom I am well pleased. Hear Him!" This was The Father's instruction to Peter, James and John. And it is still His instruction to us. This is why it is so important for us to read The Gospels. We need to "hear Him" and "follow Him" with all our heart, mind and strength. Verse 8 has always been an encouragement - "when they had lifted up their eyes, they saw no one but Jesus only."


• Matthew 17:24-27 - Jesus pays His and Peter's Temple taxes in a very creative way. The Temple tax was for the maintenance of the Temple in Jerusalem. Jesus did not seem to agree with this tax but He paid it anyway. A good example for us to follow.


• Matthew 18:15-35: Be sure and read this whole passage and keep these truths in their correct context. A couple of these verses have been frequently used out-of-context and have been misunderstood. The whole passage is about how to deal with a sinning brother or sister in the Church. It is God's heart for us to work towards forgiveness and restoration in all of our relationships. Unfortunately, many believers disregard Jesus' instructions here on how to handle our difficulties with one another - offenses, bitterness, church splits, angry believers, pain, strife, gossip and destruction have been the result of our disobedience to Jesus' instruction in this passage. How much more healthy would the Church be if each one of us followed these instructions? How much more healthy would your relatioships be if you followed this? I believe that if we were to take step one - "if your brother (or sister) sins against you, go and tell him his fault between you and him alone" - the vast majority of the conflicts between people would be solved. But, instead of following this, we retreat into isolation, leave churches, break fellowship and harbor hurts and bitterness in our hearts. Our adversary has a field day with all this and we believers become a part of the mutiny instead of a part of the rescue and restoration.


• Matthew 18:18 deals with "binding & loosing". What is this all about? Remember, the context is church discipline and the restoration of a fellow believer. Here, Jesus is giving Church leaders (the last step is to "bring it before the Church) the authority to handle these difficult situations and to "bind" the one at fault to his sin or to "loose" him from sin. This "binding & loosing" is the authority to make the right decision over this persons life. If they are unrepentant, fellowship is to be broken with them. Sounds pretty harsh, but this is Jesus' way of keeping the peace in the family of God. I've only had to follow this out to it's fullest on one occassion. It was a very trying and difficult struggle that lasted several weeks. Whenever leaders have to do this, we must remember that we are gathered together in Jesus' name over the restoration of this brother (vs 20). Gathering together in Jesus' name speaks of the understanding that we do our best to do what Jesus would in this situation. This teaching is a checkpoint for those who are sinning against other believers. And it is a reminder of the responsibility we have in Christ towards one another. We must respect and guard our relationships by following these instructions. The Church would be a much healthier group of people if we all did this.