Matthew 19:1-9 Marriage and Divorce

...Some Pharisees came to Jesus, testing Him and asking, "Is it lawful for a man to divorce his wife for any reason at all?" And He answered and said, "Have you not read that He who created them from the beginning made them male and female, and said, 'For this reason a man shall leave his father and mother and be joined to his wife, and the two shall become one flesh'? So they are no longer two, but one flesh. What therefore God has joined together, let no man separate."  They said to Him, "Why then did Moses command to give her a certificate of divorce and send  her  away ?" He said to them, "Because of your hardness of heart Moses permitted you to divorce your wives; but from the beginning it has not been this way.  And I say to you, whoever divorces his wife, except for immorality, and marries another woman commits adultery." [Matthew 19:1‭-‬9 NASB]

 There are a lot of people in this world who wish this passage didn't exist.

First, you've got the gender benders. Some people have this notion that they can choose their gender based on how they feel. They even say that they can choose to be neither male nor female, but something entirely different.

Now those who are in the world, that is, the non-Christians who are actually children of the devil, can repeat his lies all they like, and it doesn't affect me. I confess that I sometimes shake my head in wonder, but beyond that, I just let sinners do what they do.

But when they try to bring it into the church, that's another matter entirely. Those who claim to speak in Jesus' name, then insult the Spirit of God with their words and actions will be held accountable before God. In the mean time, I will not hear them, nor will I fellowship with them in any way, except to tell them the truth of Scripture.

And the truth is that Jesus said that God made us male or female, and that a man is to marry a woman. You may argue against God, but you will lose.

Then you have the many Christians who are divorced and remarried. Jesus said that they are living in adultery. Is there room for grace? Of course!

Adultery is sin. But we are told, "If we confess our sins, He is faithful and righteous to forgive us our sins and to cleanse us from all unrighteousness." [1 John 1:9 NASB]

So If you've been divorced and remarried, then learn that what you have done is adultery in God's eyes, confess your sin of adultery and receive His forgiveness.

But what about those who know the word of God, and defiantly enter into an adulterous life. I have known those who, in their defiance, refuse to accept Jesus' words. "I don't care." they say, "I'm going to remarry." They might as well say, "I am going to steal" or "I am going to fornicate" or "I am going worship and idol". Is there still room for forgiveness? Yes, but they must humble themselves and confess their sins. This can be a hard thing to do. Again, I have known Christians who are divorced and remarried who remain firm in their defiance, declaring that they have done nothing wrong.

So what will happen if you refuse to confess your sins? The sin remains. How will God judge you? Will He say, "You've confessed my name, so your sin is forgiven"? 

Or will you be one of those of whom He says, "Not everyone who says to Me, 'Lord, Lord,' will enter the kingdom of heaven, but he who does the will of My Father who is in heaven will enter.  Many will say to Me on that day, 'Lord, Lord, did we not prophesy in Your name, and in Your name cast out demons, and in Your name perform many miracles?'  And then I will declare to them, 'I never knew you; depart from me, you who practice lawlessness .' [Matthew 7:21‭-‬23 NASB]

If you find yourself in this situation - divorced and remarried - then I recommend that you swallow your pride, and confess your sin of adultery to the Lord, and receive His forgiveness.

Don't think that this is a "get out of jail free" card. That you can do anything you want as long as you confess it. Remember, God knows your heart, whether you are truly penitent or not. He will judge us all based on our motivations, as much as by our actions.

Matthew 18:21-35 Forgiveness

Then Peter came and said to Him, "Lord, how often shall my brother sin against me and I forgive him? Up to seven times?" Jesus said to him, "I do not say to you, up to seven times, but up to seventy times seven.   "For this reason the kingdom of heaven may be compared to a king who wished to settle accounts with his slaves.  When he had begun to settle them, one who owed him ten thousand talents was brought to him.  But since he did not have the means to repay, his Lord commanded him to be sold, along with his wife and children and all that he had, and repayment to be made.  So the slave fell to the ground and prostrated himself before him, saying, 'Have patience with me and I will repay you everything.'  And the Lord of that slave felt compassion and released him and forgave him the debt.  But that slave went out and found one of his fellow slaves who owed him a hundred denarii; and he seized him and began to choke him, saying, 'Pay back what you owe.'  So his fellow slave fell to the ground and began to plead with him, saying, 'Have patience with me and I will repay you.'  But he was unwilling and went and threw him in prison until he should pay back what was owed.  So when his fellow slaves saw what had happened, they were deeply grieved and came and reported to their Lord all that had happened.  Then summoning him, his Lord said to him, 'You wicked slave, I forgave you all that debt because you pleaded with me.  Should you not also have had mercy on your fellow slave, in the same way that I had mercy on you?'  And his Lord, moved with anger, handed him over to the torturers until he should repay all that was owed him.  My heavenly Father will also do the same to you, if each of you does not forgive his brother from your heart." [Matthew 18:21‭-‬35 NASB]

The point of Jesus's words, "seventy time seven" isn't to keep score and stop forgiving at the 491st offence, but to say, "As many times as your brother sins against you, forgive him." He then tells a parable to illustrate forgiveness in the kingdom of God.

For a little perspective, the first slave owed 10,000 talents. One talent was worth about 15 years wages for a laborer. In other words, this was a debt that could never be repaid. But his Lord forgave him that debt. The second slave owed one hundred denarii. One denarius was worth about a days wages.

The meaning is clear. Because of our sin, we owe a debt that we can never repay. There are not enough good works in the world to cancel out the debt that we owe.

Yet God sent His Son in the flesh to die on the cross, shedding His blood as the one and only pure and true sacrifice to pay off our debt. If only we believe in Him, our debt is forgiven.

In comparison to the debt that God has forgiven us, there is no debt that a brother can owe that compares. It's like comparing the 150,000 years of wages that we owe God to the 100 days wages that we are owed.

Since God has forgiven us, we are compelled to forgive one another.

What happens if we refuse to forgive? Jesus said, "For if you forgive others for their transgressions, your heavenly Father will also forgive you. But if you do not forgive others, then your Father will not forgive your transgressions." [Matthew 6:14-15 NASB]

Paul tells us, "be angry , and  yet  do not sin ; do not let the sun go down on your anger, and do not give the devil an opportunity." [Ephesians 4:26‭-‬27 NASB] First, let's put away the notion that he's commanding us to get angry. I have actually heard people justify their temper with this verse. He is simply recognizing that in our humanity, we will sometimes feel anger. When that happens, don't let it lead to sin - forgive one another so that the anger is stopped in its tracks. 

He says, "Let all bitterness and wrath and anger and clamor and slander be put away from you, along with all malice. Be kind to one another, tender-hearted, forgiving each other, just as God in Christ also has forgiven you." [Ephesians 4:31-32 NASB]

Matthew 18:15-20 Church Discipline

"If your brother sins , go and show him his fault in private; if he listens to you, you have won your brother.  But if he does not listen to you, take one or two more with you, so that by the mouth of two or  three witnesses every  fact may be confirmed .  If he refuses to listen to them, tell it to the church; and if he refuses to listen even to the church, let him be to you as a Gentile and a tax collector.  Truly I say to you, whatever you bind on earth shall have been bound in heaven; and whatever you loose on earth shall have been loosed in heaven.   "Again I say to you, that if two of you agree on earth about anything that they may ask, it shall be done for them by My Father who is in heaven.  For where two or three have gathered together in My name, I am there in their midst." [Matthew 18:15‭-‬20 NASB]

Jesus is continuing His line of thought. First, he tells of the dire consequences for those who cause one of Jesus' followers to stumble. "It would be better for him to have a heavy millstone hung around his neck, and to be drowned in the depth of the sea." [Matthew 18:6 NASB] Then He tells of God's reaction to one who stumbles. "What do you think? If any man has a hundred sheep, and one of them has gone astray, does he not leave the ninety-nine on the mountains and go and search for the one that is straying?" [Matthew 18:12 NASB] Now He is describing what our reaction should be to one who has stumbled.

The correction of a brother who sins must be an act of compassion, not of judgmentalism. Jesus has already told us, "Do not judge so that you will not be judged." [Matthew 7:1 NASB]

We are not to judge another, but at the same time we are not to tolerate blatant sin in the church. When I talk about sin in the church, I am talking about Biblical definitions of sin, and not some legalistic church doctrine relating to hair length, or clothing style, or any such thing.

The Bible describes such things, "Now the deeds of the flesh are evident, which are: immorality, impurity, sensuality, idolatry, sorcery, enmities, strife, jealousy, outbursts of anger, disputes, dissensions, factions, envying, drunkenness, carousing, and things like these, of which I forewarn you, just as I have forewarned you, that those who practice such things will not inherit the kingdom of God." [Galatians 5:19-21 NASB]

If you are aware of a fellow Christian in your fellowship who is engaging in these sinful behaviors, go to him privately, in the Spirit, and in love. Jesus said, "if he listens to you, you have won your brother."

If he refuses to heed what you say, go back to him a second time, but take someone with you. Perhaps he will listen to two or three people when he failed to only one.

If he remains defiant, then you must stop having fellowship with him until he repents. Religion has turned this process into an ecclesiastical ordeal involving excommunication, or calling for the elders to pass down their judgment. Remember, the word that Jesus uses for church, ekklesia, simply means gathering, and originally had no religious use at all. (In such a highly religious society, that is significant.) He is not calling for the Sanhedrin to rule, but for those believers who are in fellowship with the man to agree together step away.

The church in Corinth faced a situation where a man was engaging in sexual immorality. Paul chastised the church for their arrogance because they did not remove him from their fellowship. He told them, "I wrote to you not to associate with any so-called brother if he is an immoral person, or covetous, or an idolater, or a reviler, or a drunkard, or a swindler—not even to eat with such a one." [1 Corinthians 5:11 NASB]

This does not mean that he is written off forever as lost cause. On the contrary, when he has seen his error and returns, he should be accepted back into fellowship. Paul said, "Sufficient for such a one is this punishment which was inflicted by the majority, so that on the contrary you should rather forgive and comfort him, otherwise such a one might be overwhelmed by excessive sorrow. Wherefore I urge you to reaffirm your love for him." [2 Corinthians 2:6-8 NASB]

The heart of discipline isn't punishment for the sake of vengeance. It is for compassion that those who have stumbled and lost their way may find their way back again. 

Let us rejoice with the Shepherd when the one lost sheep has been returned to the fold.

Matthew 18:12-14 What If I Stumble?

"What do you think? If any man has a hundred sheep, and one of them has gone astray, does he not leave the ninety-nine on the mountains and go and search for the one that is straying?  If it turns out that he finds it, truly I say to you, he rejoices over it more than over the ninety-nine which have not gone astray.  So it is not the will of your Father who is in heaven that one of these little ones perish. [Matthew 18:12‭-‬14 NASB]

Jesus is continuing His thoughts from the previous verses. The "little one" He refers to are His disciples, that is, those who have humbled themselves and become the children of God.

Jesus told us the consequences of causing a Christian to stumble. Here He tells us about the one who stumbles.

First, Jesus calls us His "little ones", and now He compares us to sheep. He, of course, is the shepherd. Jesus does what any good shepherd does when one of sheep goes astray. He seeks us out, not to punish, but to bring us back into the fold.

This is where religion so often fails us. We have this image of God, sitting on a throne with a lightning bolt in His hand waiting to punish anyone who sins. Sorry, but that is an image of Zeus from Greek mythology. This is idolatry.

God is not an angry Father, waiting with a belt in His hand, ready to whip you because you missed curfew.

God is not a judge, sitting behind the bench with a pair of scales in His hands saying, "You've sinned this much, so I require this much penance from you."

The truth is, we sin. And there is a penalty for that sin. But in dying on the cross, Jesus sacrificed Himself and paid the penalty for all of our sins.

Most of us are already aware that salvation is a gift from God. "for all have sinned and fall short of the glory of God, being justified as a gift by His grace through the redemption which is in Christ Jesus;" [Romans 3:23-24 NASB] and "For by grace you have been saved through faith; and that not of yourselves, it is the gift of God; not as a result of works, so that no one may boast." [Ephesians 2:8-9 NASB]

It's not just the initial salvation that is by grace. The ongoing work of sanctification (becoming holy) is also by grace. Paul gives us an image of the sanctifying work of the Spirit, "But we all, with unveiled face, beholding as in a mirror the glory of the Lord, are being transformed into the same image from glory to glory, just as from the Lord, the Spirit." [2 Corinthians 3:18 NASB] 

This also is by grace, and not by any works that we do. "This is the only thing I want to find out from you: did you receive the Spirit by the works of the Law, or by hearing with faith? Are you so foolish? Having begun by the Spirit, are you now being perfected by the flesh?" [Galatians 3:2-3 NASB]

God knows that sanctification is a process, and that we will sometimes stumble and sin. His forgiveness extends, not only to salvation, but also to sanctification. "For we do not have a high priest who cannot sympathize with our weaknesses, but One who has been tempted in all things as we are, yet without sin. Therefore let us draw near with confidence to the throne of grace, so that we may receive mercy and find grace to help in time of need." [Hebrews 4:15-16 NASB]

Matthew 18:6-10 Stumbling Blocks

...Whoever causes one of these little ones who believe in Me to stumble, it would be better for him to have a heavy millstone hung around his neck, and to be drowned in the depth of the sea. "Woe to the world because of its stumbling blocks! For it is inevitable that stumbling blocks come; but woe to that man through whom the stumbling block comes!  "If your hand or your foot causes you to stumble, cut it off and throw it from you; it is better for you to enter life crippled or lame, than to have two hands or two feet and be cast into the eternal fire.  If your eye causes you to stumble, pluck it out and throw it from you. It is better for you to enter life with one eye, than to have two eyes and be cast into the fiery hell.   "See that you do not despise one of these little ones, for I say to you that their angels in heaven continually see the face of My Father who is in heaven. [Matthew 18:6-‬10 NASB]

The little ones Jesus refers to are not only children, but all those who will call themselves a child of God the Father.

I've seen a pattern repeated over and over. When a person first receives Jesus as Savior, his enthusiasm is great, but his faith, being newly formed, is weak. This is a vulnerable time for a Christian, when the seed of God's words hasn't had time to take root.

They are easily led astray into false doctrine, worldly activities, or even away from the faith. The world works very hard to promote evil, and will love to see a Christian stumble. We have to deal with anti-Christian bias in the news, ungodly teaching in the classrooms, pornography on the internet (what would have passed for pornography 50 years ago is broadcast on primetime network television). Then there are the attacks from "friends", family and co-workers who don't understand our faith, and so they try to tear it down.

Then you have our fellow Christians (as if the world is not enough). If someone doesn't believe just what we believe, then they must be wrong. Years ago, a co-worker who I knew to be a Christian came up to me and asked, "Do you believe in healing?" I answered him, "Yes." His face turned red, and his expression contorted into rage. He said, "Healing is of the Devil! Anyone who believes in healing is going to hell!" I asked him to show me where in the Bible it said that, and he stormed off, never to speak to me again. Had I not been firmly grounded in the word of God, and firm in my faith, that might have made me question God. Instead I simply felt sad for the man.

There are many ways in which we can cause a weaker brother to stumble. As Christians, we have tremendous freedom in Christ. We are not under any law, nor any man-made rules. Instead we are led by the Holy Spirit, and follow the law that He writes on our hearts. If we are led by the Spirit, He will lead us into greater righteousness than we can ever imagine by following any set of rules.

But with this freedom comes responsibility. Don't focus so much on your freedom that you lose sight of the Holy Spirit who gives you that freedom. Peter said, "Act as free men, and do not use your freedom as a covering for evil, but use it as bondslaves of God." [1 Peter 2:16 NASB] We are not slaves to the world, nor slaves to the law, but we are bonded to God, and pledged to obey Him.

Paul said, "But take care that this liberty of yours does not somehow become a stumbling block to the weak." [1 Corinthians 8:9 NASB] Paul used the example of meat. It was the practice at the time to make sacrifice to an idol, then sell the meat in the meat market. The moral debate at the time was whether a Christian should eat meat that had been sacrificed to an idol. Paul said that it was a matter of conscience and faith. He said, "For if someone sees you, who have knowledge, dining in an idol’s temple, will not his conscience, if he is weak, be strengthened to eat things sacrificed to idols? For through your knowledge he who is weak is ruined, the brother for whose sake Christ died. And so, by sinning against the brethren and wounding their conscience when it is weak, you sin against Christ." [1 Corinthians 8:10-12 NASB]

This applies to any behavior that causes a brother to stumble; drinking alcohol, watching Stephen King movies, listening to non-Christian music, etc. We're caught up in a paradox. We're called to freedom, but we must not allow our freedom to cause another to stumble. Paul concluded, "Therefore, if food causes my brother to stumble, I will never eat meat again, so that I will not cause my brother to stumble." [1 Corinthians 8:13 NASB]

So here's what I do. I am free in Christ, so I will not allow any person or church tell me what I must do, or what I cannot do. But if I am with someone whom I know to be weak in an area, I will abstain while I am with that person. This is not done out of compulsion, or because of law, but out of love. I will do whatever I can to help that person grow in the faith, so that they too will learn to walk in freedom.

I urge you to follow me in the example of love.

Matthew 18:1-6 True Humility

At that time the disciples came to Jesus and said, "Who then is greatest in the kingdom of heaven?" And He called a child to Himself and set him before them, and said, "Truly I say to you, unless you are converted and become like children, you will not enter the kingdom of heaven.  Whoever then humbles himself as this child, he is the greatest in the kingdom of heaven.  And whoever receives one such child in My name receives Me;  but whoever causes one of these little ones who believe in Me to stumble, it would be better for him to have a heavy millstone hung around his neck, and to be drowned in the depth of the sea. [Matthew 18:1‭-‬6 NASB]

People in this world strive for greatness, and the church is not exempt. I have heard pastors boasting about the size of their church, or the breadth of their outreach in such terms that they are saying, in other words, "see how great I am in the kingdom of Heaven."

Here's the truth. The pastor of a megachurch will receive no greater rewards than the person who stays at home and faithfully prays each day. In fact, I will go so far as to say that the mega-pastor is at greater risk of losing his reward if he enjoys the accolades of the crowds, or if he allows pride to enter into his heart.

This hearkens back to Jesus' teaching in the sermon on the mount, "Blessed are the poor in spirit, for theirs is the kingdom of heaven." [Matthew 5:3 NASB] Jesus isn't telling us to be childish, nor to act like children in every way, but is pointing out the humility of a child. Don't throw a tantrum and excuse yourself by saying, "I'm just being child-like." Jesus told his disciples, "Behold, I send you out as sheep in the midst of wolves. Therefore be wise as serpents and harmless as doves." [Matthew 10:16 NKJV]

Don't fall into the trap of affecting false humility. And don't equate shyness with humility. Shyness is often just a manifestation of fear.

There was no more humble man than Jesus. So let's follow His example.

Paul said, "Have this attitude in yourselves which was also in Christ Jesus, who, although He existed in the form of God, did not regard equality with God a thing to be grasped, but emptied Himself, taking the form of a bond-servant, and being made in the likeness of men. Being found in appearance as a man, He humbled Himself by becoming obedient to the point of death, even death on a cross." [Philippians 2:5-8 NASB]

Jesus said, "When you are invited by someone to a wedding feast, do not take the place of honor, for someone more distinguished than you may have been invited by him, and he who invited you both will come and say to you, ‘Give your place to this man,’ and then in disgrace you proceed to occupy the last place. “But when you are invited, go and recline at the last place, so that when the one who has invited you comes, he may say to you, ‘Friend, move up higher’; then you will have honor in the sight of all who are at the table with you. “For everyone who exalts himself will be humbled, and he who humbles himself will be exalted.”" [Luke 14:8-11 NASB]

True humility isn't shuffling your toe and saying "Aw shucks" when you receive a compliment. Nor is it self abasement. It is putting others first. Paul said it this way, "Do nothing from selfishness or empty conceit, but with humility of mind regard one another as more important than yourselves;" [Philippians 2:3 NASB]

If we all regard one another as more important than we are, then we will be lifted up as we serve one another.

Matthew 17:24-27 The Temple Tax

When they came to Capernaum, those who collected the two-drachma tax came to Peter and said, "Does your teacher not pay the two-drachma tax?" He said, "Yes." And when he came into the house, Jesus spoke to him first, saying, "What do you think, Simon? From whom do the kings of the earth collect customs or poll-tax, from their sons or from strangers?"  When Peter said, "From strangers," Jesus said to him, "Then the sons are exempt.  However, so that we do not offend them, go to the sea and throw in a hook, and take the first fish that comes up; and when you open its mouth, you will find a shekel. Take that and give it to them for you and Me." [Matthew 17:24‭-‬27 NASB]

The two-drachma tax was not a Roman tax, but temple tax given for the support of the temple in Jerusalem. The origin of the tax is found in the Law of Moses:

"“When you take a census of the sons of Israel to number them, then each one of them shall give a ransom for himself to the LORD, when you number them, so that there will be no plague among them when you number them. “This is what everyone who is numbered shall give: half a shekel according to the shekel of the sanctuary (the shekel is twenty gerahs), half a shekel as a contribution to the LORD. “Everyone who is numbered, from twenty years old and over, shall give the contribution to the LORD. “The rich shall not pay more and the poor shall not pay less than the half shekel, when you give the contribution to the LORD to make atonement for yourselves. “You shall take the atonement money from the sons of Israel and shall give it for the service of the tent of meeting, that it may be a memorial for the sons of Israel before the LORD, to make atonement for yourselves.”" [Exodus 30:12-16 NASB]

Over the centuries, the payment of the tax became lax, and a matter of some controversy. Most Israelites paid the annual fee. The Sadducees objected to the fee, and didn't pay it. The Qumran community paid it only once in their lifetime. The priests and temple workers were exempt from the tax. And, of course, there were the tax dodgers who simply wanted to hold on to their money.

Those who collected the temple tax were not the despised tax collectors who colluded with Rome, but worked for the temple. They weren't the religious leaders, out to discredit Jesus, and assert their own power.

Chances are, their question to Peter, "Does your teacher not pay the two-drachma tax?" was an honest inquiry. Especially with Jesus' growing reputation throughout Galilee as a prophet and worker of miracle, and the speculation that He might be the Messiah, or at least the forerunner; it would have been reasonable - even expected - for Jesus to claim exemption from the tax.

Peter oversteps when he answers them. Jesus gave Peter a mild rebuke by reminding him that as the Son of God, He is not required to pay a tax to His Father's house. However, Since Peter already gave his answer, Jesus did not want to offend them by contradicting Peter in public.

This is noteworthy because Jesus had no trouble offending the Sadducees and the Pharisees. The difference is in the attitude of those asking. He called out the religious leaders for their hypocrisy, but he honored these honest temple workers, who were simply following the Law of Moses.

His solution is also noteworthy. Why get money from the mouth of a fish? I believe it was an object lesson to Peter. Jesus and His disciples carried a bag of money for their provisions and to help the poor. By refusing to take money from the bag, Jesus is not taking anything from Himself or His disciples. By using this divine provision, He is - in effect - taking from the Father to give back to the Father. Which is no tax at all.

Most of us in western culture tend to have a strong sense of personal freedom, and don't hesitate to exert our individual rights. Many of us will not hesitate to offend others in order to stand up for what we believe. But we should be cautious, and know when it is okay to offend, and when it is not.

Jesus had no trouble offending the hypocrites. Paul risked offending Peter. "But when Cephas came to Antioch, I opposed him to his face, because he stood condemned. For prior to the coming of certain men from James, he used to eat with the Gentiles; but when they came, he began to withdraw and hold himself aloof, fearing the party of the circumcision. The rest of the Jews joined him in hypocrisy, with the result that even Barnabas was carried away by their hypocrisy. But when I saw that they were not straightforward about the truth of the gospel, I said to Cephas in the presence of all, “If you, being a Jew, live like the Gentiles and not like the Jews, how is it that you compel the Gentiles to live like Jews?" [Galatians 2:11-14 NASB]

But Paul also said, "Therefore let us not judge one another anymore, but rather determine this—not to put an obstacle or a stumbling block in a brother’s way. I know and am convinced in the Lord Jesus that nothing is unclean in itself; but to him who thinks anything to be unclean, to him it is unclean. For if because of food your brother is hurt, you are no longer walking according to love. Do not destroy with your food him for whom Christ died." [Romans 14:13-15 NASB]

So we are to oppose hypocrisy while bearing with one another's weaknesses. Before speaking or acting, ask yourself, "Am I speaking or acting in love?"