Bible Reading for July 24 – Matthew 18:15-20

“Where two or three are gathered in my name, there am I among them.” Jesus’ promise is often cited when Christians gather for worship or prayer to assure us of Christ’s presence. But this passage makes clear that Jesus originally gave this promise for a different situation – that of church discipline.

But why is it important that Christians hold each other accountable for their profession of faith and their promises of obedience to Christ? Because of what we learned yesterday – even after we are saved, the remnants of sin within us continue to twist our hearts and minds. Christians are not always inclined toward righteousness, and we are still easily deceived by sin. As a result, the sad truth is that others can often see our sin more easily than we can.

But that doesn’t mean we need to be in the business of swatting flies with sledgehammers. Verse 15 says that when a sin arises between two Christians it should first be dealt with tactfully, privately. Speaking the truth in love necessarily involves trying to shield other Christians from embarrassment. And let’s face it – such a private conversation also allows any potential misunderstandings to be cleared up. After all, you could be just as wrong about the fact of your brother sinning as you think he is wrong in what he has done.

So what if such a private conversation doesn’t go well? Because of every Christian’s vulnerability to deception, the next step is to gather other witnesses, to gain more points of view. This is why Presbyterians always have more than one ruling elder to help guide each congregation – the more honest, earnest, knowledgeable Christians there are trying to find the truth, the more likely it is that the deceptions of sin will be revealed. Before anyone’s sin is confronted publicly, it should always be dealt with privately by the elders.

But what if things blow up? What if someone is engaging in obvious, scandalous sin and refuses to be corrected by any of his fellow Christians? Verse 17 might give us the initial impression that Jesus is condoning some sort of shunning, and some congregations have practiced this sort of thing in the past. But remember – Jesus ate with tax collectors and sinners. For a Christian to treat people as tax collectors or Gentiles just means to consider them in need of evangelism, not to consider them beyond the possibility of salvation. Just as Jesus never gave up on Gentiles like us, we must never cease to seek reconciliation with those whose sins have separated them from us and from God.

It is into that context, the effort to discover and root out the remnants of sin within ourselves and others that the promise of verse 20 comes. Jesus promises to be with us, to help us see things clearly, to help us make good and righteous decisions, to help us all grow closer together and closer to Him.

So, do you want to make real progress in the Christian life? Seek out the honest advice of another Christian you love and respect. And if someone points out an area of your life that isn’t yet in complete agreement with God’s Word, be willing to listen, to consider that he or she just might have a point. For it is only when we humble ourselves before each other that we can ever truly become the body of Christ.

Matthew 18:15-20 (ESV)

15 “If your brother sins against you, go and tell him his fault, between you and him alone. If he listens to you, you have gained your brother.
16 But if he does not listen, take one or two others along with you, that every charge may be established by the evidence of two or three witnesses.
17 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.
18 Truly, I say to you, whatever you bind on earth shall be bound in heaven, and whatever you loose on earth shall be loosed in heaven.
19 Again I say to you, if two of you agree on earth about anything they ask, it will be done for them by my Father in heaven.
20 For where two or three are gathered in my name, there am I among them.”