COME TOGETHER IN MY NAME

Matthew 18:15-35

Key Verse 18:20

For where two or three come together in my name, there am I with them.

Read verses 15-17. What are we to do if someone sins against us? Why do you think there are so many steps involved for someone who "refuses to listen"?

** See verses 15-17 closely.

** 1) Point: the point of these “steps” or instructions is not to know how to lower others, but to build others up. Verse 15 says, “If he listens to you, you have won your brother over.” So, there are many steps involved because we must aim to “win” our brother over, that is, to reconcile him to Jesus Christ and God the Father, and restore a right fellowship in the church.

2) Care involved: The steps are as private as possible for the sake of the one who “refuses to listen” so that he may have a chance to repent and be restored to God and to the church. Extra care must be taken to build up the other person, not to use the time as an opportunity to expose the sins of others, bring them down, get them kicked out, or start a gossip. 

3) A godly view: It is very difficult to think about how to reconcile and build others up as first priority when we are sinned against. We want to see “justice” or God taking action against those who sin against us or demonstrate that we were right and others wrong. But verse 17 reminds us that this is a church matter. The church is the body of Jesus Christ. So when others sin against us, we must remember that it is not a matter that just involves us, but Jesus Christ directly. So we act on behalf of Jesus Christ for his purpose and the sake of our brothers and all who sin against “us” so that they may be right with Jesus Christ with the utmost care.

>All in all, we need the heart and mind of Jesus Christ to build others up even when others sin against us, for that is what Jesus Christ and God the Father have done for us. Our hearts and motivation must be right. 

Read verses 18-20. What does Jesus teach about the importance of unity in prayer with other believers? Why do you think Jesus emphasizes coming together in his name rather than pursuing serving God on our own?

** Jesus has granted authority to believers for the sake of carrying out his purposes in the church, particularly, his salvation purpose. Verses 19-20 read, “ ¹⁹"Again, I tell you that if two of you on earth agree about anything you ask for, it will be done for you by my Father in heaven. ²⁰For where two or three come together in my name, there am I with them." Especially, the phrase, “there am I with them,” is dependant upon, “where two or three come together in my name.” For us to “come together in [his] name” means that we have to be reconciled to God in Jesus and with each other in Jesus, not just outwardly, but inwardly as well. Verses 18-20 help to put verses 15-17 in perspective and motivates us to reconcile with fellow believers so that Jesus may be with us and answer our prayers. We need Jesus to be with us so that we can have fellowship with him and be used as his body for his salvation purpose on earth. 

** It is for God’s glory when believers have unity in love in Jesus. John 17:23: “I in them and you in me. May they be brought to complete unity to let the world know that you sent me and have loved them even as you have loved me.” As Jesus’ body, we cannot think that the eye can act on its own, or the feet move without the direction from the brain, or that the brain can direct without the transferring assistance of the nerves and spinal cord. And we learn of Jesus who humbled himself to build others up as God’s servants, and who fully obeyed the Father without pursuing his own will. 

Read verses 21-22. What question did Peter have? Why do you think he might have asked this question? Why is it so difficult to forgive? (cf. Gen 4:24) What does Jesus mean by, “not seven times, but seventy-seven times”? Have you ever forgiven someone in the Lord even seven times?

** See verse 21. 

** To come together in Jesus’ name, and to fulfill the necessary steps in verses 15-17, fully requires that we forgive the one(s) who sinned against us sincerely. Obviously, Peter had the idea that seven times was a miraculous number of time to forgive someone. It seems he had a mind to obey Jesus’ instructions, but thought about the great difficult of forgiving others in order to “come together in [Jesus’] name.” 

** Actually, even to forgive one time sincerely seems like a miracle or impossible talk. Yet, Peter asked about seven times. Genesis 4:24 shows sinful man’s natural inclination when sinned against: “If Cain is avenged seven times, then Lamech seventy-seven times.” We hold grudges, we seek vengeance, we want to bring harm to others and get payback, etc. Usually, rather than thinking about a fair “justice” we want to inflict much more harm to the one who sinned against us. But we have to overcome our sinful nature to obey God.

** Jesus responded to Peter, “I tell you, not seven times, but seventy-seven times.” It means to forgive endlessly. Lamech said, “seventy-seven” times in order to bring endless harm. But Jesus says that we are to forgive endlessly. Doesn’t it seem impossible? How can Jesus ask this of us? (He will answer this question with the parable in the following verses.) Yet this is what Jesus’ tells us, so it is not impossible! So, “seventy-seven times” means that we do not keep a record of wrongs against others. When we forgive, we forget their sins. 

Read verses 23-27. What did Jesus compare the kingdom of heaven to? Why did the king forgive the debt of his servant? How does this parable illustrate God’s mercy to all sinners? In what way is sin like a debt?

** See verse 23. 

** Verse 27 says that he “took pity” on him and canceled his debt and let him go. This man’s debt was huge. It was multi-millions of dollars. We must remember that Jesus was speaking to the disciples who made average or less-than-average salaries. To them, Jesus was describing an impossible debt that could not be repaid. Yet, the king in this parable took pity on his servant, canceled the debt and let him go. 

** This parable illustrates God’s mercy and pity to all people, for all are sinners. We have a debt because of our sins that we could not repay even with a lifetime of work. But in his mercy, God took pity on us and forgave our debt and set us free. In fact, he paid the debt himself through his son Jesus, who died on the cross as the payment for our sins. It is wholly undeserved. 

** Sin is “lawlessness” (1 John 3:4), meaning, disobeying God. God created us in his image and likeness and gave us his holy purpose to live for. When we sinned we separated ourselves from our Creator and rebelled against him. God said to Adam in the garden of Eden, “…you will surely die.” And Romans 3:23 says, “the wages of sin is death.” 

Read verses 28-35. What did the servant do when he found a fellow servant that owed him? What did the king do in response? Why? What does this parable teach about how we can forgive others as much Jesus tells us to? (Mat 6:12) What does it mean to forgive “from your heart” (35)? 

** See verses 28-30.

** See verses 32-34.

** See verses 32-33 again. The king expected his servant to show mercy just as he had received mercy freely.

** 1) Remembering God’s mercy of forgiveness to us: On our own or by our own thinking and feelings, it seems impossible. But we must do so just as our Heavenly Father has forgiven us so freely and mercifully. We must not look at the situation from only the level of the human point of view, but from God’s point of view, in view of his mercy to us. Jesus taught us to pray to our Father in heaven, in Matthew 6:23, “Forgive us our debts, as we have also forgiven our debtors.” (Alternatively, Luke 11:4 says, “Forgive us our sins, for we also forgive everyone who sins against us.”) We ask God to forgive our sins, just as forgive everyone who sins against us. God has done it for us and continues to in Jesus, so we should show the same mercy to others without a limit. 

2) Fearing the Lord: “This is how my heavenly Father will treat you…” So we are treated fairly based on our actions after receiving God’s mercy and forgiveness. If we are merciless, we will be treated in the same way. 

** It means in sincerity and in truth, not merely with lip-service or half-hearted or obliged actions. 

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