Hey everybody! Thank you for joining me in daily Bible reading as we seek to glorify Jesus, know Him more, and interpret the truth of His Word.
If this is your first time going through the Bible, I am incredibly excited to have you here. If this is your 5000th time, I am humbled that you are here and hope you grow in your relationship with Jesus along with me. May we all seek to know Him more and apply what we learn to further our mission of spreading the gospel. If you missed a day and want to catch up, visit the archives page HERE! But there is no shame if you start today! Day 207, Matthew 18:15 — Church Discipline & Accountability Matthew 18:15 (NASB1995) “If your brother sins, go and show him his fault in private; if he listens to you, you have won your brother.” Historical Context Jesus has been teaching His disciples about the seriousness of sin and how to avoid it. He has also warned about becoming stumbling blocks for other believers and not despising or rejecting those weaker in the faith. Discussion Yesterday, we read about how God cares deeply for every one of His children and will reconcile those who go astray. Jesus uses an image of a shepherd with one hundred sheep to show this, as He compares God to this shepherd who goes completely out of his way to save a single lost sheep that goes astray. Likewise, the LORD loves all of His sons and daughters and would do everything in His power to bring one who strays back to Him. God’s love, mercy, and grace extend beyond our comprehension as He seeks to turn our hearts back to Him. Jesus also adds that the Father wishes for no one person to perish in their sin. He desires all people to come to saving faith, even those who reject Him or fall away from Him. No one should consider themselves too lost or too far gone. While we still draw breath, we have the gift of repentance to turn away from sin and turn back to God. Today, we start a passage about church discipline and accountability and learn how to respond to a brother or sister falling into unrepentant sin. Jesus says, “If your brother sins, go and show him his fault in private.” The entire context of chapter 18 so far has been about how to avoid sin and warns about not becoming a stumbling block that leads a brother or sister in Christ into sin. Now, Jesus explains the protocol for if a brother or sister stumbles into sin with no signs of repentance. O’Donnell clarifies that “Matthew‘s topic is sin for which there has been no repentance.”[1] Furthermore, “a brother or sister who sins is equivalent to a ‘little one’ who has been caused to stumble (v. 6), or a ‘little one’ likened to a sheep that has been led astray (vv. 10-14).”[2] In either situation, the brother or sister needs to be brought back to Christ. Many of our first responses to finding a brother in sin is to overreact and gossip about the situation, but this is not what Jesus commands us to do. In ancient Jewish culture, people actually considered publicly shaming someone unnecessarily as sinful, and Jewish teachers emphasized the importance of receiving correction and reproof in private.[3] Jesus further supports this idea by telling us to go to the person and discuss their sin with them in private. Through this direct, private conversation rooted in love and compassion for the stumbling brother, we can help them acknowledge their sin and turn back to Christ. Notably, some translations will say “if a brother sins against you” but the latter two words do not appear in most early manuscripts. Regardless, the protocol should remain the same. We should reach out to the person and seek to draw them to the truth and repentance. This first step might be uncomfortable, but it is vitally necessary to bring a brother to repentance so they do not fall further into sin or apostasy. Many times, a loving rebuke and correction will lead a brother to repentance as they acknowledge their sin and seek reconciliation. Jesus adds, “If he listens to you, you have won your brother.” Praise God! Humbly approaching a brother in love works far better than a stern rebuke. Sometimes one must be more stern and direct with a person depending on the situation, so one will need discernment to navigate the discussion. However, seeking to correct in love and humility without shaming or belittling them is a great first step to restoring them to Christ. “The privacy of the initiative protects the dignity of the person, even at the point of serious sin. The matter is to be dealt with at the lowest possible effective level and the circle of knowledge restricted as much as possible.”[4] We will discuss what to do if a brother or sister rejects our correction and continues in sin tomorrow. Application This is such an applicable verse and one that might lead many to correct their ways of calling out sin in a brother or sister. When we fall into sin and error, many of us need to humbly accept correction and reproof when necessary. For the person who has stumbled, it is easy to reject correction because of pride or arrogance in the person seeking to correct it. But a rebuke approached in love and humility will often lead to the stumbled brother listening and discussing their error with you—which will lead to repentance. Of course, many times a person might not believe they are in sin, which is why a loving and humble approach is always necessary. What if the issue is preferential? Drinking comes to mind here. Many believe drinking is totally fine and they would be right. But what about someone who needs to drink and relies on it to give them peace and calm? What about if they continually drink too much and become tipsy or drunk each time? In this case, it is no longer preferential, as we are dealing with a sin issue. Still, we do not recklessly call out a person publicly or approach them aggressively. We must come to them in private and seek to draw them to repentance with love and humility. Only then will we successfully bring them back to the truth of Christ and holy living without drawing more attention to their stumbling. May we praise, worship, honor, and glorify Jesus every day in all that we do while continually pursuing righteousness, holiness, and forgiveness as He forgave us. Looking Ahead Thank you for joining today’s daily Bible reading! Next, we read Matthew 18:16. I hope you join me! I have made commenting available, so please feel free to discuss the reading and ask questions. If you do not want to discuss publicly, you can reach out to me privately. We are on this journey together. References [1] Doug O’Donnell, “New International Greek Testament Commentary.” [2] Ibid. [3] Craig Keener, “IVP Bible Background Commentary: New Testament, Second Edition.” [4] O’Donnell, “New International Greek Testament Commentary.”
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