Gospel of Matthew, chapters 18 & 19

In these chapters we continue to see the “belonging vs. believing” value found in Matthew. The instructions from Jesus in this section are less about “the right thing to believe” and more about how to live well together with people who belong to God (whether or not you think they belong to you!), including children (who appear twice in these chapters) and the most vulnerable/least powerful. 


Image: "Let the Children Come to Me" by Vicki Schuck.

The last half of chapter 19 is hard for us to read. Are we rich, or not? Does Jesus intend this literally, that we sell all that we have to follow him? Can we own things and still be faithful?  Rabbinic law commands social support for the poor, but not impoverishing oneself to do so, thus creating more poverty to be supported. Is it a test, to see how far we’re willing to go to follow Jesus? Perhaps Jesus recognizes the importance of money in our brains and hearts, how much space it takes up as we think about it and try to get more. Jesus continues to be extreme in his pronouncements, maybe hoping we’ll come back to center if we take his words to heart. This does NOT mean, however, that Jesus hates rich people. There is something about belonging together that creates balance, so this might be about creating space for everyone to belong, being willing to shuffle around the resources so there’s enough (there IS enough) for everyone to live well.                           


The disciples, Peter, and the rich young man are all concerned about getting the reward of being with God in the kingdom of heaven, if they do the right thing. Again, Jesus points them to being rather than doing– inhabiting the world according to Torah, being that person, is belonging in the kingdom of God. 


Background: Jesus’ answer to Peter’s question in 18:21-22 takes us all the way back to Genesis 4, when God promises to protect Cain from vengeance for his brother Abel’s death, and this is later applied to his descendent Lamech (Gen. 4: 15, 23-23). The debt in this parable probably refers to sin, rather than financial debt; Jesus’s teaching about forgiveness are characteristically more strict than prescribed in Torah. 


The disciplinary process in 18:15-20 is part of our constitution, and the official way we are to deal with conflict in the church. It isn’t perfect– it isn’t safe to send someone alone to confront an abuser, for example– but it’s the way we as church are supposed to handle conflict, rather than leaving, suing, or defaming someone. 


Key Themes: 

  • Belonging in community with God’s beloveds takes on a particular and noticeable shape.

  • God does have expectations for how we live together. 


Questions: 

  • Who are the vulnerable among us, on campus or in the community, maybe even in the congregation? Are there things we do or don’t do that might be considered “stumbling blocks” to them? How might we best deal with our own stumbling blocks? 

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