Living as a community of faith
Rev Richard Apperley
Sermon • Submitted • Presented • 19:00
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Having spent time digging in to the Old Testament and looking at the lives of Jacob, Esau, Joseph and baby Moses, we’re now moving in to exploring the Gospel of Matthew. We’re going to start right at the beginning of chapter 18, which for some reason is not included in the lectionary readings. It’s most likely because it’s full of graphic and shocking imagery, but I do think it’s important we start our journey here because we risk missing something pretty crucial if we gloss over it. Some of Jesus teachings make you feel warm and fuzzy in the love of God. This isn’t one of them. It might be a bit of a hard ride this morning. If you’ve got questions or something you’d like prayer for then I encourage you to talk with one of the clergy or prayer team after the service - I won’t be making space for questions or discussion this morning.
Over the next three weeks we’ll be journeying through a triptych of Matthew 18 - today we’re looking mainly at the way Jesus views the ways we treat each other and the effect our sin has on others, next week Bruce will look at how Jesus tells us to deal with things when we mess up, and in the third week we’ll be looking at the blessing of forgiveness.
Up until this point Jesus has been on a bit of a roadtrip, gathering his disciples, performing miracles, and teaching wherever he went - including the famous Sermon on the Mount. Now his focus shifts slightly, and he begins the slow march towards Jerusalem for the Passover. Briefly now his attention is on the disciples, and is trying again to make them understand this whole new upside-down vision of the world. Let’s dive in, and explore three gut punches that we experience in this passage.
At the start of the passage the disciples ask Jesus THAT question. The question which I can only imagine made Jesus sigh deeply.
At that time the disciples came to Jesus saying, “Who is the greatest in the kingdom of heaven?”
“Who is the greatest in the kingdom of heaven?”. The disciples still haven’t got it, even after all this time on the road with Jesus.
So Jesus takes a child and asks it to stand with him and says “I tell you the truth, unless you turn around and become like little children, you will never enter the kingdom of heaven!”. This is the shocking image Jesus uses in this passage. Become like children? Jesus goes on to say that
Whoever then humbles himself like this little child is the greatest in the kingdom of heaven. And whoever welcomes a child like this in my name welcomes me.
Jesus is talking about far more than us needing to be innocent and hopeful like children. It’s worth reminding ourselves that at the time children, for a variety of reasons, were largely considered worthless. They had no real rights, and could demand nothing. If the parents wanted they could sell their child as a slave. Suddenly, this passage takes on a whole new angle for us - we are being called to be humble like children. Yes. Innocent like children. Also yes. But we are also to cast aside our feelings of entitlement and power, and submit ourselves to the power of Christ.
In these verses Jesus is talking about an actual child - but as we go through he starts to talk about “these little ones”. And here he’s not talking exclusively about children - he’s talking about each and every one of us too. In my imagination I can see the disciples standing in a circle around Jesus and the child - and he begins by pointing at the child next to him - then moves on to point at each of the disciples as his attention shifts.
“But if anyone causes one of these little ones who believe in me to sin, it would be better for him to have a huge millstone hung around his neck and to be drowned in the open sea.
If anyone causes one of these little ones who believe in me to sin, it would be better for him to have a huge millstone hung around his neck and to be drowned in the open sea.
Well, that’s a bit dramatic. But did it catch your attention? That’s what Jesus was intending - to shock his listeners awake to make sure they are REALLY hearing what he is saying. This is Jesus using hyperbole to the extreme. The large millstone he is talking about is one that would have been used to grind grain, but it was so heavy it had to be turned by a donkey. And he’s not talking about someone drowning near the shore - it’s taking them right out into open water, to the deepest part.
And he says that would be the preferable treatment for those who cause others to sin. But the word sin here is a bit of a tricksty word. It can be translated as sin - but it can also be translated as to offend, to cause to stumble, or even to disbelieve. If the way you act or speak causes someone to turn from faith then you are in seriously choppy water. I’m sure every one of us can think of people that have left the church because of they way they have been treated, even if it was somehow well intentioned.
In counterpoint to the Beatitudes (blessed are they who....) Jesus now gives us to woes. Woe to the world because of stumbling blocks. And woe to the person from whom they come. In the middle of this, Jesus says “Occasions for stumbling are bound to come”. In other words, do everything in your power to avoid causing someone else to sin or turn from faith - but in this broken world it is inevitable. Thankfully Jesus does go on to tell us how to act when things go wrong - but you’ll have to wait until next week to hear Bruce unpack this!
Finally - the last of the shocking images. And this is one that we’ve heard and read so often that it risks losing the impact it was designed to have. “If your hand or your foot causes you to stumble, cut it off and throw it away..... and if your eyes causes you to stumble, tear it out and throw it away.” Is Jesus really telling us to self-amputate? Erm, no. At least I don’t think so. My interpretation of this draws from imagery from the book of Proverbs - if you’ve got time this week, have a read through and see what eyes, hands, and feet represent. In short:
Eyes represent the way we see the world and each other
Hands represent what we do and how we treat each other
Feet represent the path we’re on, and the engrained patterns that shape who we’re becoming
In other words, Jesus is calling us to do whatever it takes to address our character flaws. There are unhealthy patterns of behaviour that pass down from generation to generation, or from the way we were treated as children, from experiences in our lives, and even from when the enemy takes hold of our lives. Do whatever it takes to address your character flaws. It’s unbelievably painful to deal with a deep flaw that affects others. But IT IS WORTH it - the stakes are unbelievably high.
I know this is getting heavy. We’re nearly there!
Matthew 18:9 (NRSV)
it is better for you to enter life with one eye than to have two eyes and to be thrown into the hell of fire.
Belinda Carlisle famously sings that (USE CLICKER FOR VIDEO)
Heaven is a place on earth.
Did you know that hell is too?
The word translated as hell here actually refers to a real place - the valley of Gehena. Here’s a photo of it. Pretty idyllic, isn’t it?
It’s one of the two valleys that make Jerusalem so prominent. But throughout the old testament this was a place of deep horror, including of child sacrifices. At the time of Jesus it was viewed as a dark and evil place - and was the local rubbish dump, with fires burning pretty much all of the time. A deeply horrifying place. The disciples would have heard this reference and shuddered in utter horror.
But God is not going to allow evil to flourish. Jesus mission is to get the hell out of earth. To get hell out of you and me.
If we don’t let God heal us than we risk being removed from the city to prevent us from spreading sin. It’s the paradoxical mercy of hell. Do the deep soul work you need to do. Do it for your own sake. Do it for the sake of others.
Finally we see a glimpse of the heartbeat of God.
If someone owns a hundred sheep and one of them goes astray, will he not leave the ninety-nine on the mountains and go look for the one that went astray? … In the same way, your Father in heaven is not willing that one of these little ones be lost.
It’s the one sheep, the one person, that’s been driven off that activates God’s heart. It’s all about that person. God’s heart beats for the lost and hurt.
So. How do we respond to a teaching like this?
Wake up!
Be honest with yourself, and repent.
Work hard to make the changes in your life that you need to make - not just for your sake, but for the sake of others. Don’t be a stumbling block for others.
Some of the patterns in our life might seem impossible to break, they are so engrained in us. But, to quote Tim Mackie:
“It probably does seem impossible that you could change. But it is also very improbable that a crucified Messiah should come out of that tomb as a new creation, and that he should give his own life, presence, and Spirit to his followers to do things that don’t seem possible. So I would challenge your categories of what’s possible.”
We’re going to move on to sharing the peace shortly. And as you do, let the scales fall of your eyes and see just how much Jesus loves each person in this room. If there are things you need to apologise for, do it!
And as we receive Eucharist, remember that the bread and wine are symbols of Jesus’ love and commitment to us, despite how we hurt each other and how screwed up are are. And that’s good news. But it’s good news that should mess with you, that won’t allow you to remain the same, and forces you to change. With Jesus there is always a way forward because of his love and his commitment.
Amen.