Guarding the Church with our Life
Matthew • Sermon • Submitted
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· 4 viewsHow the church should guard the beleivers with their life.
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Guarding the church with our Life - Matthew 18:10-14
Been about a month since the last time we preached in Matthew 18 so I want to recap for you what the beginning of this chapter looked like
-Disciples ask who is the greatest in the kingdom
-Could be because Peter had his taxes paid by Jesus but it could just be that they were conceited
-later in Matthew 20- James and and Johns mother come asking for them to be first in the Kingdom
Instead of directly answering the question-Jesus tells them how to get in the kingdom and uses a child to illustrate it
-Completely dependent- completely depraved
-Obedience- to Gods word
-Humbly serving- Jesus set the example for us to follow in his foot steps
You wanna be great- do this- then you won’t be so concerned about who is the greatest anymore
5-9 Jesus warns his disciples of the danger of causing a “little one” or new believer
to sin
5- Reminds the church that we are the ambassador of Christ and as people genuinely repent and follow Jesus- as the church allows them fellowship we are acting on behalf of Christ
6- If that be the case- the conduct of faithful Christians should be above reproach
-Church, lets ask ourselves- would our converations or actions over the last month cause someone to think less of Jesus because of how your acted or responded
-Jesus places a heavy weight on this- its better to tie millstone around your neck and take a swim than to cause a new believer or any believer to stumble
-Again Jesus is not condemning suicide but just as heartbreaking and severe that action is, so is it when we cause other brothers to sin
7-9
-Jesus continues giving a strong rebuke of sin
-Cutting of hands and pulling out eyes is rather gruesome but it paints the picture of severity of sin
-If we as believers would view our sin as severely as God does- or as severely as we do when some sins or just does something we don’t like
-People get red faced with you over nothing sometimes because they didn’t get their way
-the sad part is when its the “Christians” acting this way- Church softball game
-Multiply that anger infinitely but remove the sinfulness and we may get a glimpse at how horrendous sin is to God
-hence why hell exist- sin against an eternally holy God deserves eternal punishment
“See that you do not despise one of these little ones. For I tell you that in heaven their angels always see the face of my Father who is in heaven.
So as we move on to verse 10- Jesus continues his concern for the infantile in faith
Jesus continues on about the importance of protecting young in the faith
He connects the idea of despising new or infantile believers when our lives look like what he described in the previous verses
-the church should be more so concerned not only with just our own sin but more so how it affects others
-When Christians live half hearted lives, making our lives a stumbling block to others- Jesus says you hate them
When have we viewed our lives to be doing the same thing spiritually to our children and others in the church who are spiritually infantile and need the guidance and protection of Godly people
Kingdom greatness isnt found in getting my way- Its found in surrender to Jesus and caring for others as Christ sees them
The second part affirms this importance to be of heavenly concern
For I tell you that in heaven their angels always see the face of my Father who is in heaven.
Lets nail down what it is not first
-This verse does not mean we have individual guardian angels
-This verse also reminds us once again that angels are not previously dead human beings
-They are messengers of God, who were created by God
-Humans do not turn into angels in heaven- humans are given a glorified body at the Second Coming of Jesus
-So souls await the Second coming in heaven for believers and Hades for unbelievers-
-Angels have always been doing the work of God and minister Gods people
Then Elisha prayed and said, “O Lord, please open his eyes that he may see.” So the Lord opened the eyes of the young man, and he saw, and behold, the mountain was full of horses and chariots of fire all around Elisha.
For he will command his angels concerning you
to guard you in all your ways.
On their hands they will bear you up,
lest you strike your foot against a stone.
The poor man died and was carried by the angels to Abraham’s side. The rich man also died and was buried,
Do you think that I cannot appeal to my Father, and he will at once send me more than twelve legions of angels?
Danny Akin says Matt 18:10 - Jesus is simply saying that there are angels in heaven, in the very presence of God, ready to act on behalf of those who believe
IF this the pattern in heaven, should this not be the pattern of the church
-To disciple the new in faith and push them onward to Jesus
But also for the church needs to start pulling the planks of sin our of our eyes, live Godly lives and there by protect the infantile believers by setting the examples of them of how to follow Jesus
Example: Music- I have a struggle with listening to people sing worship music or hymns when just before that at their concert, there singing its a quarter after one, im drunk and i need you now- they aint talking about God
Its hard to reconcile lets sing “How great is our God” on stage and then just before that you have done nothing but sing about drinking and women
Clear example- thats not protecting the little ones- thats hating them
Man says well shoot, Im good the way I was-
Just like spoke Wednesday night, there is a level of Christianese that is being spit all over the world and at times from the church that is absolutely unbiblically
Example: Cheap Cereal- not good my wife hears me say this, but there is difference between Fruit Loops and fruity o’s or Cinnamon toast Crunch and cinnamon squares
Its just not the same- not a suitable substitute
For the church there is no suitable substitute for biblical truth and Christlike living
I appeal to you therefore, brothers, by the mercies of God, to present your bodies as a living sacrifice, holy and acceptable to God, which is your spiritual worship. Do not be conformed to this world, but be transformed by the renewal of your mind, that by testing you may discern what is the will of God, what is good and acceptable and perfect.
This is the example the church is called.
I want to reiterate my brothers comment a few weeks ago: If I aint helping Jesus, Im hurting him but I’ll add and quite possibly taking others with you.
The church has a responsibility to be holy for God is holy. He is our target, when we deviate- the name of Jesus suffers and so does the church
Believer- your sin isnt just affecting you..... Its effects the whole
Id like to remind us of Joshua 7- when Achin sinned and caused the Israel to lose in battle, 36 men died and be out of step with God
Lets care for the little in the faith
Vs 11- is not in the most reliable manuscripts but the NKJV states “ For the Son of Man has come to save the which is lost.”
Vs 12- Jesus ask a rhetorical question-
-Is a shepherd satisfied that he has 99 of his sheep of does he want all of them?
-Of course not, he looks for it- he cares for it- he searches
Ex: When the puppies were just born, I would count them each morning and each evening
-one day a pup was missing- he was under storage building
-once we found him, I had to dig out a path so Elijah could crawl under the building to get the pup
-I remember telling him, I was too big and I needed him to get the pup or the pup would die- we had a safe retrieval
-But the point is, we had 9 more but the point was that the one mattered.
And if he finds it, truly, I say to you, he rejoices over it more than over the ninety-nine that never went astray.
Vs 13- Jesus continues the sheep parable with the idea that if a shepherd finds the sheep- he is more overjoyed over the one sheep than the 99 who never strayed
-why? because he loved the sheep
-Thats his sheep- the others are accounted for but one was not
-Predators and dangers easily get the sheep, but once he is found, the shepherd rejoices
So it is not the will of my Father who is in heaven that one of these little ones should perish.
Jesus uses the sheep story to set and show the depth of Gods loves for his “Little ones”
But unlike the shepherd in this story- the Good shepherd knows his sheep and has never lost one
-We are left with the picture that God takes extreme measure with his people
-that literally there are angels in heaven that sit in the very presence of God himself that await to minister to Gods people
That also it is the very will of God that he will never let go of a believer
The church seek to bring back the wayward brother or sister in Christ and if they repent- we should rejoice with them and push them onward in walking with Jesus
Repent is the key word- because this is the distinguishing mark for the believer
Many professing Christinas have walked in the church after blatant sin and expect nothing to be different and everything to be just as it was
-Repentance isnt found in just in words, tears or attendance. Its found in persons life lived after Jesus and turning from sin.
It actually requires leaving the sin behind and following Jesus
-The sin has to go, you can not keep living in the same sin and expect to have intimate fellowship with the church
Hear me- do we all sin- yes but regardless of how you want to cut it some sins are worse than others
-Its sin to think something evil in my mind but its worse to say it because now its out and affected others and we have to deal with it
Some sins are common to man things that we all have to fight and run from but some sins are life consuming and now they are life defining
Sin causes divides in our relationship with God and the church
More so for those “in the church” who continue in the same sinful lifestyle over and over it shows they probably are not saved
Words, Tears, Guilt and church attendance do not equate to repentance- Turning from sin and following Jesus does
“No one can serve two masters, for either he will hate the one and love the other, or he will be devoted to the one and despise the other. You cannot serve God and money.
Why does Jesus say all this?
IF God takes such extreme measures to show his love for his people and restore wayward believers to the fold
-the disciples and the church should follow His example
If I then, your Lord and Teacher, have washed your feet, you also ought to wash one another’s feet. For I have given you an example, that you also should do just as I have done to you. Truly, truly, I say to you, a servant is not greater than his master, nor is a messenger greater than the one who sent him.
Believer- please see the extreme care and love God has for you
-nothing ever by chance- always by Sovereign Plan
Wayward believer- would you genuinely repent and come back home
-There is hope and restoration in the body of Christ but you must walk in step with Christ and stop blaming everyone else
Unbeliever- you see the extreme measures God takes to keep his people but he went even further to get his people
He sent his son to take the punishment that we deserve for our sin
For our sake he made him to be sin who knew no sin, so that in him we might become the righteousness of God.
Church- lets present ourselves as a living sacrifice as worship to God but also to guard and protect the little ones.
The Lord bless you and keep you;
the Lord make his face to shine upon you and be gracious to you;
the Lord lift up his countenance upon you and give you peace.