THE PERSON AND TEACHINGS OF JESUS
TEACHINGS ON HUMILITY Humility Necessary to Enter Kingdom of Heaven
The entire section begins with a rather bizarre story of the disciples arguing which one of them is going to be the greatest in the kingdom of heaven. Why would the disciples even be concerned about which one would be greatest in the kingdom of heaven?
The disciples have correctly understood that the kingdom of God was immensely important in the teachings and ministry of Jesus. Matthew claims that the main theme of Jesus' teaching ministry was "Repent for the kingdom of heaven is at hand" (Matt. 4:17). Jesus opens up the Sermon on the Mount with a major emphasis on the kingdom: "Blessed are the poor in spirit for theirs is the kingdom of heaven" . . . and "Blessed are those who have been persecuted . . . for theirs is the kingdom of heaven." The parables themselves deal primarily with the kingdom of heaven: "The kingdom of heaven may be compared to a man who sowed good seed in his field"; "the kingdom of heaven is like a mustard seed"; "the kingdom of heaven is like leaven"; "the kingdom of heaven is like a treasure hidden in the field"; etc. To their credit the disciples at least got it right that Jesus emphasized a kingdom.
The problem is that the disciples confused the kingdom of God with the other kingdoms in this world. Not that Jesus didn't try to correct their false views about God's kingdom! At least 3x in the last year of His life on earth Jesus informed the disciples that He the Messiah in the kingdom was going to suffer death and then rise from the dead. In fact John emphasizes throughout his gospel that even though Jesus was straightforward about what kind of kingdom He was inaugurating, the disciples simply didn't get it (John 2:22; 12:16; 20:9). The only thing that changed their minds was not only the resurrection but also the death of Jesus on the cross. When these 2 occurred, the disciples then finally realized that Jesus' kingdom was unlike any other kingdom they had ever experienced.
QUALIFICATION FOR ENTRY INTO THE KINGDOM OF HEAVEN (18:3-4)
The disciples have been arguing about which one of them was going to be greatest in the kingdom of heaven. Which one of them would serve as Secretary of the Treasury? Surely Judas Iscariot since he had the money bags. But what about Matthew who had been a tax collector? Who would serve as Secretary of War? Surely Peter since he was a man's man and could be extremely violent. But what about either James or John who were called "Sons of Thunder"?
When Jesus realizes what they are discussing, He brings forth a child and startles the disciples with the amazing announcement that instead of worrying about which one of them would be greatest in the kingdom of heaven, they should be worried about getting into the kingdom of heaven at all:
"Truly I say to you, that unless you are converted and become like children,
you will never, no never, enter into the kingdom of heaven."
This past weekend I went to see The Nativity Story which presents a new perspective on the birth stories of Jesus. The birth of Jesus itself particularly impressed me. When I saw the baby Jesus, I thought: "It really did all begin with a baby." Jesus did not come in power and might; He came as a baby. It is no wonder then that the best illustration of the citizen of the kingdom of heaven is a baby.
What is it though about babies or children which makes them appropriate symbols of the kingdom of heaven? Jesus answers that in v. 4:
"Whoever then HUMBLES himself as this child
is the greatest in the kingdom of heaven."
Although many children do exhibit negative traits, humility can be one trait that children can demonstrate more than anybody else. Humility is basically not being self-conscious. It's being conscious primarily of somebody or something else.
I saw the best illustration of humility last Thanksgiving. Every year Nancy, the kids, and I head off for Longview to spend time with Nancy's sister and brother-in-law. Since they are way older than Nancy and me, they naturally have grandchildren. Their second grandson Kyle really loves his granddad, Johnny. All that weekend I saw Kyle just looking up at Johnny. Wherever Johnny went, Kyle went too. Whenever Johnny sat down to eat, Kyle sat down right beside him. Whenever Johnny played board games, Kyle was right beside him, studying all the different moves that Johnny made. It was one of the sweetest and most touching displays of love and humility I think I have ever seen.
In our relationship with God then, we are to be like the little child who keeps his eyes on his dad. Nothing gladdens him more than when his father looks down in love and praises him for being such a good son. The child feels great joy over his father's love and approval. He does NOT then turn around and think himself better than anybody else. In fact he rejoices when his father praises his other sons and daughters because he wants others to share in this wonderful feeling. That is the true essence of humility.
God has gone to the greatest extent in order to impress upon us the need for humility. After we rejected God and His claims upon our lives, we fell into sin and death. How did God respond? Did He laugh at us and tell us we deserved what we were about to get? No, rather the One we rejected came to earth to save us from ourselves. Did He come to the most glamorous or most powerful or most prestigious places on earth (Alexandria, Rome, Athens)? No, rather He came to the backwaters of the Roman Empire, the land of Judah. Moreover, look at the 2 major events in His life which highlight His humility. At Christmas He comes to us as a baby. At Easter He dies the most ignominious death of all, the excruciating painful death of the cross. Even on the night before Jesus is to die He bows in humility as a servant and washes the feet of the most selfish disciples a person could have. The whole life and person of Jesus are bathed with humility.
Unfortunately most of us have mistaken pusillanimity for humility. Pusillanimity is the act of putting yourself down all the time. "Oh, I can't do that." "I'm not any good." "I'm a worm but God loves me!" In each sentence the focus is on the word "I" or "me." Even though the statements are negative, they are still all about "me." These statements may be negative forms of pride; however, they are nevertheless still forms of pride because they still focus on ME. Jesus though wants humility on the part of His disciples, free from being self-conscious and free to focus on Jesus.
TREATMENT OF JESUS' FOLLOWERS (18:5-10)
Proper Treatment (18:5)
It needs to be emphasized that whenever Jesus speaks about children in chapters 18-20, He is using them as SYMBOLS of what it means to be a citizen of the kingdom of heaven. He is not speaking about children literally. Rather He is using them as illustrations of the kingdom of heaven because many times they exhibit the quality of humility.
Jesus moves in this section from discussing the qualification of being a citizen of heaven to the way we should treat other citizens of the kingdom of heaven.
"And whoever receives one such child in My name
receives Me."
Receiving another Christian can mean nothing more than accepting that person because he or she is a Christian; however, receiving people in Jesus' name normally meant a whole lot more than merely accepting those persons. Normally receiving somebody meant that you showed that person hospitality.
Because of travel conditions hospitality was huge in the ancient world. There were no Holiday Inns or Comfort Inns. Rather people would have to stay either in a tavern, the nesting place for thieves and all other sorts of bad people, or at some person's home. (The safe place was somebody's home.) There is evidence that many Jewish synagogues actually had rooms built attached to the synagogues to accommodate itinerant rabbis. Jesus is here encouraging His followers to show hospitality to other Christians.
Unfortunately, hospitality is a lost art in Christian homes. We may meet you at the local restaurant for food, or we may arrange for you to stay at the local hotel; however, bringing you into my home is way too much trouble. Jesus though wants us to open up our homes and show hospitality to other Christians. [The early church took this seriously. A widow was not to receive financial aid from the church unless she had shown hospitality to strangers during the years she was married (1 Tim. 5:10).]
How are we to receive that fellow Christian? Jesus says we are to receive them "in His name." That means one of 2 things. First, it might mean that we in Jesus' name receive others, that is, we receive them in the same way that Jesus Himself would receive them. Second, it might mean that we receive them in Jesus' name, that is, we receive them as if we were receiving Jesus. That would definitely cause us to treat them with considerable care and kindness.
What is the benefit of rendering hospitality to a fellow Christian? Jesus says that whenever we receive another Christian, we are in fact receiving Him. Jesus is claiming that He is so identified with His people that whenever you show kindness to one of His people, you are actually showing kindness to Him.
Paul takes this concept quite seriously in 1 Corinthians. There he exhorts the Corinthians not to participate in religious prostitution. Why? Because the believer is one with Jesus. At the point of salvation the Spirit of Jesus came to live within us to make us one with Jesus. As a result Paul claims that whenever you have sexual relations with a prostitute, you are so one with Christ that you actually force Christ to participate in that sexual encounter (1 Cor. 6:15).
Improper Treatment (18:6-10)
After encouraging us to treat other Christians properly, Jesus here warns us against harming other Christians.
"But whoever causes one of these little ones to stumble,
It would be better for him to have a heavy millstone hung around his neck
And to be drowned in the depth of the sea" (18:6)
Even though we never want to harm any Christian or lead any Christian astray, Jesus here is not speaking about peccadilloes. The stumbling is not merely telling a white lie; it is falling away from Jesus. Jesus warns us that if we cause another one of His followers to fall away from Him, it would have been better if we had taken the huge millstone from the grinder (weighing 50 pounds or more), tied around our neck, and then plunged into the deepest part of the sea in order to make sure that we are drowned.
Jesus informs us that the world is such a place that stumbling blocks are for all practical purposes inevitable. People are broken and some are definitely going to be used by Satan to cause others to fall away from Christ. Although it is inevitable that stumbling blocks do come, no one has to be that stumbling block. That is a choice that each and every one of us makes for himself. If we choose to be a stumbling block the punishment we receive will be so severe that we will wish we had never been born.
How radical should I be in making sure I am not a stumbling block? Jesus says that if my hand or foot is what causes other people to fall away from Him, then I am faced with a choice: I can either cut off that hand or foot and enter into the eternal life of heaven, or I can keep that hand and foot, cause others to stumble, and then enter into the fiery flames of hell. If my eye is what causes other people to fall away from Jesus, then I am faced with a choice: I can either pluck out that eye and throw it away from me so that I might enter into the eternal life of heaven, or I am keep it and cause others to fall away from Jesus, thereby ensuring I enter hell eternally.
Why is it so important that I treat these followers of Jesus properly?
"for I say to you that their angels in heaven
continually see the face of My Father who is in heaven."
The picture is that of the court with a king on his throne surrounded by important men of state. Only those men with the most important business are permitted to approach the throne and occupy the time and interests of the monarch. The same occurs in heaven. God is on His throne. He is occupied with the most important and urgent of business. What business is that? Taking care of the followers of Jesus. Only those angels who care for followers of Jesus are guaranteed immediate access to the Father because Jesus' followers are most valuable to God. (This verse harmonizes with the belief that each of us has his own guardian angel.)
Paul develops this theme more fully in 1 Corinthians. Because they know that idols are just lifeless stone or wooden objects, some superior Christians in Corinth are eating meat which has been sacrificed to these idols. Some weaker Christians in Corinth though have been unable to process completely that idols are really nothing at all. Instead in their hearts they feel that idols are real and are to be avoided. When they see the stronger Christians eat this meat, they are tempted to eat the same meat. The problem though is that whereas the meat does not harm the stronger Christian, it does destroy the faith of the weaker Christian.
What should the stronger Christian do? Stop eating that meat sacrificed to idols. Why? Because their example is destroying the weaker Christian, that Christian for whom Christ died (1 Cor. 8:11-12). When I destroy spiritually another Christian, I ultimately don't have a problem with that Christian. I have a problem with Jesus who died for that Christian. I destroy the person whom Jesus loved so much that He died for him. That definitely would pose a problem between Christ and me.
Let me present another reason why we should not be stumbling blocks. C. S Lewis writes
The load, or weight, or burden of my neighbour's glory should be laid on my back,
a load so heavy that only humility can carry it, and the backs of the proud will be broken.
It is a serious thing to live in a society of possible gods and goddesses,
to remember that the dullest and most uninteresting person you can talk to may one day be a creature which . . . you would be strongly tempted to worship,
or else a horror and a corruption such as you now meet . . . only in a nightmare.
[Here's the main point.] All day long we are, in some degree, helping each other to one or other of these destinations (The Weight of Glory, p.p. 45-46).