22nd Post - His Authority Con't - Matthew 18:18-20.

Matthew 18: 18 - 20, this passage deals with binding and loosing. In order to unlock this passage you must understand to whom Jesus is talking and what their objective is. The passage ends with where two or three are gathered together in My name, I am there in the midst of them. This is the statement churches often use when talking about church planting or starting a new church project.
Why did Jesus pick the number two or three? This is the number required in order to bring charges of wrong doing in a tribunal or a court setting. Two or three witnesses are needed to bring a person to trial. We will get into this more in detail when you look at Jesus coming trial before His crucifixion. Two or three witnesses are needed to provide accurate testimony of wrong doing. The word testimony is a derived word from the word truth. Jesus takes this legal idea a step further by requiring these two or three to be gathered in His name. To be gathered in Jesus Name, you have to be acting not only under His authority but acting in a way according to how Jesus would have handled a similar situation. It is usually here that we get off track. Sometimes we use this passage as a way to further our own objectives and not those Jesus would have us do. When we do this our gathering is not in Jesus name. It is very easy for us to lose sight of the true objective because we are sinful people and easily moved by Satan. To keep this from happening, the witnesses need to bring the truth; not the truth as they think it is. They need to conduct themselves in a manner that would reflect Jesus Christ; after all they are saying they are acting according to His wishes. If you act in this way reconciliation should be the objective. When this is not possible, you may have to set the person free from the group. This should not be entered into lightly; when you are turning someone out of fellowship you are giving them over to Satan. It is important that the group remembers this, if they are wrong on this issue, Jesus will hold them accountable! The fact that the words loosed and bind are used, shows that both outcomes are possible. We need to remember that Jesus' name means "Forgives us from our sins", and that He told us to love one another. If we keep these in mind, we will have a better chance to do the Will of Jesus.