The Lord's Priority For Unity In His Church Series

The Lord's Priority for Unity in His Church

The Gospel of Matthew

Matthew 18:14-20

Sermon by Rick Crandall

(Prepared October 11, 2022)

BACKGROUND:

*Please open your Bibles to Matthew 18, as we focus on the Lord's Church. The church is mentioned over a hundred times in the New Testament. But surprisingly, it's only mentioned 3 times in the Gospels, and all 3 are here in Matthew's Gospel.

*The first was in Matthew 16:18 where Jesus was speaking to Peter, and the Lord confidently said, "You are Peter, and on this rock I will build My church, and the gates of Hades shall not prevail against it."

*We must remember that Jesus is the rock-solid foundation of His Church. Yes, Peter's name is from the original word "petros," and that means rock or boulder. But the word Jesus used for "rock" in that verse was "petra." And that word is talking about a huge, mountain-sized rock like the Rock of Gibraltar or Mount Rushmore. In other words, Jesus said, "You are a little rock Peter. And on this huge mountain of a rock, I will build My Church." Maybe Jesus even pointed to Himself as He said it, because the Rock of our salvation is Jesus Christ!

*This truth is confirmed in both the Old Testament and the New. For example, in Deuteronomy 32:3-4, Moses' song says, "I proclaim the name of the LORD: ascribe greatness to our God. He is the Rock, His work is perfect; for all His ways are justice, a God of truth and without injustice; righteous and upright is He."

*In 2 Samuel 22:2 King David said, "The LORD is my rock, my fortress and my deliverer." And in vs. 31-33, David said, As for God, His way is perfect; the word of the LORD is proven; he is a shield to all who trust in Him. For who is God, except the LORD? And WHO IS A ROCK, EXCEPT OUR GOD? God is my strength and power, and He makes my way perfect.

*Jesus Christ is the Rock of our salvation! That's why in 1 Corinthians 3:11 Paul spoke of Jesus Christ being the only foundation for God's Church. But what is God's Church? Basically, it is the growing group of all people who have believed in Jesus Christ, everyone who has received Jesus as their Lord and Savior.

*Pastor Russ Blowers gave a wonderful description of God's Church when he was speaking to the Rotary Club in Indianapolis. Each week, a different member told a little about his job. And this is what Russ said when his turn came up:

*"I'm with a global enterprise. We have branches in every country in the world. We're into motivation and behavior alteration. We run hospitals, feeding stations, crisis pregnancy centers, universities, publishing houses, and nursing homes. We care for our clients from birth to death. We are into life insurance and fire insurance. We perform spiritual heart transplants.

*Our original Organizer owns all the real estate on earth, plus an assortment of galaxies and constellations. He knows everything, and lives everywhere. Our product is free for the asking. (There's not enough money to buy it.)

*Our CEO was born in a hick town, worked as a carpenter, didn't own a home, was misunderstood by his family, hated by enemies, walked on water, was condemned to death without a fair trial, and arose from the dead! I talk with him every day." (1)

*God's Church is all of that, and much more! In the Book of Ephesians, the Holy Spirit led Paul to give us a multi-faceted view the Church. For example, in Ephesians 2:19-22 Paul tells Christians that we are citizens of Heaven, members of God's family, and part of the growing, holy temple where God now lives through the Holy Spirit. Praise the Lord!

*In Ephesians 3:15, Paul confirms that we are part of the family of God. In Ephesians 3 and 4, he also stresses that we are part of the Spiritual Body of Christ on earth. And in Ephesians 5:25-27, Paul confirms that the Lord's Church is the spiritual Bride of Christ. There Paul wrote, "Husbands, love your wives, just as Christ also loved the church and gave Himself for it, that He might sanctify and cleanse it with the washing of water by the word, that He might present it to Himself a glorious church, not having spot or wrinkle or any such thing, but that it should be holy and without blemish." Thank God for the Church of Jesus Christ!

*Today's Scripture focuses on the Lord's priority for unity in His Church. Please think about our unity as we read Matthew 18:14-20.

MESSAGE:

*Remember the situation here: In Matthew 18:1 the disciples asked Jesus, "Who then is greatest in the kingdom of heaven?'' They were wondering about that question, because they had been arguing about it as they walked on the road to Capernaum. Mark 9:33-35 says: