SECTION 9: THE SERVANTS OF THE KING
CHAPTER 43
GREATEST IN THE KINGDOM
OR
ELIMINATING OBSTACLES
Scripture To Consider:
“At the time the disciples came to Jesus, saying, ‘Who then is the greatest in the kingdom of heaven?’ And Jesus called a little child to Him, set him in the midst of them, and said, ‘Assuredly, I say to you, unless you are converted and become as little children, you will by no means enter the kingdom of heaven.’“
“Therefore, whoever humbles himself as this little child is the greatest in the kingdom of heaven. And whoever receives one little child like this in My name receives Me. But whoever causes one of these little ones who believe in Me to sin, it would be better for him if a millstone were hung around his neck, and he were drowned in the depth of the sea.” Matthew 18.1-6
Something To Consider:
The 18th, 19th, and 20th chapters of Matthew’s gospel are mainly concerned with the series of discourses delivered by Jesus to His disciples. They are all designed to instruct the servants of the King. Those of the 18th chapter were delivered at Capernaum during the last visit of Jesus to that city. Those of the next two chapters were delivered as Jesus journeyed through Perea on His way to Jerusalem and the cross of Calvary.
The occasion of the first discourse was a question which had risen among His followers as to which of them should be greatest in the kingdom of heaven. There was something admirable in their discussion for it revealed the fact that they believed the promises of Christ and regarded His kingdom as something supremely desirable to attain. Of course, there was much of pride and of self-confidence in their debate, and therefore, Jesus rebuked them.
Then Jesus called a little child and set him in the midst of them and said, “Assuredly, I say to you, unless you are converted and become as little children, you will by no means enter the kingdom of heaven.” They were faced in the wrong direction. They needed to turn, if they were to attain positions of greatness, if indeed they were even to be admitted into the kingdom, they needed to be willing to change. And that is of course, something for us all to consider!
Jesus had previously told them that the kingdom belonged to the poor in spirit and now, to rebuke their pride, He points them to a little child, for He may have wished to suggest that what they needed was the trust, and the conscious dependence and humility, which, if not found in all children, is associated with childhood in general and constitutes what is known as a childlike spirit.
Therefore, Jesus assures them that humility is the path to the highest position in the kingdom of heaven, and through which is the manner in which the kingdom may be entered. However, by humility Jesus means not merely a low opinion of self, nor merely modesty or shyness, but a true willingness and a desire to render humble service for the sake of the King; for Jesus added, “Therefore whoever humbles himself as this little child is the greatest in the kingdom of heaven. And whoever receives one little child like this in My name receives Me.”
To be willing to care even for a child, to undertake gladly so humble a task is a sign of that spirit which constitutes true greatness in the sight of the King. Having thus bestowed His praise on those who are child-like, Jesus proceeded to warn His followers lest they might cause one of these little ones to stumble. When Jesus spoke of the little ones, He did not mean merely those who are young in years, but those who, like children, are limited in experience, strength, knowledge, or opportunity.
In other words, it is the willingness to care for such that Jesus declares to be the sign of greatness. And yet, on the other hand, to be willing to lead one such little one into sin, to cause one of these helpless and dependent ones to stumble or to fall, is so great a crime that our Lord declared, “It would be better for him [or her] if a millstone were hung around his [or her] neck, and he [or she] were drowned in the depth of the sea.” Such a fate would be preferable to that which awaits one who has been guilty of offending one of these children of the King!
More Scripture To Consider:
“Woe to the world because of offenses! For offenses must come, but woe to that man [or woman] by whom the offense comes! And if your hand or foot causes you to sin, cut it off and cast it from you. It is better for you to enter into life lame or maimed, rather than having two hands or two feet, to be cast into everlasting fire.”
“And if your eye causes you to sin, pluck it out and cast it from you. It is better for you to enter into life with one eye, rather than having two eyes, to be cast into hell fire. Take heed that you do not despise one of these little ones, for I say to you that in heaven their angels always see the face of My Father who is in heaven.”
“For the Son of Man has come to save that which was lost. What do you think? If a man has a hundred sheep, and one of them goes astray, does he not leave the ninety-nine and go to the mountains to seek the one that is straying? And if he should find it, assuredly, I say to you, he rejoices more over that sheep than over the ninety-nine that did not go astray. Even so it is not the will of your Father who is in heaven that one of these little ones should perish.” Matthew 18.7-14
Something Else To Consider:
Jesus declared that the world is full of temptations and occasions of stumbling; but He warns His followers lest any one of them should willingly cause others to fall. Even His followers would be capable of such a disgraceful course. Therefore, the sternest self-discipline should be necessary.
At a sacrifice, no matter how great, one must secure himself or herself against such a possible crime. If necessary, we must be willing to sacrifice what may be as precious as a hand or a foot. Even the most bitter loss, even the yielding of what was most precious to the heart, would be far better than to be cast into eternal fire.
Having pointed out the peril of causing to stumble one of these little ones who trust in Him, Jesus further warned His disciples against despising these trustful and dependent followers of His. He does so on the ground that they are so precious to His Father who is in heaven. And so, He declared that the angels who serve, or protect, or represent them, are nearest to the throne of God, and therefore, His followers cannot think lightly of those who are so dear to God.
Jesus further uses a familiar and beautiful illustration to prove His point. He suggests how deeply a shepherd is concerned over a single sheep which has gone astray and how he rejoices when it is found. And so, Jesus declared, “Even so it is not the will of your Father who is in heaven that one of these little ones should perish.”
Thus, if the Father so loves them, we must love them too and avoid anything that might offend them or cause them to fall. If, like the disciples of old, we are at all conscious of superior powers and opportunities, let us not feel that these entitle us to the chief places in the kingdom unless they are gladly and constantly used in helping, guiding, and comforting the weaker and more obscure servants of the King.
Something More To Consider:
The disciple’s question, “Who then is the greatest in the kingdom of heaven?” flung open wide the door of opportunity for Jesus to express His thoughts as well as His Father’s thoughts on true greatness and on eliminating obstacles that hinder that greatness. Jesus of course, took the disciples completely by surprise by setting a little child in their midst and declaring that all must become as humble, as dependent, and as selfless as a little child, or else they would not even be allowed entrance into the kingdom of heaven.
Jesus then took His eye-opening example one giant step further by His proclaiming, “And whoever receives one little child like this in My name receives Me.” In other words, Jesus elevated the worth and the value of a person based on their child-like humility and dependency that extends outside of themselves.
But Jesus did not stop there. His next statement could easily be mistaken for that spoken by a mobster out of a roaring 20’s gangster movie. “But whoever causes one of these little ones who believe in Me to sin, it would be better for him [or her] if a millstone were hung around his [or her] neck, and he [or she] were drowned in the depth of the sea.” Oh, meek and mild Jesus!
A Few Final Words:
Jesus did not lift a finger of resistance or retaliation against those hypocritical religious rulers who instigated His arrest and His death, though He could have called to action twelve legions of war-ready angelic beings. And yet, in our Scripture to consider, Jesus severely warns against causing offense or the stumbling of one of His child-like believers.
Jesus is always in favor of removing or eliminating obstacles in the lives of God’s children, even to the point of mentioning some difficult to hear warnings of angelic response. Now of course, in verses 8-9 of Matthew chapter 18, Jesus is not advocating bodily mutilation when He speaks of cutting off a hand or a foot, or of plucking out an eye.
Jesus was and is fully aware that whatever sin our right hand is capable of committing our left hand can too. He fully understands that our left foot can just as easily lead us into evil temptation as our right foot can. And of course, Jesus knows that whatever immoral scenes or activities our right eye could be guilty of so can our left eye.
In Closing:
Therefore, Jesus is in as graphic of terms that He can create, is attempting to communicate the eternal seriousness and human destruction that sinful obstacles can produce in a person’s life, family, church, and even nation, if they are not eliminated completely.
Jesus is fully aware of the biblical fact that practicing sin, iniquity, and trespasses are against God and are in complete opposition to the Word of God, and therefore, if not eliminated, create roadblocks to our entrance into the kingdom of God. That is why Jesus proclaimed, “It is better for you to enter into life [eternal life] lame or maimed, rather than having two hands or two feet, to be cast into everlasting fire.”
Message delivered! Hopefully message is received!
Let’s Pray:
Our Father in heaven, thank You for the message of who is the greatest in the kingdom of heaven. And thank You Father for the lesson of a lifetime concerning our eliminating all of the sinful obstacles that hinder our spiritual growth and create a lifetime of practicing sin if not dealt with as needed. Teach us to heed the warnings of Jesus. In Him Always, Amen!
According to Jesus 