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You may turn in your Bibles to 
Matthew chapter 18. Matthew chapter 18. Our focus 
this morning will be verses 18 to 20. Remember we started in 
verse 15. We saw the procedure for the 
church's discipline. The procedure for the church's 
discipline. The initial step is a private 
confrontation. If that is rejected by the offender, 
then you take two or three witnesses. If he rejects that, then you 
tell it to the church. And the church is to plead with 
the man, to own his sin, and to repent and forsake. And if 
he in fact does, he is restored. But if he does not, then Jesus 
says in that final step, you are to treat him as a heathen 
and a tax collector. Closely joined to that whole 
idea of the procedure for the church's discipline, is a statement 
in verse 18 concerning the possession of the church's authority. The 
church does possess authority. to act in the name of Christ 
here on earth, but it's not to be arbitrary, it's not to be 
according to feeling or preference or whim, it is to be according 
to the word of God most high." And then he rounds out the section 
by highlighting the reality that the church possesses, or the 
church rather, knows the presence of the Lord in their midst when 
they go through things like these, verses 19 and 20. So I'll just 
begin reading in verse 15. Moreover, if your brother sins 
against you, go and tell him his fault between you and him 
alone. If he hears you, you have gained 
your brother. But if he will not hear, take 
with you one or two more, that by the mouth of two or three 
witnesses every word may be established. And if he refuses to hear them, 
tell it to the church. But if he refuses even to hear 
the church, let him be to you like a heathen and a tax collector. 
Assuredly, I say to you, whatever you bind on earth will be bound 
in heaven, and whatever you loose on earth will be loosed in heaven. 
Again, I say to you that if two of you agree on earth concerning 
anything that they ask, it will be done for them by my Father 
in heaven. For where two or three are gathered 
together in my name, I am there in the midst of them. Amen. Well, 
let us pray. Our Father, we thank you for 
this passage of scripture. We pray that you'd help us now 
to understand it and help us, God, to see the value you place 
upon the Church of the Lord Jesus. Grant us grace to likewise love 
and to appreciate that institution for which Jesus died and rose 
again, the one in which he governs, the one in which he rules as 
head over his body. We ask that you would forgive 
us for all of our sins and unrighteousness. We pray that you would provide 
in abundance to us the Holy Spirit. as he is the one that takes these 
things and enables us to understand. He illumines our minds and he 
guides us into all truth. And we acknowledge our dependency 
now. And we pray these things through 
Jesus Christ, our Lord. Amen. I'm certain if I were to 
ask you all, do you appreciate the Reformed faith? I'd hope 
that you would say yes. And if I asked you why you appreciate 
the Reformed faith, certainly the answers would probably be 
various. I think many would say, I like 
the Reformed faith because of its insistence upon the doctrines 
of grace, those doctrines that are given by the acronym TULIP. 
Certainly, Reformed theology is an accurate expression of 
of man's sin, and of God's unconditional election, and Christ's particular 
redemption of his people, and the irresistible power of the 
Holy Spirit, and the reality that when God saves a sinner, 
by his grace they persevere into the end. I think that's a great 
answer to the question, do you appreciate the Reformed faith? 
How many of us would say, I appreciate the Reformed faith because of 
its insistence upon the centrality of the church? The Reformed faith 
and its appreciation for the church of Christ in God's redemptive 
plan. I'm not suggesting persons outside 
the Reformed faith. don't appreciate the Church. 
But this is certainly something that we see at the Protestant 
Reformation, something we see in the post-Reformation theologians 
who wrote theology and who dealt with the Bible. There is this 
love for, there is this appreciation for, there is this allegiance 
to the Church of our Lord Jesus Christ. And maybe it's an age 
thing, I'd like to ask some of the older folk, not now, we're 
not going to have a sort of therapy session, but do you grow in your 
appreciation for the church as you get older? That's been my 
experience. I love the church, I love this 
church in particular, I love the people of God in this church, 
but I love the church as the bride of Christ. I love the thought 
that our Lord Jesus sees us as the apple of His eye. I love 
Psalm 87 when it tells us that God, or Yahweh, loves the gates 
of Zion more than all the dwellings in Jacob. It doesn't mean He 
hates families, but it means He rejoices in and delights in 
when the people of God come together corporately to sing His praises, 
to honor His great name, to take of His supper, to hear the Word 
of God, and to do all the things that He specifies in His Holy 
Word. The Lord God Most High has ordained 
the Church of Jesus Christ as that one institution that will 
transcend this age and exist in the age to come. You realize 
that marriage and family will be radically altered in the age 
to come. I think that we'll know each 
other to be sure, but Jesus tells us in the age to come we'll be 
like the angels, neither marrying nor giving in marriage. There's 
not going to be that same sort of family structure. The state 
certainly isn't going to make it into the eschaton. There is 
no government in terms of a civil polity when we get to heaven. But the one institution that 
enjoys its presence on earth now, but will extend into the 
age to come, is the church. It is the people of God. It is 
the people from every tribe, tongue, people and nation that 
Christ has secured their redemption through his blood and through 
his righteousness. I hope that you love the church. 
I hope that you grow in your love for the church. And I hope 
that this morning, as we consider the possession of the church's 
authority, we will see in fact that Christ himself loves the 
church. I want to look at verses 18 to 
20 under two broad considerations. I've already mentioned that. 
The possession of the church's authority in verse 18, and then 
the presence of the church's Lord. in verses 19 to 20. Let's take up verse 18. Assuredly, 
he says, he underscores this. This is an amen. Assuredly, I 
say to you, whatever you bind on earth will be bound in heaven, 
and whatever you loose on earth will be loosed in heaven. I want 
to look at three specifics here that will probably take the bulk 
of our time. First, the parallel statement in Matthew 16. Secondly, 
the person's address. And then thirdly, the specific 
function that is involved here. Go back for just a moment to 
Matthew 16. We see a very similar situation 
there. As I've argued, I think in Matthew 
16 we're dealing with the church universal, and in Matthew 18 
we're dealing with the church particular, or local. Not that 
there's a fundamental difference, but we have the invisible church, 
the elect of God from all ages and from all people groups. And 
then we have local churches. We have specific places like 
these where God gathers His people together for worship, for praise, 
for instruction, and all that sort of thing. So notice in Matthew 
16, Jesus gives to Peter the keys of the kingdom of heaven. 
Verse 16, Peter makes that lofty confession of faith. Jesus says, 
who do men say that I, the Son of Man, am? The disciples respond. And then He says, who do you 
say that I am? And Peter makes this statement, 
you are the Christ, the Son of the living God. That's everything. You'll never appreciate the church 
until you come to that place. When you see Christ as the Bible 
reveals it, when you see Him as the Christ, the Son of the 
living God, when by grace you taste and see that the Lord is 
good, When by grace you enter in to that blessed number of 
the redeemed, when you are forgiven, and when you have the righteousness 
of God, then you appreciate the people of God because Jesus saved 
them. Jesus brought them together. 
Jesus redeemed them. and He placed us in these places 
so that we'll worship Him in spirit and truth. This is foundational. You are the Christ, the Son of 
the Living God. If you were to ask yourself a 
few minutes ago, do I love the church? The answer is probably 
going to be a big fat no if you do not love the Lord Jesus. If you do not confess that you 
are the Christ, the Son of the Living God. I would imagine that 
every parent and grandparent in here wants primarily for their 
children to profess saving faith in Jesus and to be members of 
churches. I'm not saying necessarily this 
church, I'd like to think that would be the case, but the church. I mean, isn't that what you parents 
pray for? Isn't that what you grandparents 
long for? Isn't that your hope and desire? 
I mean, certainly I hope they don't end up, you know, living 
under a bridge, I mean, eating cat food. I don't want that to 
happen for them. But if they live under a bridge 
eating cat food, but they are safely folded in the arms of 
Christ, that's okay. I mean, it'd be nice to be safely 
folded in the arms of Christ and not live under a bridge, 
all things being equal. Is that what you parents want? 
Is that what you grandparents desire? I say grandparents now. Are you guys getting that, because 
I'm a grandparent? Didn't used to say that. We've got five little 
ones that I hope and pray are in Christ. You may not love the 
church this morning, and the reason may be because you haven't 
said, Thou art the Christ, the Son of the living God. The idea 
is that those who, by God's grace, believe the gospel because they're 
sinners, because they're justly liable to condemnation, because 
they've transgressed the law of God, because they're subject 
to death and wrath and fury and anger and vengeance from a holy 
God. Those who in that state call 
upon the Lord Jesus Christ for salvation. They see that Christ 
is glorious and that he's not only saved them, but he saved 
a great multitude that no man can number. And we love these 
people and we love to gather with these people. And we love 
to sing with these people. And we love to go to the scriptures 
with these people. So you see, what happens on the 
basis of this confession naturally follows. It wouldn't have happened 
without the confession. You are the Christ, the Son of 
the Living God. Jesus pronounces a benediction 
upon him. Blessed are you, Simon Bar-Jonah. 
Because you got lucky. Because you did this in your 
own strength. Because you're wiser than the rest of them. 
No, blessed are you, Simon Bar-Jonah. Flesh and blood did not reveal 
this to you, but my Father who is in heaven. It is sovereign 
grace. The Reformed faith is accurate. 
It is God who saves dead sinners. It is God who shines the light. 
It is God who makes known to us our sin and the remedy for 
that sin. Blessed are you, Simon Bar-Jonah. Flesh and blood didn't reveal 
this to you, but my Father who is in heaven. Then notice, he 
says, and I also say to you that you are Peter, and on this rock 
I will build my church, and the gates of Hades shall not prevail 
against it. It's not Peter as the first pope. It's Peter as the confessing 
disciple. It's Peter confessing the truth 
concerning Christ. Christ is the foundation. Christ 
is the cornerstone. Christ is the one upon whom the 
entirety of the church is structured. Peter here is representative. 
As Calvin says, who does not see that what he applies to the 
person of a man is said in reference to Peter's faith in Christ. It is Peter as confessor that 
he makes this declaration. Now notice the keys in verse 
19. And I will give you the keys of the kingdom of heaven, and 
whatever you bind on earth will be bound in heaven, and whatever 
you loose on earth will be loosed in heaven." That is exactly what 
we find in Matthew 18, 18. You see that? Give me a little 
nod. These are the two places that 
deal with the church's authority in Matthew's gospel. Notice, 
in this context, in Matthew 16, it is the preaching of the Word. 
It is the declaration of the truth concerning God Most High 
and His redemptive benefit. In Matthew 18, the specific hinge 
is discipline. The Heidelberg Catechism asks, 
what are the keys of the kingdom of heaven? Here's the answer. 
From Matthew 16, Matthew 18, the preaching of the Holy Gospel 
and Christian discipline, or the excommunication out of the 
Christian Church. By these two, the Kingdom of 
Heaven is open to believers and shut against unbelievers. You 
see, there's authority there. Again, it's an authority that 
can be abused, and we'll look at that in just a moment. Nevertheless, 
we need to recognize there is an authority there. We need to 
see that Christ has given keys to Peter, specifically with a 
view to preach the gospel, and in Matthew 18, to exercise discipline 
in the context of the church. So the parallel statement runs 
just alongside of this. Secondly, the person's addressed. 
I've already mentioned, in Matthew 16, it's Peter. I say to you, 
singular, Peter! Again, if we follow out the trajectory 
of Rome, we will fail to understand what is going on there. Peter 
is not the first pope. Jesus did not set the big goofy 
hat on him and give him that mitre by which he would rule 
from Rome. That's just not what happened 
there. He is the confessor. He is the one who has announced 
that you are the Christ, the Son of the living God. That's 
foundational. That's what the church is built 
upon. That is what the church is structured upon. And we know 
that in large part by what we find here in Matthew 18. Assuredly 
I say to you, who's he talking to? He's not talking to Peter 
anymore. Peter was representative of the 
twelve. and Peter's representative of 
the church. It is local churches that are 
in view in Matthew 18 in verse 18. Assuredly I say to you, local 
churches, those churches that deal with the discipline process, 
those churches that when a man is offended goes to his brother 
and tells him his fault, those churches who send two or three 
witnesses that when they're rebuffed it's told to the church and they 
deal with it. He's talking to us He's talking 
to the people of God. He is talking to the church of 
the Lord Jesus Christ. Now notice the specific function. Whatever you bind on earth will 
be bound in heaven. Whatever you loose on earth will 
be loosed in heaven. Same thing. that he says in Matthew 
16. He doesn't say, I give you the 
keys of the kingdom. We can assume that the keys of 
the kingdom are twofold, like the Heidelberg says, the preaching 
of the gospel and the exercise of church discipline. Now these 
terms had a long pedigree among the Jewish rabbis. To bind meant 
to forbid. To loose meant to permit. Okay? That's all it means. Notice what he says. Whatever 
you bind on earth will be bound in heaven. Whatever you loose 
on earth will be loosed in heaven. The specific meaning here is 
that the church forbids unrepentant sinners from remaining in the 
church, right? Does the church have that authority? 
According to Jesus, in that last step in Matthew 18, the church 
most certainly has that authority. If we identify someone as a heathen 
and a tax collector, that is a removal from the membership 
of the church. It is to excommunicate. It is 
to put one outside. And according to Christ in Matthew 
18.18, we have that authority. Whatever we bind on earth, whatever 
we forbid, concerning unrepentant sinners. As well, the Church 
permits the repentant to stay in their midst. Right? It's not 
just the binding, but it's the loosing on Earth as well. So suppose you have a man that 
rejects the one man who's gone to him and sought him. Suppose 
you have that same man who hears the two or three witnesses, and 
he rejects them as well. And then they collectively tell 
it to the Church. And the pressure of the church 
is such that this man humbles himself. This man repents of 
his sins. What does the church then declare? 
We want you in our midst. We permit repentant sinners to 
be here. We want people like this. We 
know it's not perfection. We know it's not sinlessness. 
We know that the life of sanctification is like this. But we know that 
it's repentance and owning sin. And so the church makes that 
declaration. permitting the repentant to stay 
in their midst. You see, that's authority. Again, 
an authority that can be abused. That's not what we're considering 
right now. Notice, Jesus says that when the church does this, 
it is ratified by heaven itself, just like in Matthew 16. Note 
the verbs. Whatever you bind on earth, The 
latter portion could be read, will have been bound in heaven. Whatever you loose on earth will 
have been bound or loosed in heaven. The idea here, the language 
of Spurgeon, when those keys are rightly turned by the assembly 
below, the act is ratified above. It's really amazing, and I think 
if you consider this passage, If you didn't love the church 
before or you didn't love the church as much as you should 
have before, I hope you will when we're finished. God takes 
notice of the church. God is about the business of 
the church. And it's very intriguing to me. 
What we have in this section concerning prayer in verse 19, 
when two or three gather together and pray, who leads the people 
of God in prayer? It's not the minister, it's the 
spirit of the living God. To whom do those people go? They 
go to the Father! And they always need a mediator, 
and the mediator promises, according to verse 20, to be in their midst! You see that when the church 
is carrying out something, whether it be the preaching of His Word 
or it being the exercise of church discipline, the triune God is 
present among her. That's what gets into my head. 
If I ever have the temptation or the desire not to go to church, 
but the triune God is there, right? Why wouldn't I go where 
the triune God is? Now you'll say, well, I can go 
into my closet and there I pray to the Father through the Son 
and by the Spirit. Yes, certainly you do. Certainly 
you do. But God does love the gates of 
Zion more than all the dwelling places of Jacob. And God sees 
the people of God gather together. And Christ says, I will be in 
their midst in the implementation of these particular keys. The 
idea here is probably not with reference to endorsement, but 
rather a ratification. And it must be qualified. If 
the church functions properly and the church binds or looses 
in accordance with God's word, then we have the stamp of approval 
of heaven itself that God underscores, God underlines, and God highlights 
what is being done there and that it's pleasing in His sight. 
Now notice, the keys are primarily seen in terms of denial and access 
through the preaching of the word in Matthew 16, 19. The keys 
are seen primarily in the forbidding or the permitting in terms of 
church discipline in Matthew 18. I think Robert Raymond is 
accurate. The authority to open or close 
the doors of the kingdom of heaven to men, which Jesus grants to 
Peter here, and the rest of the disciples in Matthew 18. must 
be seen to include both the authority to proclaim the liberating gospel 
and the authority to take disciplinary steps to ensure that the church 
remains pure. You see, that's an important 
thing. Brethren, if we are the confessing people of God and 
we say we have the true religion, When we say that we are blood-bought 
children of God, when persons come here, it ought not to look 
like the world. There ought to be something distinctively 
different about us. And not just in this place, but 
when we represent Christ and His Church in our particular 
spheres in the world, we need to understand the ramifications 
of doing that poorly. Isn't it intriguing that when 
Nathan the prophet comes to David and he says, thou art the man, 
what does Nathan say to him? By this, this act of murder and 
this act of adultery, by this you have given cause to the enemies 
of the Lord to blaspheme. So think about that. As a blood-bought 
child of God, when you go from this place, you say you're a 
Christian, you say you're a church member, and you live like the 
devil. Ask yourself, when you get alone this afternoon, is 
that a good testimony? Is that something I want to maintain? 
Is that something I want to advertise? Do I want to be a poster child 
that looks like that? Spurgeon says, for practical 
purposes, the people of God would need discipline and the power 
to receive, refuse, retain, or exclude members. And I think 
I took pains going through 15 to 17 to show that the church 
isn't governed by a handful of men who wear black robes and 
black masks, and they're just sort of wringing their hands, 
looking at people they can target for exclusion. That's not it. Any experience I've ever had 
with reference to the Church doing anything in terms of discipline, 
it has been compassionate, it has been long-suffering. Typically 
the hammer doesn't fall right away. It takes a long time. But 
we need to make sure that in terms, or as far as we are able, 
we're seeking to implement those keys, not only in the preaching 
of the gospel, calling sinners to believe and repent, and loosing 
the kingdom of God as it were to them, and permitting them 
entrance, but when we are in the church and we have covenanted 
together to walk in holiness and in righteousness, When we 
have covenanted together to support one another and to encourage 
one another and to exhort one another daily while it is called 
today, when we have covenanted to do that, if we see a brother 
stray, we see a wandering sheep, it is our duty under God to go 
and fetch him. To go and seek him out, to go 
and try to help him, not to bring the hammer to bear upon him. 
That whole process in 15 to 17 is about recovery. That's where 
the access falls, or the accent falls and the emphasis lies. 
It's not just about, get him out of here. Certainly there 
is a get him out of here when he becomes an obstinate, rebel 
sinner against God and against the authority of the church. 
Now as I've said, this can be abused. Church authority can 
be abused. If you read Calvin, you read 
other brothers on these passages, they always speak of Rome abusing 
the authority. But it's not just Rome that can 
abuse church authority. Protestants or Geneva can do 
the very same thing. And we need to make sure that 
we understand that everything done is done in accordance with 
the Word of God and according to the procedure outlined here. 
This is a safeguard. It's not foolproof. There can 
still be a margin for error. But if we follow the steps biblically, 
if we bathe the process in prayer the way Jesus assumes we will 
in verse 19, If we do that, we can trust that God the Lord will 
guide us in His providence according to His will and according to 
His Word to do these things in a proper measure and in a proper 
manner. Spurgeon again says, this is 
to be understood with the limitation that it is really a Church of 
Christ which acts. She must act in a... I'm sorry. 
that it acts in his name and rightly administers his laws. 
The authority that the church possesses is not sovereign. It's derived, it's delegated. 
R.T. Frantz says, the fact that God has given his people the 
role of declaring his will on earth does not mean that he is 
bound to add his divine sanction to anything they may think up. 
Just go back to that illustration that has served us well because 
I'm seeing more and more shoehorns in people's homes. It's worked, 
my master plan, a shoehorn in every home. If that became a 
mandate, We said, Lord, we are binding up the kingdom of God 
on that wretch who will not succumb and put a shoehorn by his door. We are going to take action to 
treat him as a heathen and a tax collector. God does not ratify 
that. God does not ratify our legalistic 
preferences. God does not ratify our departures 
from his holy law. God does not ratify our additions 
or our taking away from. Might not be shoehorns, it might 
be any number of preferential things that we're going to drum 
you out if you do not succumb to what we say in this particular 
issue. And we have heaven itself to 
back us up. No. No you don't. Not at all. France 
is right. The fact that God has given his 
people the role of declaring his will on earth does not mean 
that he is bound to add his divine sanction to anything they may 
think up. You better have chapter and verse. 
You better have violation of the specific law. At the very 
beginning step, if your brother sins against you, go to him. 
Remember we said, and we rehearsed, make sure it's sin. Make sure 
it's sin. He violated God's law. He did 
something wrong. If he just violated your delicate 
conscience, don't go to him. If he is a lawbreaker before 
God, go to him. If you have been the one offended 
by him, go to him. But if it's a personal preference 
or if it's a way that you think they ought to serve or do and 
be better, you may just need to put it to rest. You need to 
exercise forgiveness if the brother says, I repent, please forgive 
me. You don't bring it up again. You don't publish it. You don't 
tell others. The process is given to us so that we don't abuse 
and that we hopefully toe the line. As well, our confession 
of faith is very helpful in chapter 26 because this happens. You 
might say, why are you going on on this? We seem to be a peaceable 
lot right now. We seem to have a degree of unity. 
The devil is always trying to get at churches. I am utterly 
convinced of that. Y'all saw the sign out here today? 
That was the devil. He bashed our sign. No, that 
wasn't the devil. But the devil would like to bash 
whatever unity, whatever peace, whatever happiness, or whatever 
joy we have. He'd like to bring an axe to 
bear upon a place where the gospel is actually preached and God 
actually saves sinners. This stuff is important. Sometimes 
people feel wronged in the church. The Bible has answers for that. Again, not the black hooded guys 
that just drum people out, toss them out, heathen tax collector, 
get away from us. That's not the way we function. 
Listen to our confession, 2613, no church members, upon any offense 
taken by them, having performed their duty required of them towards 
the person they are offended at, ought to disturb any church 
order. or absent themselves from the 
assemblies of the church or administration of any ordinances upon the account 
of such offense at any of their fellow members, but to wait upon 
Christ in the further proceeding of the church." It's wise counsel. While you're adjudicating a matter, 
still go to church, still take the supper, don't stand out there 
with a big sign saying, these people are all messed up. These 
people may all be messed up, but let it be found out in God's 
way, not through some picketing campaign. And then in 2615, in 
cases of difficulties or differences, either in point of doctrine or 
administration, wherein either the churches in general are concerned 
or any one church in their peace, union, and edification. or any 
member or members of any church are injured in or by any proceedings 
and censures not agreeable to truth and order, it is according 
to the mind of Christ that many churches holding communion together 
do by their messengers meet to consider and give their advice 
in or about that matter indifference to be reported to all the church's 
concern. How be it these messengers assembled 
are not entrusted with any church power, properly so called, or 
with any jurisdiction over the churches themselves to exercise 
any censures either over any churches or persons or to impose 
their determination on the churches or officers. Let me give you 
what they mean. We are in an association of churches. If any member in our church feels 
that they've been wronged and they have used the means You 
don't run to other churches if you haven't used the means. You've 
got to use the means. If I sin against you, the Bible 
says you need to come to me. Not go to C-TAC. I'm not saying 
we can't go to C-TAC. We will go to C-TAC if we need 
to go to C-TAC. But you have to deal with people 
the way God says. Go to them. Do not receive an 
accusation against an elder, for instance, except on the basis 
of two or three witnesses. If you think you are being wrong, 
and you've used the means. Pick up the phone, get on your 
computer, contact Don and Stephan Lindblad, contact Tom Lyon, contact 
any of these men we are in association with, and they will come here 
to help in that situation. What's the supposition behind 
this statement in our confession? Churches can err! We are not 
infallible. We don't have the big hats and 
the miter and sit and speak ex cathedra. We do the best that 
we can and sometimes there is sin. You are not without recourse. There is safety in an association 
of churches. Our confession uses the language 
of holding communion together. That's what we do. If you are 
ever wronged or you feel you've been wronged and you've gone 
through the appropriate means and you still think, I will call 
for you. We've had that in our history. 
We've invoked this particular clause. We have had other churches 
come and sit and hear an issue and give their advice. The confession 
is clear in that regard as well. This is not Presbyterial in function. They don't have authority to 
tell us what to do. They give their advice, they 
give us their wisdom, and then it's up to the local church to 
act according to it. Brethren, there are safeguards 
in place. So when we hear a sermon on the 
authority of the Church, do not suppose for a moment that that's 
a bad thing. The keys are given for the proclamation 
of the truth. The keys are given for the purity 
of the Church. So that sinners can come and 
hear the gospel and by the grace of God be saved. And saints can 
come and they can grow in the grace and the knowledge of the 
Lord Jesus. They can be what God has called them to be, utilizing 
that blessed means that He's ordained. The Lord's house on 
the Lord's day with the Lord's people eating the Lord's supper 
for their growth in the things of God Most High. The authority 
that the church possesses is real. The authority that the 
church possesses is not to be diminished. The authority that 
the church possesses is certainly not to be exchanged. We don't 
hang the keys of preaching and discipline up and put the rock 
band in. We don't hang the keys of preaching 
and discipline up and entertain people, or become about therapy, 
or come about self-help, or encounter sessions, or some other sort 
of group think. We come and do what God says. 
We come and obey the Lord. We come and get fed by the scriptures. We come and encourage one another 
in our singing together. It's not about us, brethren. 
It's about the glory of God. And a corollary is us, because 
we'll grow according to God's plan in our lives. The church 
really is an amazing reality. And just on a real practical 
level, isn't it great that we're all friends? We come from so 
many different backgrounds. We do. We come from many, many 
different backgrounds. We all have unity in Christ. It's truly blessed. I mean, what 
would older Dutch brothers ever have to do with some young punk 
from Southern California? I thank God for Mr. Bolt and 
when we were painting in this building, he would gently, not 
always gently, but, your problem is, you know, this sort of dialogue 
back and forth. Or people, to be quite candid, 
I feel privileged to even know. My background growing up and 
my experiences and then I come to people's houses and I sit 
with people that, you know, they weren't not sinners. They certainly 
weren't the sinners I was and they let me eat with them. They treat me as an equal. What 
other institution has that? What other institution is that 
place where John Jasper, was able to preach to white people. What other institution on the 
earth is made up from every tribe and tongue and people and nation? 
What other institution on earth will extend into the Eschaton? 
What other institution on the face of the earth has what the 
Church of Jesus Christ has? Brethren, I hope you love the 
Church. I hope you love the Church. I hope you pray for the Church. 
Because Jesus loves the church. Jesus intercedes for the church. 
Jesus is the head of the church. We're called Jesus' body. How 
do we not love what Jesus loves? Let's look finally at the presence 
of the church's Lord, verses 19 and 20. Note the place of 
prayer. Again I say to you that if two 
of you agree on earth concerning anything that they ask, it will 
be done for them by my Father in heaven. Now there is a general 
rule here. Jesus enjoins upon the people 
of God prayer. And very often when he tells 
us to pray, he gives us large promises to pray. Remember in 
Matthew 7, ask, seek, knock. What happens? God answers. God 
opens. You seek, you find. God is large 
hearted to his church when they pray. God is large hearted to 
his Christians when they pray. That is a principle throughout 
the scriptures. Back to the Psalter. I love the 
Lord. Why? Because he heard the voice of 
my supplications. The very reason why we love God 
is because he hears us. He listens to us. He pays attention 
to us. But I think specifically the 
application in the context. Again, I say to you that if two 
of you agree on earth concerning anything that they ask, concerning 
matters of church discipline, concerning the exercise of the 
keys, concerning binding and loosing, these are people's lives 
we're dealing with. If we're going to tag someone, 
a heathen and a tax collector, we do not do this willy-nilly. 
This calls for prayer, it calls for fasting, it calls for intercession, 
it calls for awaiting upon the Lord. You don't just run out 
there and say, we made our decision, out you go. No, you pray, you 
bathe the situation in prayer. The specific context is one of 
church discipline. When we engage in Matthew 18, 
15 to 17, when we exercise the authority of verse 18, when we 
take that key as it were and put it in the keyhole and turn 
it, we start to implement those things. We don't do it apart 
from prayer. We pray to God, we pray through 
Christ, we pray by the Spirit. Notice, again I say to you that 
if two of you agree on earth concerning anything that they 
ask, again, God help me find a sack of money. That's not what's 
in view. The anything they ask is, Lord, 
help us to operate according to these keys in an appropriate 
function. We don't want to bind somebody 
that should be loose, and we don't want to lose somebody that 
should be bound. Give us wisdom, God. We want to bring the repentant 
in. but we want to keep the obstinate 
out. Lord, help us, guide us, lead 
us by your spirit. There is a conditional, or there's 
a contextual element here. He says, if two of you agree 
on earth concerning anything that they ask, it will be done 
for them by my Father in heaven. Isn't that beautiful? When the 
church exercises its authority, they do it according to the word 
of God, they do it in a spirit of prayerfulness, and what does 
Jesus say? My Father will help you. We can't do church discipline, 
it's too hard. My Father will help you. Just 
go back to that first step in Matthew 18, 15. I know this brother 
has sinned against me and I know I should go to him, but I can't, 
it's so hard. What's Jesus saying? My Father 
in heaven will help you. My Father in heaven will hear 
your petitions. My Father in heaven will grant 
you grace. My Father in heaven will cause 
it all to work out for good. Now, good doesn't always mean 
what we mean by good, but that's the point. You see, brethren, 
sometimes we don't do what God commands us to do, and it's rebellion. It's a little uncomfortable, 
it's a little difficult, it's a little hard. I don't want to 
talk to that person about sin. It may just be garden variety, 
vanilla flavored, rebellion against God. If your brother sins against 
you, go to him. Is that tough? It's not tough 
to say it. It's probably not tough to hear 
it. Is it tough to do it? Yeah. Because you as a fellow 
sinner have to go tell another sinner that they sinned against 
you. But what's Jesus affirmed to us that pray about it? Wait 
upon the Lord. God will help you. God will grant 
you grace. And then notice the reason that 
he answers is in verse 20. Why does the Father grant what 
we ask? Because Christ is our mediator. Because He loves His Son. He 
delights in Jesus. He delights in the head. When 
the body functions according to the head, when the body prays 
according to the head, when the body does what it's supposed 
to, God is so pleased with the head, He receives the body. Look at verse 24, where two or 
three are gathered together in my name. I've argued, and I believe, 
that this is specifically with reference to discipline. Probably 
the two or three reflect the two or three witnesses. But someone 
has said with reference to the general aspect of prayer, he 
only mentions two or three because typically that's what a prayer 
meeting brings. Prayer meetings aren't generally 
the most populated meetings of the church, are they? Prayer 
meetings aren't always as well attended as they ought to be, 
are they? Prayer meetings are easy to skip 
and prayer meetings are easy to say, well, you know, I've 
got other things to do. Jesus promises that where two 
or three are gathered together in my name, I am in or I am there 
in the midst of them. He promises his special presence 
in the church. Again, specifically in the preaching 
of the word. You see that in Romans 10, you 
see that in Ephesians 2, when the Word of Christ is preached. When there is preaching of the 
Word, the Word of God comes to man. Christ is in the midst of 
preaching. Christ is in the midst of discipline. That's what this text underscores. 
Yes, the sense can be that when you gather together as two or 
three, Christ is there, He hears you, and He brings the petitions 
to the Father. But let's not lift this out of the context. 
When the two or three who are praying about this disciplinary 
matter, or when the church is praying about this disciplinary 
matter, when the church is exercising properly the keys of the kingdom 
that He has given to us, He says, I am there in the midst of them. 
I preside over it. I'm not an absentee king. I'm 
not an absentee head. I am with my church, even to 
the end of the age. And you know, it's very intriguing 
that the Gospel of Matthew is the book of God with us. Isn't 
it? How does Matthew's Gospel start 
out? In verse 23, it calls Jesus Emmanuel, 
which means That's right, God with us. How does Matthew's Gospel 
end? Go therefore and make disciples 
of all the nations, baptizing them in the name of the Father 
and of the Son and of the Holy Spirit, teaching them to observe 
all things that I have commanded you and lo, I am with you even 
to the end of the age. So at the incarnation of the 
coming of Christ and His redemptive activity, He is God with us. 
When He's ascending on high back to the throne at the right hand 
of the Father, He tells His people, I am God with you. I will be 
with you even to the end of the age. But he also says that when 
the church is functioning the way the church is supposed to, 
taking that key of authority and placing it in the hole and 
turning it and praying to him. He says, I'm there with you. You're not operating alone. You're 
not functioning by yourself. You're not doing this in your 
own strength. The mediator is present. And because he's in 
our midst, what happens? The father grants the petition 
that the church cries out for. And you know there's some big 
Christology going on here too. This whole idea of God with his 
people. What's that sound like? Sounds 
like the prophets. Sounds like Ezekiel. Sounds like 
Joel. Sounds like Zechariah. But as 
well, rabbinic tradition, the Mishnah. We can't trust all that 
for everything, but we can't distrust it for everything either. 
The fathers had a saying. the Jewish rabbis had a saying, 
not my fathers, their fathers, if two sit together and words 
of the Torah or the law are between them, the Shekinah rests between 
them. Now you know the word Shekinah, 
it means the manifested presence of God God displayed himself, 
not with hands and feet, but in a cloud of glory. That cloud 
is called the Shekinah. It represents the glory of the 
majestic God. The rabbis taught that when two 
or three are sitting together and they're reading the words 
of the law, that Shekinah rests upon them. What does Jesus do? He says when two or three in 
the context of the local church are praying, in this context 
specifically with reference to discipline, the Shekinah is with 
them. Christ the Lord is present among 
them. It's truly an amazing statement 
concerning the blessedness of our Christ. The statement looks 
beyond the death and resurrection as well. He assumes death and 
he assumes resurrection. This is a promise for the church 
throughout the entirety of the church age. It wasn't only specifically 
for these apostles and the churches they ministered in. Jesus promises 
his special presence with the churches throughout the age. 
He is in the midst of his praying people when they are seeking 
to exercise biblically the keys of the kingdom. Well, brethren, 
as we summarize the entirety of the section, first, the procedure 
for discipline, we have seen it. We have sought to unfold 
it, open it up. I just want to highlight a couple 
of things. First, it's importance. It's importance. It is an important 
aspect of church life. Jesus gives us keys. We're supposed 
to use them. Now, that doesn't mean we go 
try to find somebody to discipline. But it means that if somebody 
needs to be disciplined, we deal with them properly. That's just 
not what we do. That doesn't manifest the love 
of Christ. Nothing more manifests the love of Christ than to deal 
faithfully with somebody's soul. To let the sheep wander and fall 
into the river or to die, that's not love. To go grab the sheep 
and to drag them back to the flock, that's love. Herein is 
love, when we grab sheep and we bring them back to the flock. 
In terms of its importance, it is an obedience to Christ, it 
is a mark of the Church, and it is a manifestation of love 
for brethren. Secondly, its necessity. We need 
to have pure churches. And again, the fact that I'm 
standing here argues that this is an impure church. We all have 
sin, we all have remaining corruption, we all have our issues, but the 
idea is that by the grace of God, we're striving to maintain 
a conscience void of offense toward God and toward men. We're 
seeking to deal faithfully. and honestly, with God and with 
others concerning our sin. It is for purity. It is for the 
protection of people. We're going to see tonight that 
if heresy is left unchecked, it doesn't just sit there. If there are heretics in the 
church, guess what happens? The heresy is not checked. If 
it's not stopped, it spreads like gangrene, Paul says. We 
can't let that happen. We don't deal with sin in the 
congregation. People start to think, well, 
it's okay to sin. Probably that happens. Probably 
that's happened and probably is happening now. Well, that 
person does this or that person goes here or that person, and 
nothing ever happens to them. Pray to God Most High that we 
will be biblically functioning in this reality as well, recovery 
of the sinning brother. In the seriousness, the one who 
continues an obstinate rebellion sets himself against God. If heaven ratifies the Church's 
binding and loosing on earth, if the Church is functioning 
according to the Word of God, prayerfully being led by God, 
when we get to that final step and it's told to the Church, 
when that sinning brother refuses to hear the Church, he is setting 
himself into opposition against God the Lord. It's serious business. It is huge. It is big. Secondly, 
we need to appreciate the possession of the church's authority. It's 
not absolute, delegated, but it must be used responsibly. We're not doing anyone any favors 
by hanging up the keys and doing things that God has never sanctioned 
in his word. We're not helping people by being 
culturally relevant. You know the most culturally 
relevant thing we can do is preach the word and exercise the keys 
of the kingdom. In any culture, in any situation, 
in any time frame, and in any place, you know what the church 
is supposed to do? They're supposed to preach the 
gospel and exercise discipline. But they don't like that in our 
culture. It doesn't matter what they like. It doesn't work. How 
many times do we hear that? It doesn't work. Do you know 
if you just preach the gospel and do what God says in the Bible, 
it will never work. You have five people in your church. You 
have five people that fear God and love His Word. I'd rather 
have that than 50,000 people that don't care one whit about 
the Word. We need to exercise the authority that has been given 
and we need to do so prayerfully. A third observation with reference 
to the presence of the Church's Lord. The presence of the Church's 
Lord. Jesus assumes that His people 
will pray. Jesus assumes that his people will pray. Verse 19. Again, I say to you, if two of 
you agree on earth concerning anything that they ask, he assumes 
that we're agreeing and he assumes that we're asking. We need to 
be a prayerful people, especially if we enter into something like 
the exercise of church discipline. But if the keys are twofold, 
the exercise of discipline, and we are to pray with reference 
to that, we ought to pray for the preaching of the gospel as 
well. Brethren, if we are not prayerfully going in to the Sabbath 
day or going into the Lord's house, we are not using the means 
that God has ordained. When that key is inserted into 
the hole, we prayerfully turn it. God bless the preaching of 
the Word. God send forth the Holy Spirit. If we believe that the scriptures 
are that important and that essential, we must have the Spirit to guide, 
to illumine, to instruct us. Brethren, pray. And then finally, 
the purpose of the Church's existence. It's specified right here. 16 
and 18 tell us what is the Church supposed to do. They're supposed 
to preach the Word. They're supposed to exercise 
discipline. We see in elsewhere, other places, 
they're supposed to administer the sacraments, baptism and the 
Lord's Supper. Those are the primary objectives 
for the Church. Those are the primary responsibilities 
for the church. Those are the primary duties 
of the church. See, my thought is that churches 
ought to try and pursue and do those things as they ought before 
they start adding in a bunch of stuff that God hasn't commanded 
to be there. Preaching, discipline, sacraments. It is folly for the church to 
abandon these tasks and adopt things that are without biblical 
warrant. The keys of the kingdom are not 
self-help. The keys of the kingdom are not 
good advice. Do you realize that? We don't 
preach good advice. We preach good news. There's churches out there today 
that don't preach good news. They preach good advice. Fifteen 
ways on how to be a better pet owner. Fifteen ways on how to 
be a happier guy at work. Fifteen ways on how to be a better 
pianist in your church. Now, some of those might have 
some particular application. We don't want bad pianists in 
our church. We don't want bad pet owners. We don't want bad 
workers. But we preach the good news. That Christ came into this world, 
sinners to save. That Christ lived in obedience 
to his Father's law. Christ, in that 33 years, offered 
up to the Father a perfect obedience wherein He merits eternal life 
for all those whom the Father has given Him. That's good news. That Christ who, after obeying, 
Christ sacrificed Himself, or He was offered up as a sacrifice 
to satisfy divine justice, to atone for the sins of all those 
whom the Father had given Him. He was placed in the tomb and 
on the third day He rose again and He ascended on high and He 
sits enthroned at the Father's right hand. We don't come out 
to peddle good advice on how to have a happier life. We come 
to preach the good news that all those who believe by God's 
grace that truth concerning Christ will be saved. We'll pass from 
death to life. We'll go to heaven. We'll live 
with the Lord. We'll be with Him forever and 
ever, world without end. The church needs to take the 
keys and take them seriously and turn them in the manner that 
God the Lord has commanded. Well, let us pray. Our Father, 
we thank You for Your Word and we thank You for this section 
in Matthew's Gospel that instructs the church on particulars I pray 
that you would help us as individuals to get these things, help us 
as a church to get these things, and help us as a church to obey 
these things. We thank you for this meeting 
together. We thank you for the Church of Christ. We thank you 
for this local expression that you have brought us all together 
here, and we pray that you would be honored and glorified in our 
midst. And we ask through Christ Jesus 
our Lord, amen.