Matthew 18 - Salvation & mercy from our Father in heaven
God is a God full of mercy & righteousness which means He is just, and it’s all rooted from the trait of humility. For those who have experience in interacting with toddlers or children shall know that they are straightforward without any hidden intentions. Even when they wanted something, they revealed it as it is because that’s what their heart wants. They do not think like any trained mind to calculate nor weigh the costs but of course the society & the world does not approve of that due to self-interest in the context of the desires of the heart that does not harm others. For clarity, if one does not want disruption, then make a safe space for the children to be at. If that’s not possible, it’s nobody’s fault & everyone involved should show love in this case.
The humility in a child means true to the heart in purity, even when they try to hide it, their eyes, facial expressions & body language will let us know what they truly want. Often times when a child tries to hide what they wanted, it’s because they felt threatened or that it’s unapproved to want that something by the experienced or what they learned from their surroundings. They do not think that they are more or less nor higher nor lower than who they are, they just be. This is what our Father wants from us, a true heart when we pray or talk to Him. A humble heart is to see the reality of what it is, no facade, no mask but just come as you are to the Father. Our Father in heaven will never reject such a person. People mask up to be accepted by people, our Lord Jesus Christ does not reject a humble person.
Our Lord Jesus Christ was trying to teach the disciples that He desires purity in heart with humility & do not cause these little ones who believe in Him to sin. In this context Jesus Christ was teaching His disciples to avoid striving or competing to gain a great position or to think that only there are certain people only can be the greatest in the kingdom of heaven. People often wanted a higher position usually because they think they deserve it or they should get it for they have earn it or there are certain benefits behind the position & they can use that. It depends on how they were trained, taught, groomed or raised, usually it causes an effect of fear which led to fight or flight. So it’s important to always come before God & ask God to create in us a pure heart to trust in Him. In contrast, a child doesn’t calculate like that. They want what matters to the heart now because they haven’t learned all those “survival skills”…our Lord Jesus Christ welcomes such a child & being humble is the greatest in the kingdom of heaven. Then it goes deeper, it was all about appearance, Jesus Christ taught them to no despise the little children thinking that they are of no use. Appearance can be deceiving however God does not look at appearance, He knows when one goes astray or lost, people sometimes get lost in their faith, these are the ones that sometimes church or leaders shun them away for their “disobedience”. These are the ones that God go looking for to lead them back to Him.
As for the unforgiving servant, he was shown mercy, but when his servant needed that mercy, he refused & threw him into prison. Literally, it’s about a financial debt which can be calculated in materials & there was a huge relief now the debt is gone, but he went and imprisoned his servant because of a lesser debt, maybe out of wanting to feel in control or powerful, maybe greed or cruelty & so when his master heard it, he was handed over to tortured until he would pay his entire debt. This is the vicious cycle of pride, greed, cruelty that roots out of selfishness & self-centeredness. It’s a reminder that our Lord Jesus Christ is the one that paid the price so that we can reconcile to our Father in heaven.
In this chapter’s context, we should not stop others from receiving our Lord Jesus Christ because of their sins or thinking that they must earn it somehow before they can be a follower of Christ or to enter the kingdom of heaven. It’s all based on Christ’s sacrifice that was completed, justified by faith which means anyone that believe & accept our Lord Jesus Christ is welcome. Based on works, no one is worthy for all have sinned and fall short of the glory of God. This is the gift of salvation that our Father in heaven has given to us thru Lord Jesus Christ’s crucifixion & resurrection on the third day.