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073: What Does True Greatness Look Like - Matthew 18:1-6 · Gospel Explorations

• 0:04
  SPEAKER_00: Hello everyone, this is Mark Davis, and I'm going to welcome you to the Gospel Explorations Podcast, where we gather together each week to take time to explore God's Word to learn how we ought to live in this present age.
• 0:16
  SPEAKER_00: I'm glad you've chosen to spend some time with us today.
• 0:19
  SPEAKER_00: Let's jump into today's episode.
• 0:26
  SPEAKER_00: Hello, friends, and welcome back to the Gospel Explorations Podcast.
• 0:30
  SPEAKER_00: This is episode number 73, and I'm your host, Mark Davis.
• 0:35
  SPEAKER_00: Now, as we step into Matthew chapter 18, uh, we enter a section of scripture where Jesus begins to shape what life in his kingdom actually looks like.
• 0:44
  SPEAKER_00: It's not just life uh in relationship to our beliefs or an attitude or on our relationships, but in how we treat each other.
• 0:52
  SPEAKER_00: And some have compared this chapter to really even a manual for kingdom living.
• 0:58
  SPEAKER_00: But unlike the rigid rule books of the religious groups of Jesus' day, Jesus doesn't give a list of regulations, he gives something much deeper.
• 1:07
  SPEAKER_00: He actually speaks to the heart, and it all begins with questions that the disciples are asking, and questions that reveal just how much they still don't understand.
• 1:17
  SPEAKER_00: Look with me at Matthew chapter 18 and verse number one.
• 1:21
  SPEAKER_00: At the same time came the disciples into Jesus saying, Who is the greatest in the kingdom of heaven?
• 1:27
  SPEAKER_00: Now, this question tells us a lot because the disciples here are thinking about rank and position and status.
• 1:32
  SPEAKER_00: Who is the greatest?
• 1:34
  SPEAKER_00: And you can almost hear the conversation that led up to it, right?
• 1:37
  SPEAKER_00: They've been walking together, talking, maybe even debating, is it Peter?
• 1:41
  SPEAKER_00: Is it John?
• 1:42
  SPEAKER_00: Maybe it's James.
• 1:44
  SPEAKER_00: And then finally, someone says, Well, let's just ask Jesus.
• 1:48
  SPEAKER_00: But don't miss this timing because Jesus has been speaking to them about his suffering, his betrayal, and his death.
• 1:54
  SPEAKER_00: And at the very same time, they're talking about his greatness.
• 1:58
  SPEAKER_00: Charles Spurgeon put it this way: He spoke of his abasement while they were thinking of their own advancement.
• 2:07
  SPEAKER_00: And that tension is still alive today.
• 2:09
  SPEAKER_00: Jesus speaks of humility and we think about recognition.
• 2:13
  SPEAKER_00: Jesus speaks of sacrifice and we think about success.
• 2:17
  SPEAKER_00: You see, the disciples weren't asking a bad question in theory, but their hearts are revealing something that was off.
• 2:25
  SPEAKER_00: They still imagined a kingdom like the kingdoms of this world, with positions and titles and influence.
• 2:32
  SPEAKER_00: But Jesus is about to completely redefine greatness.
• 2:37
  SPEAKER_00: Look at verses two through four.
• 2:39
  SPEAKER_00: And Jesus called a little child unto him and set him in the midst of them, and said, Verily I say unto you, except ye be converted and become as little children, ye should not enter into the kingdom of heaven.
• 2:50
  SPEAKER_00: Whosoever therefore shall humble himself as this little child, the same as greatest in the kingdom of heaven.
• 2:58
  SPEAKER_00: Now Jesus doesn't point to a leader of the day.
• 3:01
  SPEAKER_00: He doesn't name a disciple, rather he calls a child.
• 3:05
  SPEAKER_00: You see, in that culture this would have been shocking.
• 3:09
  SPEAKER_00: Children were not seen as examples of greatness.
• 3:12
  SPEAKER_00: They had no status, they had no authority, they had no influence.
• 3:16
  SPEAKER_00: They were dependent, overlooked, and even often considered insignificant.
• 3:21
  SPEAKER_00: And Jesus says, this then is the picture.
• 3:24
  SPEAKER_00: Except ye be converted and become as little children.
• 3:28
  SPEAKER_00: Now that word converted that Jesus is using there is a strong word because it means to turn, to change one's direction.
• 3:36
  SPEAKER_00: And what Jesus is saying is that you're going the wrong way entirely.
• 3:41
  SPEAKER_00: And if you want to enter the kingdom of God, you don't climb up, you must go low.
• 3:48
  SPEAKER_00: Now, this is important because Jesus is not telling us that we should be childish.
• 3:53
  SPEAKER_00: He's not pointing to immaturity, he's rather pointing to humility.
• 3:57
  SPEAKER_00: Whosoever therefore shall humble himself as this little child.
• 4:02
  SPEAKER_00: Children in that culture had no concern for status.
• 4:06
  SPEAKER_00: They didn't compete for rank and they didn't assert their importance.
• 4:10
  SPEAKER_00: They just existed in a posture of dependence.
• 4:14
  SPEAKER_00: And that's the very heart that Jesus is describing.
• 4:17
  SPEAKER_00: Not self-promotion, but self-humbling, not striving to be seen, but willingness to be low.
• 4:25
  SPEAKER_00: And even as one commentator put it, the child is not an example of innocence or purity, but of unconcern for status.
• 4:33
  SPEAKER_00: That's the very thing the disciples were chasing.
• 4:36
  SPEAKER_00: And that's what Jesus is dismantling.
• 4:39
  SPEAKER_00: Jesus says something very radical in this verse.
• 4:47
  SPEAKER_00: In other words, Jesus is saying, the one who humbles himself the most is the greatest.
• 4:53
  SPEAKER_00: This is completely opposite of the world system.
• 4:57
  SPEAKER_00: In the world, greatness is about power and recognition and achievement.
• 5:02
  SPEAKER_00: But in God's kingdom, greatness is about humility and dependence and surrender.
• 5:07
  SPEAKER_00: And we see this perfectly modeled for us in Jesus Himself.
• 5:11
  SPEAKER_00: He is the greatest, and yet he humbled himself.
• 5:15
  SPEAKER_00: The apostle Paul tells us in Philippians chapter 2 that he humbled himself and became obedient unto death.
• 5:22
  SPEAKER_00: Jesus doesn't just teach this, he embodies it.
• 5:26
  SPEAKER_00: Now look at verse number five in Matthew 18.
• 5:30
  SPEAKER_00: And whoso shall receive one such little child in my name receiveth me.
• 5:36
  SPEAKER_00: Jesus is now taking it a step further.
• 5:39
  SPEAKER_00: He says, How you treat the humble reveals how you treat me.
• 5:44
  SPEAKER_00: This isn't just about children.
• 5:46
  SPEAKER_00: Little ones could be those who are humble, overlooked, low in status, weak in the eyes of the world.
• 5:53
  SPEAKER_00: And Jesus says, if you receive them, you receive me.
• 5:57
  SPEAKER_00: That changes everything.
• 6:00
  SPEAKER_00: Because it's easy to honor the impressive.
• 6:03
  SPEAKER_00: It's easy to welcome the influential.
• 6:06
  SPEAKER_00: But what about those that are unnoticed?
• 6:08
  SPEAKER_00: The quiet, the struggling, the overlooked.
• 6:11
  SPEAKER_00: Jesus identifies himself with them.
• 6:14
  SPEAKER_00: To receive them is to receive him.
• 6:17
  SPEAKER_00: Jesus then gives us one of the strongest warnings in this entire section.
• 6:22
  SPEAKER_00: But whoso shall offend one of these little ones which believe in me, it were better for him that a millstone were hanged about his neck, and that he were drowned in the depth of the sea.
• 6:33
  SPEAKER_00: Now I don't know about you, but this is not mild language.
• 6:36
  SPEAKER_00: It's severe.
• 6:38
  SPEAKER_00: This word to offend literally means to cause to stumble, to lead into sin, to damage their faith.
• 6:46
  SPEAKER_00: And Jesus says of that person, it would be better to be drowned than to do that.
• 6:54
  SPEAKER_00: That's serious.
• 6:56
  SPEAKER_00: Leading someone into sin is always serious.
• 7:01
  SPEAKER_00: But leading one of his little ones, those who are humble, those who believe, those who are vulnerable, it is a grave offense.
• 7:11
  SPEAKER_00: And the image of the millstone is intentional.
• 7:14
  SPEAKER_00: This is not a small stone.
• 7:17
  SPEAKER_00: This is a massive stone used by a donkey, heavy, inescapable, certain destruction.
• 7:24
  SPEAKER_00: And Jesus is saying this is not something to take lightly.
• 7:29
  SPEAKER_00: So what should we walk away from in looking at this passage?
• 7:34
  SPEAKER_00: Well, first we need to check our definition of greatness.
• 7:38
  SPEAKER_00: Are you chasing recognition, status, or influence?
• 7:43
  SPEAKER_00: Or are you pursuing humility?
• 7:46
  SPEAKER_00: Because in the kingdom of heaven, the path down is always the path up.
• 7:51
  SPEAKER_00: Second, we need to embrace the posture of a child, that of dependence and trust and a lack of self-importance.
• 7:59
  SPEAKER_00: This does not come naturally.
• 8:01
  SPEAKER_00: Jesus even tells us, except ye be converted.
• 8:05
  SPEAKER_00: That is, it requires transformation.
• 8:08
  SPEAKER_00: Third, he calls us to pay attention to how we treat the little ones.
• 8:13
  SPEAKER_00: That is those that are overlooked and humble, those who don't have any status or power.
• 8:19
  SPEAKER_00: Because how you treat them, Jesus says is how you treat Christ.
• 8:24
  SPEAKER_00: And then lastly, he tells us to be careful to not lead others into sin.
• 8:30
  SPEAKER_00: This is important because your words matter, your example matters, your influence matters, and Jesus takes it seriously.
• 8:38
  SPEAKER_00: And if he does, so should we.
• 8:43
  SPEAKER_00: In this passage, Jesus is giving us a clear picture of what kingdom life should look like.
• 8:48
  SPEAKER_00: It's not about climbing and getting to the top, but about humbling ourselves, lowering ourselves to be like Jesus.
• 8:56
  SPEAKER_00: It's not asserting our rights, but surrendering.
• 9:01
  SPEAKER_00: It's not about being served, it's about becoming small and serving others.
• 9:07
  SPEAKER_00: And in that place, the scriptures tell us that we begin to look more like Him.
• 9:13
  SPEAKER_00: Because the King himself became low.
• 9:18
  SPEAKER_00: Friend, thanks for joining me today on the Gospel Explorations podcast.
• 9:22
  SPEAKER_00: I hope this has been a help and an encouragement to you.
• 9:26
  SPEAKER_00: Be sure to share the podcast with others if it's been a help.
• 9:29
  SPEAKER_00: And don't forget to check out the show notes.
• 9:32
  SPEAKER_00: Until next time, friends, grace and peace.
• 9:36
  SPEAKER_00: Thanks for listening.
• 9:38
  SPEAKER_00: I hope that you've been both encouraged and challenged today.
• 9:41
  SPEAKER_00: If you want to connect with us further, please be sure to check us out on the web at gospelexplorations.com.
• 9:48
  SPEAKER_00: We look forward to having you join us again next time.