Matthew 18

Matthew 1823 “Therefore, the kingdom of heaven is like a king who wanted to settle accounts with his servants. 24 As he began the settlement, a man who owed him ten thousand talents was brought to him. 25 Since he was not able to pay, the master ordered that he and his wife and his children and all that he had be sold to repay the debt.

26 “The servant fell on his knees before him. ‘Be patient with me,’ he begged, ‘and I will pay back everything.’ 27 The servant’s master took pity on him, canceled the debt and let him go. 28 “But when that servant went out, he found one of his fellow servants who owed him a hundred denarii. He grabbed him and began to choke him. ‘Pay back what you owe me!’ he demanded.

29 “His fellow servant fell to his knees and begged him, ‘Be patient with me, and I will pay you back.’ 30 “But he refused. Instead, he went off and had the man thrown into prison until he could pay the debt. 31 When the other servants saw what had happened, they were greatly distressed and went and told their master everything that had happened.

32 “Then the master called the servant in. ‘You wicked servant,’ he said, ‘I canceled all that debt of yours because you begged me to. 33 Shouldn’t you have had mercy on your fellow servant just as I had on you?’ 34 In anger his master turned him over to the jailers to be tortured, until he should pay back all he owed.

35 “This is how my heavenly Father will treat each of you unless you forgive your brother from your heart.”

The Kingdom Here And ThereMatthew 18-20

When we talk about food or vacationWe live in the present

We also begin to live in the futureWe are living between to worlds

As soon as we come to know Christ we are part of the kingdom

ThereforeThe kingdom if God is thereBut the kingdom is also here

The kingdom of God hereMatthew 182 …“Who is the greatest in the kingdom of heaven?” 3 And he said: “I tell you the truth, unless you change and become like little children, you will never enter the kingdom of heaven. 4 Therefore, whoever humbles himself like this child is the greatest in the kingdom of heaven.

5 “And whoever welcomes a little child like this in my name welcomes me. 6 But if anyone causes one of these little ones who believe in me to sin, it would be better for him to have a large millstone hung around his neck and to be drowned in the depths of the sea.

14 In the same way your Father in heaven is not willing that any of these little ones should be lost.

In the kingdom here The greatest are…

The childrenThose who are humble

Those who welcome, value and treat children kindly

Matthew 1815 “If your brother sins against you, go and show him his fault, just between the two of you. If he listens to you, you have won your brother over. 16 But if he will not listen, take one or two others along, so that ‘every matter may be established by the testimony of two or three witnesses.’

21 Then Peter came to Jesus and asked, “Lord, how many times shall I forgive my brother when he sins against me? Up to seven times?” 22 Jesus answered, “I tell you, not seven times, but seventy-seven times.

23 “Therefore, the kingdom of heaven is like a king who wanted to settle accounts with his servants.

32 “Then the master called the servant in. ‘You wicked servant,’ he said, ‘I canceled all that debt of yours because you begged me to. 33 Shouldn’t you have had mercy on your fellow servant just as I had on you?’

34 In anger his master turned him over to the jailers to be tortured, until he should pay back all he owed. 35 “This is how my heavenly Father will treat each of you unless you forgive your brother from your heart.”

In the kingdom here The greatest are…

Those who deal with conflictThose who forgive

All who forgive from the heart

Matthew 193 Some Pharisees came to him to test him. They asked, “Is it lawful for a man to divorce his wife for any and every reason?”

10 The disciples said to him, “If this is the situation between a husband and wife, it is better not to marry.”

16 Now a man came up to Jesus and asked, “Teacher, what good thing must I do to get eternal life?” 17 “Why do you ask me about what is good?” Jesus replied. “There is only One who is good. If you want to enter life, obey the commandments.”

18 “Which ones?” the man inquired. Jesus replied, “ ‘Do not murder, do not commit adultery, do not steal, do not give false testimony, 19 honor your father and mother,’ and ‘love your neighbor as yourself.’” 20 “All these I have kept,” the young man said. “What do I still lack?”

21 Jesus answered, “If you want to be perfect, go, sell your possessions and give to the poor, and you will have treasure in heaven. Then come, follow me.” 22 When the young man heard this, he went away sad, because he had great wealth.

26 Jesus looked at them and said, “With man this is impossible, but with God all things are possible.”

In the kingdom here The greatest are…

Those who understand that relationships are difficult

All who come to understand that God save us because we

can’t save ourselves

The kingdom thereMatthew 19 28 Jesus said to them, “I tell you the truth, at the renewal of all things, when the Son of Man sits on his glorious throne, you who have followed me will also sit on twelve thrones, judging the twelve tribes of Israel.

29 And everyone who has left houses or brothers or sisters or father or mother or children or fields for my sake will receive a hundred times as much and will inherit eternal life. 30 But many who are first will be last, and many who are last will be first.

The kingdom thereIt is tiered

Matthew 20“For the kingdom of heaven is like a landowner who went out early in the morning to hire men to work in his vineyard. 2 He agreed to pay them a denarius for the day and sent them into his vineyard. 3 “About the third hour…

5 …“He went out again about the sixth hour and the ninth hour and did the same thing. 6 About the eleventh hour he went out… 15 Don’t I have the right to do what I want with my own money? Or are you envious because I am generous?’ 16 “So the last will be first, and the first will be last.”

In the kingdom thereThe cost to enter the kingdom is

the same for everyone

21 …She said, “Grant that one of these two sons of mine may sit at your right and the other at your left in your kingdom.”

23 …to sit at my right or left is not for me to grant. These places belong to those for whom they have been prepared by my Father.”

26 …whoever wants to become great among you must be your servant, 27 and whoever wants to be first must be your slave— 28 just as the Son of Man did not come to be served, but to serve, and to give his life as a ransom for many.”

In the kingdom thereThe least is the greatest

The last is the firstThe least and the last are those who

serve and work for the kingdom, who love the children and forgive

Putting it all togetherWe are great here in the kingdom when we are…

Children, humble like a child and when we welcome, value

and treat children kindly

Putting it all togetherWe are great here in the

kingdom when we…Deal with conflict and

forgive not just with words but from the heart

Putting it all togetherWe are great here in the kingdom

when we…Understand how tough

relationships can be to maintainOur relationship with God being

no exceptionAnd because it is too difficult for

us, we have to let God save us

Putting it all togetherWe are great there in the kingdom

when we…Even though it cost every person

the same price to enter…We strive to live and serve

because the kingdom is tiered based on our service to the Lord

Putting it all togetherWe are great there in the

kingdom when we…Serve him now in this world

where we are considered the least and the last

But in his kingdom we will be greatest and first

Be humble like a childLove the children

ForgiveServe the Lord quietly and

joyfully

We are the Federated Church.Our Mission is to…

Seek Christ, Serve Christ and Share Christ.