By Clifton Angel
Verily I say unto you, Whatsoever ye shall bind on earth
shall be bound in heaven: and whatsoever ye shall loose on earth shall be
loosed in heaven. Again I say unto you, That if two of you shall agree on earth
as touching any thing that they shall ask, it shall be done for them of my
Father which is in heaven. For where two or three are gathered together in my
name, there am I in the midst of them (Matthew 18:18–20).
Context. Context.
Context. In our study of Scripture, we must keep passages in context of the
whole of Scripture, the context of the writing of the passage, and the context
of the immediate subject of the passage. There are principles in Scripture that
often apply outside of its immediate context; however, we must be careful not
to make false applications. Our three verses at hand are exemplary.
The Catholic
Church claims sole authority in the decisions and directions that “Christians”
are to follow: theology, morality, social standards, leadership, worship
practices, et. al. Their papacy and councils meet to make these decisions,
which are ever changing. Many years ago, a mentor of mine—who spent much time
in overseas missions—inquired of an archbishop in the Catholic Church as to
their stance on homosexuality. The archbishop’s response was: “We have not
decided that, yet.”
What does this
have to do with our passage at hand?
Everything. This
is a “proof text” (also, Matthew 16:18–19) of the Catholic Church’s claim to
having authority to change beliefs and practices of the church based on changes
in social climates. These passages do not give such authority to the church.
Jesus is the sole authority over the church (Eph. 1:22–23; 5:23; Col. 1:18),
and He has not established a vicar, nor has He authorized any man to change
what He has taught (2 John 9–11).
Consider two
logical deductions based on these Catholic precepts which lead to absurd
conclusions:
1. If the church can change its standards of morality and
practice based on the world’s thoughts and feelings, who really has the
authority? The world and worldliness. Does that coincide with the teachings of
Christ (cf. 1 John 2:15–17; Col. 3:17)?
2. If Catholicism has been given the authority by Jesus to
determine acceptable beliefs and practices for Christians, why did God take on
flesh, use His human breath to teach what is acceptable, and sacrifice Himself
on the cross to purchase the church (cf. Matt. 26:28; Acts 20:28), if the
church can just change it all, anyway? According to Catholicism, all of the
precepts of Matthew 5 – 7 are relative and subjective to their decisions, and
even the four steps Jesus authorizes in our current context are moot if the
Pope decides to change them.
What,
then, does Matthew 18:18–20 mean?
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