Matthew 18:20

"For where two or three have gathered together in My name, I am there in their midst." (Matthew 18:20 NASB). Reading this verse by itself it seems natural to apply it to the fellowship of believers, but is that supported by the context from which the verse is taken? It is clear, from the verse, that the two or three who have gathered together are believers or are assumed to be believes and when they meet together, Jesus will be there with them. That is a great mystery Paul speaks of in Colossians 1:27: "Christ in you, the hope of glory." Since Christ is in us as a believer, then when we meet with other believers, Jesus Christ will be in our midst.

A question that comes to mind that needs to be asked, is why these two or three have gathered together? The general context from which this verse is found is about the brother who sins against you. If after you have confronted that brother and he does not listen to you, then you are to take one or two others, that can establish evidence of his wrong doing, and confront him again. It is you and the one or two others that make up the two or three of our verse. We are not meeting together for fellowship, but to determine what we will do if our brother will not repent even if his sin is told before the church. As we discuss what this discipline should be, our verse tells us that Jesus is in our midst to help us make a decision about that discipline for our brother, which will be carried out by our heavenly Father.

Looking at our verse by itself you would have no idea that it was related to discipline and not fellowship. I am not saying that two or three who come together for fellowship won’t experience Jesus in their midst, they will. That, however, is not the context of this verse. I found it interesting to see this and I also see this as a warning that some verses taken out of context could lead to unfavorable results; even the formation of false doctrine.

Prayer

Father, devotionals have a definite place in the life of believers, but in many cases the verse the devotional references is taken out of context and may result in a wrong interpretation or application to be remembered for that verse. Father, I fear that some of our devotionals and topical Bible studies are eroding the context of Scripture and weakening the value of the Bible as a handbook for godly living. Father, help us see the importance of verse by verse Bible study to maintain context.