A HARMONY OF THE GOSPELS

VV. Christ’s Teaching On Positions In Heaven

(Matthew 18:1-5; Mark 9:33-37; Luke 9:46-48)

I. Introduction

A. Every believer wants to live a life that is pleasing to the Lord, edifying to others and meaningful to himself. Where this desire becomes sin is when it crosses into the realm of pride where one desires to be preeminent.

B. The disciples crossed into the realm of pride in this matter when they argued among themselves on who would have the greatest position in Christ’s kingdom, and Christ’s response is very instructive for us (as follows):

II. Christ’s Teaching On Positions In Heaven, Matthew 18:1-5; Mark 9:33-37; Luke 9:46-48.

A. Jesus taught that one enters heaven by complete reliance on God as a child relies on his father, Matt. 18:1-3:

1. After the glorious revelation of Christ in His future kingdom to Peter, James and John on the Mount of Transfiguration (Matthew 17:1-8), the disciples got into an argument over who of them would be the greatest in Christ’s kingdom, Matthew 18:1 with Mark 9:33-34.

2. Jesus responded by calling a little child to Himself, setting him in their midst, and saying that even to get into the kingdom of heaven, one had to be like that little child, Matthew 18:2-3.

3. A child belongs to a family because he was brought into the world through his parents, so getting into the Father’s spiritual family and hence into His heaven is the work of God and not the child. (Ephesians 2:8-9)

4. Thus, there was no grounds of boasting and therefore arguing about one’s merit of even entering heaven!

B. Since just getting into heaven requires the unmerited favor of God apart from human merit, Jesus added that everything else of blessing, be it position, honor and reward in heaven, is also due exclusively to God’s grace:

1. First, since a believer must be like a little child and totally depend on the favor of his father to be a part of the father’s family, a believer must humble himself as a little child to be the greatest in heaven, Matt. 18:4.

2. Second, a believer must relate to other people as he would treat other little children to be rewarded by God, for nothing a believer does in relating to others that is good arises from any merit in himself, but he must relate in utter reliance on the Holy Spirit to relate well to others, Matthew 18:5-6 with Romans 8:3-4:

a. We believers function in this life either by the control of the sinful nature or by the Holy Spirit’s control in our new nature in Christ, Galatians 5:19-23. Thus, we believers must rely on the Holy Spirit to function in godliness with other people, Galatians 5:16.

b. That means that we must relate to others, treating them with the consideration we would seek to show even to a small child with the fruit of the Holy Spirit by grace to be rewarded by God for such treatment!

3. Third, regarding heavenly rewards for serving the Lord, a believer must minister to address the needs of others as a servant to the Father’s will in God’s calling of that believer to be rewarded, Mark 9:35:

a. Every believer serves the Lord effectively through the supernatural spiritual gifting God has sovereignly chosen to give each believer for Christian service, Acts 1:8 with 1 Corinthians 12:4-11; 1 Peter 4:10-11.

b. Every believer must also submit to the will of God as to where, when and how he uses his spiritual gift to meet the needs of other believers in the local church setting, Romans 12:3-8; Colossians 4:17:

i. We believers are not to think more highly of ourselves than we ought to think, but to think with sober judgment, focusing on the gift God gave us to use to minister to others, Romans 12:3-8 ESV.

ii. For example, Archippus in the Church of Colossae had been given a specific ministry in that local church by the Lord Himself, so Paul admonished him to fulfill that ministry in Colossians 4:17.

c. Thus, every believer must humbly stoop to meet the needs of other believers as a servant of the Lord much like a little child obeys his earthly father to be rewarded for his service to God the Father, John 4:25-35:

i. When Jesus ministered to the Samaritan woman to where she spread news of Him among other Samaritans as being the promised Messiah, Jesus called such an event his very “food,” His doing the will of the Father Who had sent Him and to complete His work, John 4:25-35 ESV.

ii. Every believer today should similarly yield to serving the Father’s calling of him in meeting the needs of other even lowly people like Jesus did the lowly Samaritans to whom God assigned Him.

Lesson: Positions in heaven, just like one’s entering heaven, are products of God’s grace and not of human merit. Thus, every believer must view himself as a little child in relating to God, in relating to other believers, in serving the Lord, in being rewarded by Him and in being honored by Him.

Application: May we abandon proud self-merit to rely on God’s grace for everything we are, have and do!