continued...
A final note re authority and submission...
The Scripture is clear in
Matthew 18:18-20, "
Verily I say unto you, whatsoever ye 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."
We first see mention of binding and loosing in
Matthew 16:19 where Jesus grants Peter this authority.
Matthew 18 gives more detail on this subject as we hear Jesus teach His disciples about discipline in the Church which was, at that time not yet established.
He speaks about greatness in the Kingdom (vs. 1-10), His love for the straying sheep (vs. 11-14), settling disputes among Saints (vs. 15-20), and forgiveness (vs. 21-35).
When Jesus said "bind and loose," the disciples knew these were words used by the rabbis that meant to
forbid and
permit.
He gave them a standard set of instructions for dealing with disputes, unruly Saints, and sinning Saints. Along with this, He gave them the authority to censure...to bind or forbid a member of the Body of Christ.
If the leadership feels that the offense warrants it, the individual is to be counseled, censured, sat down , and possibly asked to leave (
I Corinthians 5:10-13). In other words, the offender is bound.
Whatever the officers of the church forbid, is forbidden in heaven. We are to be reminded that discipline is not the end, for the restoration of the offender is God’s plan. If the sinning or mistaken Saint truly repents, they are to be loosed from their censure, and the decision made by the pastor is loosed (permitted) in heaven.
Jesus followed binding and loosing with, "...if two of you shall agree as touching any thing that ye shall ask, it shall be done..." (v. 19).
He was remaining in His discourse on disciplining Saints who err, and said that the church leaders should come to an agreement on the appropriate action.
Agreement means
coming to a mutual arrangement; the state of being in accord. We are to be of the same mind and heart, in one accord, and it should be acceptable to all who are in authority.
In other words, don’t let there be dissention in the ranks over who is to be bound and who is to be loosed. Set people down or remove them entirely, but pray and agree about the best course of action regarding the offense. God so desires to bless His people that if even two or three come into agreement of the matter, He will be right there in their midst.
We grow into maturity by following God's plan...to me, it is just that simple.
Just my thoughts here, Bro. Pew.