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At that time the disciples came to Jesus, saying, "Who then is the greatest in the kingdom of haven?" Then Jesus called a little child to Him, set him in the midst of them, and said, "Assuredly, I say to you, unless you are converted and become as little children, you will by no means enter the kingdom of heaven. Therefore whoever humbles himself as this little child is the greatest in the kingdom of heaven. Whoever receives one little child like this in My name receives Me. Whoever causes one of these little ones who believe in Me to sin, it would be better for him if a millstone were hung around his neck, and he were drowned in the depth of the sea. Woe to the world because of offenses! For offenses must come, but woe to that man by whom the offense comes! If your hand or foot causes you to sin, cut it off and cast it from you. It is better for you to enter into life lame or maimed, rather than having two hands or two feet, to be cast in to the everlasting fire. And if your eye causes you to sin, pluck it out and cast it from you. It is better for you to enter into life with one eye, rather than having two eyes, to be cast into hell fire."
- Matthew 18:1-9
Yesterday, we read that while Jesus and the disciples were staying in Galilee, He said to them, "The Son of Man is about to be betrayed into the hands of men, and they will kill Him, and the third day He will be raised up." And they were exceedingly sorrowful. When they had come to Capernaum, those who received the temple tax came to Peter and said, "Does your Teacher not pay the temple tax?" He said, "Yes." And when he had come into the house, Jesus anticipated him, saying, "What do you think, Simon? From whom do the kings of the earth take customs or taxes, from their sons or from strangers?" Peter said to Him, "From strangers." Jesus said to him, "Then the sons are free. Nevertheless, lest we offend them, go to the sea, cast in a hook, and take the fish that comes up first. And when you have opened its mouth, you will find a piece of money; take that and give it to them for Me and you."
At that time the disciples came to Jesus, saying, "Who then is the greatest in the kingdom of haven?" Then Jesus called a little child to Him, set him in the midst of them, and said, "Assuredly, I say to you, unless you are converted and become as little children, you will by no means enter the kingdom of heaven. Therefore whoever humbles himself as this little child is the greatest in the kingdom of heaven." The question reflects a concern for the coming Kingdom, a misunderstanding of Jesus' teaching that on the third day He will be raised up (see yesterday's reading, above). The disciples are concerned for their places in this kingdom as they are imagining it, something like the expected kingdom of the Messiah. This teaching about humility sets down Jesus' understanding of power in graciousness. It reflects the very nature of grace. Some icons depict the little child in this story as St. Ignatius of Antioch, and some church traditions teach that this is the little boy who gave the loaves and fishes (John 6:9). My study bible tells us that the little child as model of true discipleship emphasizes the virtues required for entrance into the kingdom of heaven: "humility, dependence, lowliness, simplicity, obedience, and a willingness to love and be loved."
"Therefore whoever humbles himself as this little child is the greatest in the kingdom of heaven. Whoever receives one little child like this in My name receives Me. Whoever causes one of these little ones who believe in Me to sin, it would be better for him if a millstone were hung around his neck, and he were drowned in the depth of the sea." My study bible says that little ones include all those who have childlike humility and simplicity, all who are poor in spirit. Little ones can also be the vulnerable who come for spiritual instruction and guidance in the Church. These men will be the first bishops and stewards; Jesus is teaching what kind of leadership He wants in His hierarchy. There is an emphasis on the vulnerability of the humble to be misled, exploited -- to cause them to sin. They will be in the care of these leaders. There isn't a more dire expression for just how extremely bad such leadership would be -- better in fact for a millstone to be hung around one's neck and drowned in the depth of the sea.
"Woe to the world because of offenses! For offenses must come, but woe to that man by whom the offense comes! If your hand or foot causes you to sin, cut it off and cast it from you. It is better for you to enter into life lame or maimed, rather than having two hands or two feet, to be cast in to the everlasting fire. And if your eye causes you to sin, pluck it out and cast it from you. It is better for you to enter into life with one eye, rather than having two eyes, to be cast into hell fire." Again, warnings to these who will be the leaders of the Church in terms of their own failings and imperfections -- precisely because of what impact that has on the little ones. These are the offenses Jesus speaks to, the offenses to the powerless and humble, those who come for spiritual care in the Church. Once again we have the language from the Sermon on the Mount, in which Jesus taught that it is our own tendencies to sin that must be dealt with. (See Let your "Yes" be "Yes," and your "No," "No.") A hand or foot that causes one to sin is a possibly a hand that is grasping, a foot that wanders where it should not. An eye that causes one to sin is perhaps an "evil eye" -- which means envy or jealousy, or an eye that looks with covetousness or other forms of lust that are inappropriate, particularly where exploitation of the little ones, the vulnerable are concerned! To pluck out an eye or cut off and cast away a hand or foot is a metaphor for dealing with one's own sin so that it does not harm the others in one's charge. Again, in the Sermon on the Mount, Jesus spoke of name-calling as akin to murder: there's always a temptation to express superiority by using such abuse by those who crave power. My study bible says cutting off and casting away also refers to harmful relationships that must be severed for the salvation of all parties (see Luke 14:26; 1 Corinthians 5:5). Again this warning to His disciples is extreme: better to enter into life (this is the life of the kingdom) without hand or foot or eye than cast into hell fire. A dire image!
So Jesus emphasizes the care of the little ones. His Church must be concerned with a power structure that emphasizes service. If He teaches about sin, then the leadership must be the ones who bear the most responsibility for their own sin. This is so particularly because it has a most deleterious effect on the powerless, the humble, the vulnerable who need care. What might such sin be? Covetousness, a love of power, or the desire to "lord it over" others come to mind as examples that Jesus suggests. The failure to be true examples, to fail to cut off and cast away sin themselves, means that the leaders of the Church will fail in their mission, and that they will surely mislead others. Jesus chastises the Pharisees and scribes in a very vivid way when He calls them hypocrites and tells them, "You travel land and sea to win one proselyte, and when he is won, you make him twice as much a son of hell as yourselves" (Matthew 23:15). For the leaders of His own Church, He's making it perfectly clear that if they follow in the same footsteps they will suffer extreme consequences. And so we take with us the need for the protection and care of "little ones." Who are the littlest and most vulnerable you know? Does the world suggest particularly vulnerable populations to you at the moment? Let us think about power and its use, and what kind of King Jesus will be, the grace that is the hallmark of His power. In yesterday's reading, Jesus made Peter consider who it is kings take taxes or customs from, and in today's reading He emphasizes care of the little ones who most need our help. Let us consider where that leads us today, the temptations to abuse our power, and the importance of our own self-examination. Who most needs your care?
