Jesus on excommunication, shaming, banishment, shunning...
Matthew 18:15-17: "If your brother sins against you, go and show him his fault...
...If he refuses to listen to them, tell it to the church; and if he refuses to listen even to the church, treat him as you would a PAGAN or a TAX COLLECTOR."
Oh, you can comment on the church practices of excommunication, shaming, banishment, shunning....
2007-12-16 13:59:19 · 29 answers · asked by Anonymous in Society & Culture ➔ Religion & Spirituality
lol...This was out of the NIV...I was bored again...
2007-12-16 14:07:58 · update #1
Glade really does anyone really like tax collectors? talking to IRS people are often more dreadful than death itself, some people prefer the later.
2007-12-16 14:06:02 · answer #1 · answered by Donna M 2 · 1⤊ 0⤋
"Tax collector" has been a dirty word for centuries...at the time he was speaking, the tax collectors were traitors who worked for the Roman conquerors. Many were also crooks who used their position to line their own pockets (backed up by the Roman military)! If he'd lived 250 years ago, he might have said "a witch or a Benedict Arnold"...if he lived today, he might have used the words "a Satanist or a politician".
Whatever, when Jesus said "tax collectors" his audience knew exactly what he meant...tax collectors betrayed their own people to the enemy and no one at the time wanted anything to do with them.
...by the way, that's one of the reasons Jesus picked a tax collector as one of his disciples...he knew it would shock the "righteous men" for him to willingly associate with a tax collector...someone they would have banned and shamed and shunned! By choosing Levi (Matthew), Jesus illustrated once again that God's grace is sufficient for even the worst sinner.
2007-12-16 14:23:10 · answer #2 · answered by KAL 7 · 2⤊ 0⤋
In Jesus' time, a tax collector in the hebrew/Jewish community was a Jew who was working hand in hand with the Romans. This made the person a traitor in the eyes of his countrymen. Also, the custom of the day was that the tax collector was supposed to collect a certain amount of money from each person and send that on to Rome. He was then allowed to collect an additional amount or percentage to keep for his own wages. Rome did not particularly care how much the tax collector took in above what he was required to send to Rome. Many tax collectors gouged their fellow Jews,
2007-12-16 14:19:31 · answer #3 · answered by Older Dad 2 · 1⤊ 0⤋
He was drawing a parallel according to how they felt about tax collectors. Remember, one of His disciples, Matthew, was once a tax collector and then there was Zaccheus, whose house Jesus went to. Jesus made Himself available to people of all walks of life.
But, when it comes to sin within the Church, it must be dealt with promptly and properly. Jesus outlined the order in this passage. He was also saying in this, "You know how to get rid of the pagans and traitorous tax collectors, perpetual sinners must be removed from your midst."
We all have sins and faults. However, we should also be a people of repentance. If someone is confronted with their sin, to the point they have been brought before the leadership, and is not repentant, he/she should be removed from that fellowship. A congregation should not tolerate active, unrepentant sin in their midst. Such tolerance has been a fault of many churhces and denominations - much of which makes the news, these days.
It says also to "expel the immoral brother", so that he might be turned over for the chance to repent. First, the sin in the midst must be removed so that it might not fester into something larger. Then, that person, being essentially banished, is in a position to go as low as needed to go, so that they may have no where to go but up - hopefully, repenting before the Lord and regaining fellowship once again.
2007-12-16 14:21:40 · answer #4 · answered by TroothBTold 5 · 1⤊ 0⤋
The people of that time hated the tax collectors because the tax collectors worked for the Romans. The Romans imposed taxes onto the Jews. The tax collectors would make the people pay more taxes then what was due to Rome and keep the money for themselves. The tax collectors would intimidate & beat people. They were brutal to the people and considered theives.
I am sure Jesus thought of them in the same way he thinks about all of us sinners.... That we need his gift of Salvation.
P.S. Kal said it much better than I .
2007-12-16 14:37:49 · answer #5 · answered by commoncents 4 · 1⤊ 0⤋
They ignored the pagans and tax collectors.
Jesus had nothing against tax collectors because Matthew was a tax collector. The Book of Matthew in the Bible is a marvelous gospel of Jesus Christ.
2007-12-16 14:16:27 · answer #6 · answered by Jeancommunicates 7 · 1⤊ 0⤋
Tax collectors at the time of Jesus robed and stole from the poor to make themselves rich. The church leaders at the time turned the church into a trading post to get money from the sellers. They almost stoped teaching Gods word.
2007-12-16 14:06:44 · answer #7 · answered by Anonymous · 2⤊ 0⤋
Tax collectors were and are today just slaves of the government (government are just corporations)...
Tax collectors are considered as being greedy and corrupt.
Let's consider Jesus beating the money changers and throwing them out of the temple, (Jesus was a strong man, he was not a wimp), Jesus beat them and threw them out because they brought filthy lucre into the holy temple.
The body is the temple of God, are you polluting the temple with the greed for money?
Give unto ceasar what is ceasar's and give to God what is God's.
You cannot serve two masters for you hate one and love the other, you cannot worship both God and mammon.
I hope this answers your question..
2007-12-16 14:17:17 · answer #8 · answered by G S 2 · 2⤊ 0⤋
How DID Jesus treat pagans and tax collectors? He loved them enough to fellowship with tax collectors (see Matthew 11:19). Further, He died for the sins of all mankind. Tax collectors and pagans included.
The idea behind what Jesus said is that those "brothers" who are unrepentant need to lose fellowship until they repent of their stubbornness and unrepentance. Once they do that, all is forgiven, and they are restored as before. (This is directed toward believers who sin, not unbelievers.)
2007-12-16 14:07:35 · answer #9 · answered by Anonymous · 2⤊ 1⤋
He was using the pagan or tax collector as an example of how they would treat such a one that would not see the light. the Jews did not like pagans and tax collectors. they were despised and hated among the Jews.
He had a tax collector as one of His disciples......
2007-12-16 14:06:28 · answer #10 · answered by Sherry 4 · 1⤊ 0⤋
Jesus did not have anything against the act of tax collection He just didn't want it being performed in His temple!
John 2:13-16
I believe a temple is used for prayer...
Read Luke 20:25, Render to Caesar etc...
2007-12-16 14:07:55 · answer #11 · answered by Kazoo M 7 · 1⤊ 0⤋