adventures with NERD GIRL!

"Truly, I say to you, whatever you bind on earth shall be bound in heaven, and whatever you loose on earth shall be loosed in heaven." Matthew 18.18

What does that mean? What does it mean to be "bound" and "loosed"?

I've wondered that a hundred times, I've heard a handful of explanations for and uses of this verse (all leaving me rolling my eyes and thinking, "obviously YOU don't know what you're talking about..."), but I don't think I've heard it discussed until this past week at small group. We all concluded the same thing: it's confusing and hard to explain. Thusly igniting my curiousity and overnight I was transformed into...duh-duh-DUMB! NERD GIRL!

I report my findings here only as a matter of collecting my thoughts.

A note as we commence: There are some UNbiblical interpretations of this passage -- say, thinking that it means that the church has the power to forgive sins. And there are some interpretations that only make sense if Jesus had ADD and jumped around to random topics every sentence. There are some explanations that make sense for the first passage, but have no application to its doppelganger in Matthew 16.19. These have to be rejected as an, at best, incomplete interpretation of the passage. Not that the following explanation IS complete, but hopefully it is based on historical fact, patterns of biblical truth and the assumption that Jesus makes sense.

We begin with some general observations:

OBSERVATION #1: This phrase -- word for word -- occurs twice in the Bible. They are both in Matthew. Matthew was written to a Jewish audience. Therefore, without any research, we can conclude that this was a concept familiar to those of the Jewish faith. And likely not to those outside the Jewish faith.

OBSERVATION #2: Concerning grammar and vocabulary: the term "bind"/"bound" means "forbid" or "prohibit", the term "loose"/"loosed" means "permit" or "allow", and the verb tense used in reference to heaven is "future perfect indicative", implying a state of completion -- thus, "shall be bound" is more accuately translated "shall have been bound".

OBSERVATION #1 + OBSERVATION #2 + RESEARCH = To the listeners of Jesus' day, the terms "loose" and "bind" were associated with the law. They and referred to the practice of the Sanhedrin (board of religious leaders who decided important things) who would "loose" (allow) particular acts or things or "bind" (forbid) them. There were factions that tended to "bind", and those that tended to "loose". (I would like to imagine that the "binders" would, upon running into a person of the opposite faction, hold his fingers up into an "L" on his forehead and call out, "looser!" But I've no proof of that occurance.)

This was all rather silly because these "binders" and "loosers" had been given no authority to call a certain thing or act allowed or prohibited. They were just pretending.

It was also rather silly because instead of leading to unity, it created division and confusion.

HYPOTHETICAL CONCLUSION: Based on that context, let me suggest a general paraphrase of the passage: "I give you authority not just to make decisions, but to enforce them. Because the deciding on what to allow and what not to allow will have been done in heaven (and communicated to you by the Holy Spirit for action here on earth) the fruit of these decisions will be unity and maturity."

It's like the religious leaders of Jesus' day were the babysitters. Not the fun babysitters, the older sibling babysitters that, in a feeble grasp for authority or power, made up ridiculous rules and punishments (...THAT'S not a description taken from experience...). And Jesus is making the leaders of His Church the parents -- caregivers and leaders with authority who are acting according to biblical principles and relying on the Holy Spirit to make decisions.

We, Jesus' disciples (and most notably, our leaders) "loose" and "bind" things by applying the principles of Jesus' teaching to a local situation. For example, Peter "loosed" the early Christian Gentiles from the Jewish laws. Heaven initiated this "loosing" through Jesus' teachings and the Holy Spirit's leading and so it bore God's authority.

But of course, if this is a hypothesis, we have to test it. (However, the train stops here and if you want to get off...)

EXPERIMENT #1 - Matthew 16.13-20

Jesus is with his disciples and wants to know where they're at in their faith, if they KNOW without a doubt that He is the Messiah. Peter is the one to boldly assert what none of the other disciples would: that indeed Jesus was the Christ. Here is Jesus' response:

"Blessed are you, Simon Bar-Jonah! For flesh and blood has not revealed this to you, but my Father who is in heaven. And I tell you, you are Peter, and on this rock I will build my church, and the gates of hell shall not prevail against it. I will give you the keys of the kingdom of heaven, and whatever you bind on earth shall be bound in heaven, and whatever you loose on earth shall be loosed in heaven."

Realizing this passage is subject to differing viewpoints, I will offer that which seems to make sense to me. Here's my own paraphrase:

"Good for you, Peter! No person told you that, you didn't figure it out on your own, it was God -- through your relationship and sensitivity to Him -- who revealed that to you. You are SO Peter...and your "Peter-ness" -- certainty and enthusiasm and boldness of faith...will be the foundation for the church, which will persist beyond all odds. All you guys have the keys to the kingdom. You're in charge of opening this whole thing up to everyone else, so they will know what they need to do to enter my kingdom. You have a direct line to God, who rules over this kingdom, and through both the teachings I've already given you and the guidance of the Holy Spirit, you will have authority to communicate (and enforce, if necessary) what God's standards are for His followers."

I think that works.

EXPERIMENT #2 - Matthew 18.15-20

"If your brother sins against you, go and tell him his fault, between you and him alone. If he listens to you, you have gained your brother. But if he does not listen, take one or two others along with you, that every charge may be established by the evidence of two or three witnesses. If he refuses to listen to them, tell it to the church. And if he refuses to listen even to the church, let him be to you as a Gentile and a tax collector. Truly, I say to you, whatever you bind on earth shall be bound in heaven, and whatever you loose on earth shall be loosed in heaven. Again I say to you, if two of you agree on earth about anything they ask, it will be done for them by my Father in heaven. For where two or three are gathered in my name, there am I among them."

This passage concerns conflicts that arise between believers, presumably those that involve wrong-doing and affect the health of the group. The goal of the instruction is unity, that believers should spare no effort to restore relationships:

First, we're instructed to address the problem personally and directly. If that doesn't bring unity, take along a couple impartial and sympathetic assisants (not necessarily church authorities). This is for the benefit of BOTH parties. It ensures objectivity and an outside perspective -- some of us are not so great at communicating and sometimes we think another person has wronged us when we, in fact, are the ones in the wrong.

And if THAT doesn't work, then it needs to be addressed by the church. The leaders of the church need to get involved and if necessary, deal with sin publically. If repentance doesn't happen, you simply can't relate to that person as a fellow believer anymore, but as a "tax collector or Gentile" -- which, from what I can tell, Jesus reached out to. The goal is not to persecute or despise the individual, but to restore them to a right relationship with God and others.

Jesus then asserts that his disciples have authority to maintain purity and unity of the church. God's followers have direct access to knowing what are God's laws, His desires for us. So if, as they apply Jesus' teachings and follow God's Spirit, the leaders of the church find it necessary to remove the contamination of sin, they have the OK from God to do so.

Continuing on that thought, Jesus confirms the power of those who are gathered in unity and who are following what He has commanded. The point is that two people who are unified and following God are a million times more powerful and effective (in prayer, service, discernment of truth and even church discipline) than a thousand people who are living in discord and wrong living. Devotion to God's law is to be pursued, in love, at all costs -- even if it is awkward and inconvenient and humbling.

This one works for me too. What do you think?

And there you have it! A long answer to a question you didn't even ask! Oh, the thrill!

Until next time, this is Nerd Girl, signing off...