The Greatest in the Kingdom of Heaven

Matthew 18:01-09 (New International Version)

Matthew 18

The Greatest in the Kingdom of Heaven

1At that time the disciples came to Jesus and asked, "Who is the greatest in the kingdom
of heaven?"

2He called a little child and had him stand among them. 3And he said: "I tell you the
truth, unless you change and become like little children, you will never enter the kingdom
of heaven. 4Therefore, whoever humbles himself like this child is the greatest in the
kingdom of heaven.

"And whoever welcomes a little child like this in my name welcomes me. 6But if anyone
causes one of these little ones who believe in me to sin, it would be better for him to
have a large millstone hung around his neck and to be drowned in the depths of the sea.

5

7"Woe to the world because of the things that cause people to sin! Such things must
come, but woe to the man through whom they come! 8If your hand or your foot causes
you to sin, cut it off and throw it away. It is better for you to enter life maimed or crippled
than to have two hands or two feet and be thrown into eternal fire. 9And if your eye
causes you to sin, gouge it out and throw it away. It is better for you to enter life with one
eye than to have two eyes and be thrown into the fire of hell.

I. Core Message

Content:

1) 1At that time the disciples came to Jesus and asked, "Who is the greatest in
the kingdom of heaven?"(v1)
2He called a little child and had him stand among them. 3And he said: "I
2)
tell you the truth, unless you change and become like little children, you will
never enter the kingdom of heaven. (v2-3)
3) Jesus said, “Whoever humbles himself like this child is the greatest in the
kingdom of heaven.” (v4)
4) Jesus said, “Whoever welcomes a little child like this in my name
welcomes me.” (v5)
5) Jesus said, “It is extremely sinful to cause one who believe in me to
sin.”(v6-7)
6) Jesus said, “It is better to enter heaven with disables than entering hell
with a complete body.”(v8-9)

Theme:

1)
2)

II. Who are God, Jesus Christ, and Holy Spirit?

1)
2)

Change and become like little children
The greatest in the kingdom of heaven

Jesus Christ who is good at telling parables (v2-4)
Jesus Christ who spreads the gospel (v6-9)

III. What does the passage teach us (about commands, promises, examples, exhortations, and
warnings?

Having a Heart of the man in the World
1)
1At that time the disciples came to Jesus and asked, "Who is the greatest in the
kingdom of heaven?" (v1)

People in the world are often competing for power and names. This is the consequences
after we start sinning. This is exactly like what Satan does- disobeying God. There is a
story recording in Mark 10:35-41

Then James and John, the sons of Zebedee, came to him. "Teacher," they
said, "we want you to do for us whatever we ask. 36"What do you want me to do for
you?" he asked.37They replied, "Let one of us sit at your right and the other at your
left in your glory. 38"You don't know what you are asking," Jesus said. "Can you
drink the cup I drink or be baptized with the baptism I am baptized with?" 39"We
can," they answered. Jesus said to them, "You will drink the cup I drink and be
baptized with the baptism I am baptized with, 40but to sit at my right or left is not
for me to grant. These places belong to those for whom they have been prepared."
41When the ten heard about this, they became indignant with James and John.

35

This is an example of people who are competing for power and names. This
situation even occurs between the core disciples of Jesus (James and John). This
tells us that it is hard to change the heart of a man in the world even though he had
followed Jesus Christ. Thus, they asked, “ Who is the greatest in the kingdom of
heaven?”

Reflection: People are competing for powers and names in the society. Should we
do the same in the church?

Be Like Little Children
2)
2He called a little child and had him stand among them. 3And he said: "I tell you
the truth, unless you change and become like little children, you will never enter
the kingdom of heaven. (v2-3)
When the disciples came to Jesus and asked, “Who is the greatest in the kingdom
of heaven?” He called a little child and had him stand among them. 3And he said: "I
tell you the truth, unless you change and become like little children, you will
never enter the kingdom of heaven. What does it mean to be like little children? It
certainly does not mean that to be childish, ignorant and blind obedient. It means
that we have to be as innocent, humble, obedient, and willing to learn like children.
The requirement of entering heaven is being humble. Just like what Jesus had
said, “Blessed are the poor in spirit, for theirs is the kingdom of heaven.” (Matthew
5:3) Thus, we should learn from the little children. We are further away from
the kingdom of heaven when we feel that we are important. We are closer to the
kingdom of heaven when we feel that we are poor in spirit and we need to relay on
God.
Reflection: Do I think that I am experienced? Or am I still humble, innocent, and

obedient?

Welcome the Little
3)
5"And whoever welcomes a little child like this in my name welcomes me. 6But
if anyone causes one of these little ones who believe in me to sin, it would be
better for him to have a large millstone hung around his neck and to be drowned in
the depths of the sea. (v5-6) People in the world often focus on people who have
power, right, and knowledge. However, Jesus sees the world differently. He often
pays his attention on the littles, humbles, and poors. Jesus has a different definition
for what is “important” and what is “small.” As a Christian, we should follow
Jesus. However, what should we do? We could accomplish it by reading bible
everyday and interact with the Lord. After all, we need to pay for it. When we have
the eyesight of Jesus, we would start paying attention on the little. And due to Jesus
Christ, we will be willing to care and accept the littles in the society.

Reflection: What is my eyesight? Do I only look at the tall? Or Am I like Jesus who cares
for the littls?

Sin of Causing Others to Sin
4)
Woe to the world because of the things that cause people to sin! Such things must
come, but woe to the man through whom they come! (v7) Jesus said that the person
who causes other to sin is extremely sinful. This kind of person will face severe
punishment. Thus, Jesus describes, “If anyone causes one of these little ones who
believe in me to sin, it would be better for him to have a large millstone hung
around his neck and to be drowned in the depths of the sea.” He also said, “Woe to
the world because of the things that cause people to sin! Such things must come,
but woe to the man through whom they come!” Thus, we should very careful
with our behavior and never let others to abandon God because of our personal
behaviours.

Reflection: Reflect back, have I ever make others abandon God?

Spirit is More Important than Flesh
5)
8If your hand or your foot causes you to sin, cut it off and throw it away. It is better
for you to enter life maimed or crippled than to have two hands or two feet and be
thrown into eternal fire. 9And if your eye causes you to sin, gouge it out and throw
it away. It is better for you to enter life with one eye than to have two eyes and be
thrown into the fire of hell. (v8-9)

Jesus then tells another example: If we could gain eternal life as we loss some
organs of our bodies, such as hand, feet or eye, we will choose to loss them. We
shall not make the decisions of protecting the whole body for the prices of entering
to hell.

Reflection: Do I take what is eternal important? What barriers should I overcome?