In Christian circles,
we tend to hear some clichés or Christianese phrases. You know, the jargon that
can get thrown around without really knowing what it means or its original
context. In this light, you may have heard the phrase,
“For where two or three have gathered together in My name,
there I am in their midst.”
This ’phrase’ is usually used to refer to prayer or meeting
together with others to talk with God. But what does it mean and what are the
context and setting.
It comes from Matthew’s gospel in Chapter 18. Jesus was asked
by one of His followers a question about who was greatest in the Kingdom of
God, Matt 18:1. Jesus went on to talk about who was great and used a child as
an illustration. This lead to the idea of offending this child of His (any of
His children regardless of age). He continued to answer the question using this
concept of a lost sheep. Then He brought up forgiving one who has sinned
against you and how to deal with the situation. Finally, Jesus talked about how
to forgive this one who has offended you.
It is within this
context that, Jesus said,
“For where two or three have gathered together in My name,
there I am in their midst” Matt 18:20 NASB).
It is about working
through an offence and forgiving someone who has offended you. It is in this
place of mutual forgiveness that Jesus said that His presence would be evident.
This was not a new concept; it may be based on the following,
“You shall make an altar of earth for Me, and you shall
sacrifice on it your burnt offerings and your peace offerings, your sheep and
your oxen; in every place where I cause My name to be remembered, I will
come to you and bless you” (Ex 20:24 NASB).
Jesus said that the one
who has offended would not listen to them; this needs the community of faith to
help decide.
“On the evidence of two witnesses or three witnesses,
he who is to die shall be put to death; he shall not be put to death on the
evidence of one witness” (Deut 17:6 NASB).
“A single witness shall
not rise up against a man on account of any iniquity or any sin which he has
committed; on the evidence of two or three witnesses a matter shall be
confirmed” (Deut 19:15 NASB).
It has even been
mentioned in some of the Jewish writings like,
3 “When two sit together and words of Torah pass
between them, the Divine Presence rests between them. 4 When three
eat at one table and speak the words of Torah there, it is as though they have
eaten from the table of God” (Mishnah Avot 3:3,4).[1]
“Whenever ten are gathered for prayer, there the
Shekinah rests.” (Talmud Sanhedrin 39). (The ‘Shekinah’ here is referring
to God’s presence made obvious.)[2]
“When three sit as judges, the Shekinah is with
them” (Talmud Berachot 6).[3]
So, although these Jewish writings were written after Jesus, it
is quite possible that He being an Israelite, would have been familiar with
statements and ideas like these since He would have been part of Torah studies and
the praying that went with them.
The coming together of the sinner and the offended party,
would have been done in light of the Jewish Bible and especially the Torah along
with prayer. If there was no resolution then, they called in others to study
Torah and pray with them for a resolution. How would they know that there was a
resolution, they would be at peace with each other, and the presence of the
Lord (Shekinah) would be evident.
This is the context of
this phrase. Have you ever had someone offend you? How did you deal with the
matter? Have you ever hurt someone? How would you deal with an offence now that
you know some more about the context of this phrase? It is not just for the good
time prayer meeting but is a guide to help us to deal with an offence, either
against you or by you. It is by prayer and study of the Scripture for a
resolution. This is where the presence of the Lord will be evident.
Pause
in His presence for a moment and think this over…
[1] “Pirkei Avot-
Ethics of the Fathers.” https://www.myjewishlearning.com/article/pirkei-avot-ethics-of-the-fathers-4/ (21st
June 2020).
[2] “WORD STUDY –
AGREE – שׁוא (Aramaic).” https://www.chaimbentorah.com/2016/05/word-study-agree-%EF%AC%AA%D7%95%D7%90-aramaic/ (21st
June 2020).
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