The Pulpit Commentary — Matthew — Volume 2 — Section 223

he succeeds. Christ brings back souls who have wandered into the lowest abysses of sin. 4. His foy. This is proportionate (1) to his love for the lost sheep; (2) to its distress, danger, evil condition; (3) to the toil and difficulty involved in finding it. The joy of Christ is the joy of saving the lost.-W. F. A. Vera. 15-18.-The offending brother. The wise advice which our Lord here gives is rarely followed, and yet it is not at all impracticable, and if obeyed it would prevent an immense amount of distress and ill feeling. Let us consider, first the general principles of his advice, and then its special details. I. GENERAL PRINCIPLES. 1. Thefactojthe brother's offence isadmitted. This is very important. Too often men quarrel and accuse one another without justly apportioning the faults. The innocent man is blamed by his guilty brother. \Ve must not put in force the process indicated by Christ until we have discovered that our brother is really in the wrong. 2. The aim must be to recover the offending brother, It is not to crush and humiliate him. It is not to have our revenge on him. It is to restore him to a better condition of mind, and to bring about a reconciliation. 3. TM method muse be kind and generow. The slowly advancing stages show a reluctan'® to proceed to extreme mea.sures. Inasmuch as our end is not to vindicate our o~' ;rights, but to recover our brother, oar method must be tender and considerate. ,, II. SPECIAL DETAn.s. It is important to observe that Christ is .treating of the rela- tion of true Christian people to one another. If either party does not recognize the claims of Christian brotherhood, the process must be different, alth,ough the generous spirit of Christ's method must be observed with all men. Let us now note the successive steps. 1. We are to see the offending brother alone. This is just the very last thing some people will do. In pride or fear they shun the very person they should seek. They refuse to speak to him, when it is their duty to be frank with him. Yet too often they spread the tale of their wrong among their neighbours. 'l'hus a train of idle gossip is started, and vast mischief originated; He, who so .behaves reveals him- .self in an unchristian light; he becomes an offending brother, and gives the man who has offended him a just cause of complaint. Immense mischief would be stayed if Christ's method were pursued. We have to seek out the person who has wronged us, and be simple and frank with him; then very often a little quiet talk will bring us to a mutual understanding and end the quarrel. 2, If the first step fails, we are to call in the help qf two or three other Christians. This is also to be private. The calm impartiality of outsiders may settle the dispute. 1 The gravity of their advice may con- vince the offending brother that he is in the wrong. 3. If this, process fails, we are to appeal to the Church. Christ assumes the exercise of Church discipline. With us this has fallen very much ipto abeyance. It can only be restored in a. Christ-like spirit. 4. Finally, if all these processes fail, we mud ceaae CQ regard the offender as a Christian brother. He has excommunicated himself. God does not foJ'give the impenitent, and he does not expect us to do so. Yet we should ~v:er hate the offender, but always desire to restore him-as we should desire to conrert "the Gentile_and the publioa.n."- W. F. A. Vers. 19, 20.-17ie power of united prayer. The point of this verse is in the idea of the association of two people in prayer. Elsewhere we often read of the vat ue of prayer in general. Here a. special efficacy is a.scribed to the united prayer of two Christian people. Let us consider the meaning of this. Why is Christ most present to help in united prayer ? , L IT 18 UNSELFISIL Two people might be plotting together for some mutual advantage of a. low order. But we cannot conceive of their having a prayer-meeting about it. Many of our personal pra.yere are shamefully selfish. They do not seek that God's will may be done; they simply demand a concession to our own wilL The same fatal evil '111,Q,!} be found in a united prayer, but it is less likely there. IL IT 18 BBOTRERLT. We must be on friendly, even on brotherly terms before we can really pray together. The union of two alone in prayer implies very deep mutual confidence. They must agree together. The reason why earth is so cut off from heaven is that earth is too often a scene of discord. When there is agreement on earth, earth ill more like heaven, aDd the wish expressed on earth may be granted in heaven. on. xvm. 1-35.] THE GO~PEL ACCORDING TO ST. MATTHEW. 227