Last Sunday we looked at Matthew 18:1-20. There are four sections in this text, each dealing with an aspect of Christian attitude and relationship. In Matthew 18:1-5, the disciples asked Jesus who will be the greatest in the kingdom of God? This is a relationship question. How can I increase my rank? Jesus told them that to be the greatest, you must become like a little child. (Children, though loved, have no power or social standing.) To be the greatest, become the least. In fact, Jesus continued, unless you become like a little child, you will never enter the kingdom of God. In Matthew 18:6-9, Jesus gave us another bit of counsel regarding how we interact with others. Temptations will no doubt come into people’s lives, but the person by whom they come would be better off having a millstone tied around their neck and being thrown into the sea. Jesus went on to say that we should cut off any part of our bodies that leads us into sin. Taken literally, this would kill us. This is exactly what needs to happen spiritually. “For whoever would save his life will lose it, but whoever loses his life for my sake and the gospel’s will save it.” (Mark 8:35 ESV) In Matthew 18:10-14, Jesus drew an illustration from a simple fact of shepherding. If one sheep goes astray, the shepherd goes to find it. When the shepherd finds it, he is happier about the one sheep that he retrieved than the rest of the flock that never got lost. Then Jesus said that, just like the shepherd who goes after the one sheep, it is not the Father’s will that any should perish. Christians go after people. They do not give up on people. Then in Matthew 18:15-18, Jesus took the parable of the shepherd and the sheep and put it in concrete terms. When we feel wronged, we are not to wait until the person who wronged us comes to apologize. If you are wondering who is responsible to initiate reconciliation, don’t. It is you. “Moreover if your brother sins against you, go and tell him his fault between you and him alone. If he hears you, you have gained your brother. But if he will not hear, take with you one or two more, that ‘by the mouth of two or three witnesses every word may be established.’ And if he refuses to hear them, tell it to the church. But if he refuses even to hear the church, let him be to you like a heathen and a tax collector.” (ESV) If you end up needing to talk to one or two others, you might find out that it really is you who are in the wrong. Or not. And if you still can’t bring resolution, involve the church leadership. If you still can’t resolve it, treat them like a heathen or a tax collector. The question is this: how did Jesus treat heathens and tax collectors? Did he shun them? Refuse to speak to them? No. He would seek them out. Remember Zacchaeus the tax collector? Jesus purposely went to share a meal with him and bring him redemption. On the other hand, Jesus did not go off to pray with those who were not his followers. That’s the difference we need to mark: If reconciliation has been tried all the way up to the leadership of the church, that person is seriously stuck and in need of unilateral love. At that point they are an object of ministry rather than a subject of shared Christian fellowship. Looking at these four passages through the unifying theme of a Christian’s attitudes and relationships, we see that Christians are to be people of humble service, who don’t tempt or goad other people into sin, and who proactively seek reconciliation in broken relationships. Big? Yes. But God asks nothing of us he hasn’t already done in Jesus Christ. Jesus came not to be served but to serve. Jesus tempted no one, but longed to bring people back to the Father. The very life of Jesus is the life of one who leaves the flock and goes to seek and save the lost.