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NASB | Matthew 18:8 ¶ "If your hand or your foot causes you to stumble, cut it off and throw it from you; it is better for you to enter life crippled or lame, than to have two hands or two feet and be cast into the eternal fire. |
AMPLIFIED 2015 | Matthew 18:8 ¶ "If your hand or your foot causes you to stumble and sin, cut it off and throw it away from you [that is, remove yourself from the source of temptation]; it is better for you to enter life crippled or lame, than to have two hands or two feet and be thrown into everlasting fire. |
Bible Question: Could Christ have meant that if a member of the body of Christ/Church offends another member of the body, that person should be cut off from the body/church? |
Bible Answer: Hi, Tedebear... Welcome to the forum! I would agree that the person creating a stumbling block ought to be the object of church discipline (Matthew 18:6-7). Some of the old Baptist divines in the 17th century (and probably others) considered church discipline to be an ordinance of our Lord based on this passage (see particularly vv14-20). Contemporary Christians tend to embrace the little children thing (vv3-5), with more enthusiasm than the self denial (vv8-9), let alone the church's exercise of discipline in the latter verses. The Puritans used to say, "Showing kindness to the wolf is showing cruelty to the sheep." In Him, Doc |