There are two types of witnesses. First, a witness is someone who has personal awareness of historical facts typically because they were present to observe the situation involving those facts. Next, a witness is someone who is selected because of their suitable character and objectivity to be present for a planned transaction between two or more other parties. Witnesses add credibility to a given set of facts. Witnesses are important in helping to maintain integrity when disagreement exists.
Jesus prescribes that witnesses be employed when two parties cannot resolve a conflict alone.
Matthew 18: 16 But if they will not listen, take one or two others along, so that ‘every matter may be established by the testimony of two or three witnesses.’
As Jesus frequently does, He establishes His counsel by referencing long understood teachings from the Torah, in this case from Deuteronomy.
Deuteronomy 19: 15 One witness is not enough to convict anyone accused of any crime or offense they may have committed. A matter must be established by the testimony of two or three witnesses. 16 If a malicious witness takes the stand to accuse someone of a crime, 17 the two people involved in the dispute must stand in the presence of the LORD before the priests and the judges who are in office at the time. 18 The judges must make a thorough investigation, and if the witness proves to be a liar, giving false testimony against a fellow Israelite, 19 then do to the false witness as that witness intended to do to the other party. You must purge the evil from among you. 20 The rest of the people will hear of this and be afraid, and never again will such an evil thing be done among you. 21 Show no pity: life for life, eye for eye, tooth for tooth, hand for hand, foot for foot.
When witnesses are employed there must always be at least two. The body of Christ is characterized by relationship and there is no relationship with a single witness. A single witness may be well intentioned but may only be able to offer a one-sided perspective. A single witness is also more easily persuaded to not act with full integrity whether motivated by corruption or fear. If the parties at issue are able to restore relationship with the aid of just two or three witnesses, then it is agreed that the witnesses have added sufficient external objectivity and integrity to bring resolve to what wasn’t possible with just the principle parties alone. If two or three witnesses aren’t able to bring restoration the whole body of Christ becomes necessary to make all matters fully transparent lending the highest degree of objectivity, integrity and spiritual wisdom possible.
Witnesses do not represent either party in the dispute. Witnesses represent God through the body of His church. Witnesses are to apply all the principles of God’s character to the situation in the spirit of Christ’s mission to this world – to save each of us from sin.
It is a beautiful and powerful promise given in Matthew 18 that God will honor the results of our dispute resolutions in Heaven. “Truly I tell you, whatever you bind on earth will be bound in heaven, and whatever you loose on earth will be loosed in heaven.” To restore relationship with each other is love and God will honor that even when we do so imperfectly. Included in this promise is to honor our failures to restore relationships, binding us in heavenly judgement to our hardened hearts on earth.
The matters in dispute are not trivial when they are failures of morality or threats to one’s relationship with the church body or ultimate salvation. The community of those who profess to follow God must be willing to follow this counsel. In the body of Christ, whether that be Israel of old or the New Testament church, the accuser and accused in Matthew 18 have but one opportunity on their own to restore relationship with each other. If the matter cannot be resolved in private the responsibility falls upon the church body to add the purifying pressure of third party witnesses. The prescription by Jesus is to be gentle but firm in resolving contentions. If private negotiations fail, bring a few others in on the matter. If the matter is still not resolved, take the matter to the whole church body. If the matter remains unresolved after being addressed by the church body, the church body is instructed to disassociate with the offending party. One goal of bringing the church body into the matter is to persuade the offender to repent and be restored with his brother and with the whole church body. The church nor the accuser engage in exacting punitive retribution but are limited to the goal of restoring relationship. There are only two outcomes allowed by Christ’s counsel, restored relationship or severed relationship. If restitution is needed and made it is done voluntarily by the genuinely repentant offender, even if with great pressure from the church body. The church body does not act as a dispenser of justice or vengeance. These are spiritual matters and the job of Christ’s followers at all times remains to restore relationship leading others into salvation regardless of their former transgressions.
Our modern world fails to take the counsel of Jesus in Matthew 18 seriously – at its own peril. Jesus does not offer His church discretion with respect to participating in dispute resolution. Today’s religious communities that call themselves “Christian,” whether they are called churches or denominations, apply a deviously twisted concept they call “love” and “grace” to avoid bringing the witness of the church body into such dispute resolution. This false charity by the so-called churches only results in leaving one or both of the disputed parties in a state of unresolved injury which can do nothing but fester and possibly spread to others over time. This leads to failed relationships and salvation lost. Jesus through the prophet John in Revelation 21:8 tells us that cowards will be subjected to the second death of eternal destruction. It is cowardice that causes churches to fail in the duties of Matthew 18, and cowardice cannot successfully be covered in the untempered mortar of false charity and cheap grace even if we call it love. Real love is courageous and always consistent with the principles of God’s character and won’t spare any discipline needed to awaken one back to repentance and salvation.
The church body, those not directly involved in the matters between the accuser and the accused and maybe not even aware of the dispute, must not avoid or reject the appeal of the accuser to intervene. An accuser thus left alone is effectively shunned by the church body without the benefit of Holy Spirit led consideration of witnesses. This is a type of judgement in which the church body is specifically prohibited from engaging. Judgement by cowardice leaves the church body in a condition that misrepresents the character of God which is to use His name in vain. It may very well be unpleasant and inconvenient, and it may cause some changes in friendships, but this task given by Jesus in Matthew 18 must be undertaken in the eternally significant context in which it has been given. The church body must be prepared through study, prayer and connection with the Holy Spirit to take up its role per Matthew 18. The church body is not made of welfare recipients. The church body consists of committed, professed soldiers working as God’s hands and feet in this life. If your church experience is that of a spectator, then you haven’t yet been reborn.
If you are a believer in the body of Christ and you are called upon to be a witness according to Matthew 18, don’t be a coward.