Matt 18:19

So..  I have a dear friend I was just re-united with after a few yrs of not talking.  I was very encouraged to hear what God had been teaching him.  But I so wish that I could focus on the good things instead of just seeing into error.  This was the topic:

Matt 18:19 "Again, I tell you that if two of you on earth agree about anything you ask for, it will be done for you by my Father in heaven."


My friend was meditating on this scripture and sharing his heart concerning the topic of Prayer.  Has anyone ever used this scripture for prayer.  Of course.  Every church body has used this verse one time or another.  The problem I have is that this scripture has nothing to due with prayer. READ THE CONTEXT!  

A Brother Who Sins Against You

 ¹⁵"If your brother sins against you, go and show him his fault, just between the two of you. If he listens to you, you have won your brother over. ¹⁶But if he will not listen, take one or two others along, so that every matter may be established by the testimony of two or three witnesses.¹⁷If he refuses to listen to them, tell it to the church; and if he refuses to listen even to the church, treat him as you would a pagan or a tax collector. ¹⁸"I tell you the truth, whatever you bind on earth will be bound in heaven, and whatever you loose on earth will be loosed in heaven.
 ¹⁹"Again, I tell you that if two of you on earth agree about anything you ask for, it will be done for you by my Father in heaven. ²⁰For where two or three come together in my name, there am I with them."




As you can see, this context is not concerning prayer.  So why do we teach it like this.  This scripture is concerning confrontation of a brother/sister.  Its about sin. Vs 18 - is God giving us authority on earth in church discipline.  


Now, I remember a quote my favorite bible teacher said.  " There is only one interpretation of a specific scripture but there can be multiple applications".  I believe that fits perfectly right here!  Jesus is teaching a principle of Authoirity in heaven and earth.  Jesus is  applying that principle here withing the context of Authority.


Lastly, my friend was "camping" on the word "whatever".  He said "whatever" means literally "whatever".  I really don't believe he means that because "whatever" could be taken out of context and abused.  Shouldn't " whatever" still be within the context of the author.  For example, say if I ask you what movie you want to go to, and you say "I don't care, whatever"  Now whatever does not mean "whatever" it means "whatever movie".


We really need to be careful not to abuse scripture.  There is one point the author is making but you can apply the principle in many ways.  Dont mis lead people by neglecting to teach within context.