Matthew - Part 102 | Pastor Sims Anderson

Devotional

Day 1: Millstones and Deep Waters

The disciples listened as Jesus warned about causing “little ones” to stumble. He spoke of millstones hung around necks, bodies drowned in sea depths. His graphic language shocked them. Offenses would come, but woe to those who delivered them. Some parents perpetuate cycles of hurt they endured. Others gossip, criticize, or model hypocrisy. Jesus calls us to break chains, not forge them. [17:06]

This passage confronts our responsibility. Hands that wound others’ faith face God’s severe judgment. Jesus prioritizes protecting the vulnerable over preserving our comfort. Every careless word, every harsh reaction, becomes a potential millstone.

When have you seen your past behaviors mirrored in how you treat others? Identify one relationship where your actions could become a stumbling block. What specific step will you take to break the cycle today?

“If anyone causes one of these little ones—those who believe in me—to stumble, it would be better for them to have a large millstone hung around their neck and to be drowned in the depths of the sea.”
(Matthew 18:6, NIV)

Prayer: Ask God to reveal any destructive patterns in your parenting or friendships.
Challenge: Text or call one person you’ve criticized recently. Affirm their value.

Day 2: Ducks and Backwater Currents

Jesus warned that offenses flow like inevitable river currents. The disciples shifted nervously. Some would fall away, blaming others for their drift. But Jesus offered a counter-image: ducks resting on turbulent waters. Their feathers shed chaos like oil. “Great peace have they who love your law,” the Psalmist wrote. [27:23]

Peace comes not from calm circumstances, but from clinging to God’s Word. When gossip strikes, when leaders fail, when friends betray, our anchor holds. The offended choose to sink; the rooted choose to float.

What current threatens to pull you under today? Name one situation where you’re tempted to blame others for your spiritual drift.

“Great peace have those who love your law, and nothing can make them stumble.”
(Psalm 119:165, NIV)

Prayer: Thank God for three specific truths from Scripture that steady you.
Challenge: When negativity arises today, aloud say: “But God says…” and quote a verse.

Day 3: Scorched Earth and Surgical Knives

Jesus shocked listeners with radical surgery language—cut off hands, gouge out eyes. The disciples winced. He wasn’t endorsing mutilation but demanding ruthless sin removal. James later echoed this: mourners weeping over compromise, warriors scorching earth where sin grew. [40:56]

Half-measures preserve cancer cells. Christ calls for total war against patterns that destroy us and others. What internet habit, relationship, or thought-loop requires amputation?

What “limb” have you been protecting that actually poisons your spiritual life?

“If your hand or your foot causes you to stumble, cut it off and throw it away. It is better for you to enter life maimed or crippled than to have two hands or two feet and be thrown into eternal fire.”
(Matthew 18:8, NIV)

Prayer: Confess one compromise you’ve tolerated. Ask for courage to remove it.
Challenge: Delete one app, contact, or trigger from your phone before bed.

Day 4: Sackcloth in the Sanctuary

James shouted at laughing revelers: “Mourn! Wail!” The room fell silent. These believers partied while exploiting others, quarreling over trifles. God’s response to cheap grace? Call them to funeral dirges. True repentance wears sackcloth, not party hats. [37:11]

Lukewarm faith disgusts Christ. He prefers cold rejection or hot devotion. When we treat sin casually, we mock the cross. What indulgence have you been giggling about that should make you weep?

When did you last feel genuine grief over your sin?

“Grieve, mourn and wail. Change your laughter to mourning and your joy to gloom.”
(James 4:9, NIV)

Prayer: Kneel while praying. Ask God to revive your hatred of sin.
Challenge: Fast one meal today. Use the time to write a repentance prayer.

Day 5: Pivot Points and Plow Handles

The pastor recalled friends who abandoned faith at “pivot points”—often blaming others’ failures. Jesus addressed this: “If your brother sins, go to him.” The disciples realized accountability stops the blame game. Peacemakers confront privately, reconcile quickly, and refuse gossip. [33:48]

Unaddressed offenses fester; holy confrontations heal. Will you be a peacemaker or a passive observer? Will you take responsibility for your responses?

Who have you been blaming for your spiritual stagnation? When will you talk to them—or release the offense?

“If your brother or sister sins, go and point out their fault, just between the two of you. If they listen to you, you have won them over.”
(Matthew 18:15, NIV)

Prayer: Ask God to prepare your heart for a difficult conversation.
Challenge: Write (but don’t send) a letter detailing an offense. Burn or shred it.

Sermon Summary

Matthew sets the scene with “whoso shall offend one of these little ones which believe in me,” and Jesus drops the millstone warning to make the point land: somebody’s gotta break the cycle. The word offend is not hurt feelings; the word means to trip someone into sin, to turn them from God. Psalm 119’s line, “Great peace have they which love thy law and nothing shall offend them,” runs in the same channel. The call is double-edged. Do not be the one who causes the stumble, and do not be the one who uses a stumble as an excuse to run.

Jesus speaks woe over a world where offenses are bound to come. The expectation needs to be metered. People do dumb things. Public pivot points usually sit on top of private pivot points where bitterness has been chewing the soul. The fall often looks sudden, but the rot started earlier. God will deal with the offender. The disciple’s job is to refuse the detour, to say, “it happens,” and keep walking with God.

The gossip and the chronically critical sit under the same woe. Woe unto that man who stirs division and drags others into sin. The church member who loves God’s law learns how to shut the gossip train down: “it’s not my business,” or “let’s go talk to them.” The aim is simple and grown-up. Don’t be the offender, and don’t be easily offended. Go to the person, name the words, ask for clarity, and seek peace.

Jesus then turns the screws with the amputation talk. Cut it off. Pluck it out. He is not calling for literal blades, but for scorched earth on sin. James 4 says the same thing in another key: be afflicted and mourn and weep. When sin is playing games with a soul and trashing God’s name, laughter should turn to mourning until humility returns. Freedom always has a price tag. The disciple must answer, “What is the cost I am willing to pay for freedom?” Turn off the internet. Change the number. Move if needed. Not to run from life, but to retrain the mind and make no provision for the flesh.

Tribulation will come. The call is to endure hardness. Contrary to the soft talk of the age, hard things, rightly received, make the mind and the soul more resilient. God already wired that in. So the charge from Matthew is clear and bracing. Offenses will come. Do not cause them. Do not fold under them. Take sin seriously enough to cut it off, and take grace seriously enough to keep going.

Key Takeaways

1. Offend means cause to sin, not annoy [00:18:43] This word is about tripping someone into rebellion, not about stepping on toes. The warning lands on parents too, yet false guilt is rejected because children still make real choices before God. The task is to love Christ in front of the “little ones” so they see a clear path instead of a stumbling block. [18:43]
2. Expect offenses without excusing apostasy [00:20:04] People fail, say dumb things, and sometimes blow up lives. God will handle the offender; the disciple chooses not to turn away from God over it. Psalm 119 trains a thick skin: love the law, and let the insult roll off like water off a duck’s back. [20:04]
3. Woe to division; shut gossip down [00:25:31] Chronic criticism and whispering pull saints into sin. Wisdom refuses to feed it, says “not my business,” or walks the talk by going to the person named. Peacemaking is not passivity; it is a decisive refusal to weaponize words. [25:31]
4. Take sin seriously, cut it off [00:35:58] Jesus’ amputation imagery calls for scorched earth on patterns that bait the soul. James tells laughter to turn to mourning until humility breaks the spell. Freedom costs something, so the disciple counts the cost and gladly pays it to keep a clean way. [35:58]
5. Hardness can build holy resilience [00:42:41] Trials are not an excuse to fold; they are a gym for the soul. The mind can grow tougher under weight, and grace teaches believers to endure hardness without growing bitter. God’s design turns pressure into depth when the heart yields to him. [42:41]

Youtube Chapters

[00:00] - Welcome
[10:23] - Opening Matthew 18
[17:06] - Little ones and the millstone
[18:43] - What “offend” really means
[19:08] - Parents, false guilt, real choices
[20:04] - Offenses will come, meter expectations
[21:57] - Private and public pivot points
[25:31] - Woe to divisive gossip
[27:23] - Great peace and thick skin
[30:31] - Cut negativity, retrain your talk
[33:48] - Go to the person, reconcile
[35:58] - Radical measures against sin
[36:25] - James 4: mourn and humble
[40:41] - Offender and offended both act
[41:27] - What are you willing to give up
[42:41] - Hard things and resilience

Bible Study Guide

Bible Reading
- Matthew 18:6-9 (ESV): “But whoever causes one of these little ones who believe in me to sin, it would be better for him to have a great millstone fastened around his neck and to be drowned in the depth of the sea... If your hand or your foot causes you to sin, cut it off and throw it away. It is better for you to enter life crippled or lame than with two hands or two feet to be thrown into the eternal fire.”
- Psalm 119:165 (ESV): “Great peace have those who love your law; nothing can make them stumble.”
- James 4:9 (ESV): “Be wretched and mourn and weep. Let your laughter be turned to mourning and your joy to gloom.”

Observation Questions

In Matthew 18:6, what does the word “offend” specifically mean, and how does Jesus illustrate the severity of causing someone to sin?
How does Jesus’ imagery of cutting off a hand or foot (Matthew 18:8-9) emphasize the urgency of dealing with sin?
According to James 4:9, why does the call to “mourn and weep” contrast with other biblical commands to rejoice, and what context explains this shift in tone?

Interpretation Questions

Why might Jesus use such extreme language (e.g., millstones, amputation) to warn against causing others to sin or tolerating sin in ourselves?
How does Psalm 119:165’s promise of “great peace” for those who love God’s law connect to the sermon’s emphasis on not being easily offended?
The sermon states, “God will deal with the offender; the disciple’s job is to refuse the detour” [20:04]. How does this balance divine justice with personal responsibility in relationships?

Application Questions

What practical steps can you take to avoid being a “stumbling block” to others—especially in your speech, habits, or attitudes—in your family or church?
When have you been tempted to let someone else’s failure or sin become an excuse to distance yourself from God? How can Psalm 119:165 reshape your response to offenses?
The sermon warns against gossip and urges shutting it down by saying, “It’s not my business” or “Let’s go talk to them” [33:02]. How could you apply this next time you hear criticism about someone?
Jesus’ call to “cut off” sin (Matthew 18:8-9) requires radical action. What is one area of your life (e.g., media, relationships, habits) where you need to take “scorched earth” measures to avoid sin?
The sermon says trials are a “gym for the soul” [42:41]. How can you reframe a current hardship as an opportunity to grow resilience rather than bitterness?

Sermon Clips

24s

“And now, mark them which cause division among you and keep them separate. Right? But so so you gotta grow grow up in that. I'm not trying to be harsh, but don't be great peace have they which love thy law, nothing shall offend them. And you don't have to turn for if you ever turn from God and say I'm done with God and you walk away, you have nobody to blame but you.”

23s

“And if you come to me and tell me all the woes of all the people that hurt you, I'm a look and say, man, I am so sorry that these events have occurred in your life. And I am terribly sorry that Christians have sully god's name with their behavior towards you. But that has nothing to do with you walking away from God. I'm gonna tell you the truth.”

27s

“So he says, hey, well, offenses are gonna come, but don't be offended. And and here's there's this is the offended person as well because offend means to go out and sin. So there's an offender that comes in and influences your life for the devil and for carnality. The offended are the ones going out and sinning. So both have to deal with themselves. And here's the dealing. Take it seriously. Right?”

28s

“Don't be shocked. Let's meter your expectations. Right? Let's temper them. Let's find them in the right place in the Lord. Right? Trusting him knowing that, you know what? One day pastor's gonna say something that's gonna rub me raw and and I'm just gonna you know what? It happens. That should be my response. It happens. He's human. He he may have a bad day. Maybe I was a a jerk first. I don't know.”

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Matthew - Part 102 | Pastor Sims Anderson | Gospel Light