Keys of the Kingdom

Mat 18:18
Truly I say to you,
Whatever you shall bind on earth shall occur,
having been bound in Heaven;
and whatever you shall loose on earth shall occur,
having been loosed in Heaven.

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Jesus was a Jewish rabbi.

Rabbis understood their role as interpreters of the bible,
helping people understand how to live.
The Rabbi's desire was to get as close as possible
to God's intention

but every reader has an interpretation,
so...
Different rabbis had different sets of rules;
lists of what was permitted and forbidden.

The rabbi's interpretation,
in the form of his list,
was called that rabbi's yoke.
You followed a certain rabbi
because you believed that his interpretations
were closest to what God intended
through the scriptures.
You took up his yoke.

Jesus the rabbi said
"For my yoke is easy, and my burden is light."
(Mat 11:30)

Imagine a rabbi with a new perspective on a verse.
If he had authority (shmikah)
he would say things like,
"You have heard it said..., but I tell you ..."

What he was saying was
"You have heard people interpret this verse this way,
but what I'm telling you is closer to what God really meant."

The rabbis had technical terms
for the endless process of forbidding and permitting
through their interpretations.
it was called BINDING and LOOSING
To bind something was to forbid it.
To loose something was to allow it.

When a rabbi gave his disciples
the authority to bind and loose
it was called
"giving the keys of the kingdom"

Jesus gave his church the keys of the kingdom.
(Mat 16:19)

We are the church.
As a community of followers,
We have the authority to make NEW interpretations,
and bind or loose our lives
to our understanding of God's will for us.

Jesus expects his followers to be engaged
in the endless process of deciding
what it means to actually live the scriptures.

And the way we apply these rules to our lives
Will have a corresponding application in heaven.