If you have heard me preach for any length of time, most likely you've heard me say something to the effect

that there is a promise in the scripture by our Lord Jesus Christ that has always been a challenge for me.

It is in Matthew 18, 19.

It is a promise when it is rightly claimed, and I'm saying that very carefully, rightly

claimed, as opposed to wrongly claimed.

I have seen it wrongly claimed.

When it is rightly claimed, my wife and I would testify to you that God had answer

in abundance. Let me read the promise of God in the context. 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.

You see, why it can be wrongly claimed?

Now you understand.

Question.

What is the wrong understanding of this promise?

Listen carefully.

The wrong understanding of this promise is when you see this promise as a blank check, that for any two people, ask God for anything, no matter how good or bad it may be, he's going to grant it to us. That's the wrong understanding of the promise. The wrong understanding of the promise is to think that God is somehow in heaven

bound to obey the demands of any two believers.

The wrong understanding or the interpreting of this promise is to take it like magic.

The wrong understanding is to think that God automatically grant us the most foolish or even sinful requests simply because two of his children asked for it.

Now, there's a wrong way to claim the promise. There's a right way

to claim the promise. Because if you put this in context of Matthew 18, it is in the context

of unity, spiritual unity. And to do it any other way is not only dangerous, it is inconsistent with the rest of the scripture.

In the context of Matthew 1819, Jesus speaking about this unity in the Christian life, in the Christian community, in a home.

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