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The Most Empowering Thing Jesus Ever Said
And Why It Changes How We Read Everything
“Whatever you bind on earth will be bound in heaven, and whatever you loose on earth will be loosed in heaven.”
For many, that line from Matthew 18 comes with baggage, heavy, often negative baggage. It can sound authoritarian, final and like a threat.
I want to make a case and claim that it’s actually one of the most empowering, life-giving, and hope-filled things Jesus ever said.
As always, a little context helps.
Back to Torah
To understand what Jesus is getting at, we need to talk Torah.
In the first century, “Torah” referred to the first five books of the Hebrew Scriptures. For the Jewish people, Torah was the path of life. The word Torah can be translated as “teaching,” “instruction,” or “way.” To them, it wasn’t just a set of rules; it was how you lived the fullest, most faithful life possible.
Want to know how to honour God? Live Torah. Observe the Sabbath. Eat kosher. Care for the vulnerable. Love your neighbour.
Yes, love your neighbour comes from Leviticus, bet you didn’t see that coming!
