Following this, verse 9 says, "And if your eye stumbles you, pluck it out and cast it from you; it is better for you to enter into life with one eye than to have two eyes and be cast into the Gehenna of fire." This shows us that if a saved person does not deal with his lust, he will not be able to enter into life, but will go into eternal fire. The eternal fire here is the Gehenna of fire. The Bible shows us that a Christian has the possibility of suffering the Gehenna of fire. Although he can suffer the Gehenna of fire, he cannot suffer it forever. He can only suffer it during the age of the kingdom.

Matthew 18 is not the only portion of Scripture that says this. Other portions of the Bible also contain the same teaching. For example, the Sermon on the Mount in Matthew 5—7 contains clear words of the same kind. Matthew 5:21-22 says, "You have heard that it was said to the ancients, 'You shall not murder, and whoever murders shall be liable to the judgment.' But I say to you that every one who is angry with his brother shall be liable to the judgment. And whoever says to his brother, Raca, shall be liable to the judgment of the Sanhedrin; and whoever says, Moreh, shall be liable to the Gehenna of fire." At the beginning of chapter five, we read that the Lord Jesus saw the multitude. But He did not teach the multitude; rather, He taught the disciples (v. 1). The Sermon on the Mount is for the disciples. Therefore, the one who reviles others in verse 22 is a brother. He calls another brother Raca, that is, good-for-nothing, or Moreh, that is, a fool. When he calls his brother this way, he shall be liable to the Gehenna of fire. This does not refer to an unsaved person, for an unsaved person will go to hell even if he does not call anyone Moreh. Every time the Bible talks about works, it refers to one who belongs to God. If such a one does not belong to God, there is no need to mention such things. This is a saved person, a brother, but because he has reviled his brother, he is liable to the Gehenna of fire.

Verse 23 says, "Therefore if you are offering your gift at the altar and there you remember that your brother has something against you." Many times others hold things against us on purpose, and there is nothing that we can do about it; but if others complain because of our reviling, we have to be careful when we offer up our gift at the altar. If you think poorly of a brother and have spoken something against him, you have to go to him and deal with the matter. "Leave your gift there before the altar, and first go and be reconciled to your brother, and then come and offer your gift" (v. 24). The important thing is to be reconciled to your brother. Verse 25 says, "Be well disposed quickly toward your opponent at law, while you are with him on the way." Your brother is the plaintiff, and you are the defendant. Now he is bringing you to court: "Lest the opponent deliver you to the judge, and the judge to the officer, and you be thrown into prison." Such a thing will happen in the kingdom. The kingdom is very strict.