Charles H. Talbert, «Indicative and Imperative in Matthean Soteriology», Vol. 82 (2001) 515-538
It is usually thought that Matthew emphasizes the imperative at the expense of the indicative, demand over gift. Identifying Matthew’s indicative is difficult because in chapters 5–25, insofar as disciples are concerned, the narrative is told in terms of ‘omnipotence behind the scenes’. In Matt 5–25 four techniques appropriate to such a method of narration speak of the divine indicative in relation to the imperative. They are (1) I am with you/in your midst, (2) invoking the divine name, (3) it has been revealed to you/you have been given to know, and (4) being with Jesus. They show Matthew’s soteriology is by grace from start to finish.
it new with you in my Father’s kingdom’). In Matthew’s schema, when Jesus is with the disciples, God is present with them36. Moreover, in most cases the presence is obviously an enabling one37. This is one way that the First Evangelist speaks about divine enablement of the disciples. It is subtle and can be missed very easily if one has not first been sensitized by the evidence from the OT background.
(2) A second technique that is employed by the First Evangelist to speak about divine enablement of disciples (= the indicative) is associated with ‘the name’. In the Scriptures of Israel the name was considered part of the personality38. So the name is used interchangeably with the person (Ps 7,17; 9,10; 18,49; 68[67],4; 74[73],18; 86[85],12; 92[91],1; Isa 25,1; 26,8; 30,27-28; 56,6; Mal 3,16; also in the NT — Acts 1,15; 5,41; 18,15; Rev 3,4; 11,13; 3 John 7; Matt 6,9)39.
The OT used the name as a way of speaking about the presence of God involved with humans. For example, when one swears (1 Sam 20,42; Lev 19,12), curses (2 Kgs 2,24), or blesses (2 Sam 6,18), invoking the name of YHWH, the name thus pronounced evokes YHWH’s presence, attention, and active intervention40. Or again, the name of YHWH is said to assist humans: Ps 54(53),1 (in response to prayer, where name is used in synonymous parallelism with might/power [cf. Jer 10,6]); Ps 89(88),24 (where God’s steadfast love’s being with him is used in synonymous parallelism with in my name shall his horn be exalted); Ps 20(19),1 (in response to prayer, where name is used together with God’s protection [cf. Prov 18,10]). The same motif of divine assistance is found in the NT related to the name of Jesus: 1 Cor 6,11 (where the name of the Lord Jesus is used in parallelism with the Spirit of God and the two are credited with the converts’ being washed, sanctified, and justified); Acts 4,12 (where we are saved only through the name of Jesus); Acts 10,43 (where forgiveness comes in his name); 1 John 5,13 (where eternal life comes