This Week’s Gospel Reflection

Scripture

Matthew 18:15-20

“If your brother sins against you, go and tell him his fault, between you and him alone. If he listens to you, you have gained your brother. But if he does not listen, take one or two others along with you, that every charge may be established by the evidence of two or three witnesses. If he refuses to listen to them, tell it to the church. And if he refuses to listen even to the church, let him be to you as a Gentile and a tax collector. Truly, I say to you, whatever you bind on earth shall be bound in heaven, and whatever you loose on earth shall be loosed in heaven. Again, I say to you, if two of you agree on earth about anything they ask, it will be done for them by my Father in heaven. For where two or three are gathered in my name, there am I among them.”

Reflection

When Jesus taught his disciples this passage, he was helping them find a way to settle disputes among themselves. Interestingly, he puts the burden of reconciliation on the one who has been offended not the offender. I don’t know about you, but that’s not how I tend to operate. I’d rather cross my arms, pouting, sulking and waiting for the person who offended me to have an epiphany and come begging me for forgiveness. In fact, I’ve done that many times before. Often, I’ve found that the person who offended me was clueless that they’d hurt me. However, Jesus teaches us a better way.

When we dig to the root of this passage, Jesus reveals two aspects of his character that we should imitate. First, we should value relationships. Jesus says that you should go to the person who offended you, then take someone with you, then take it before the community. Finally, if all your efforts fail, you move on and forget about that relationship. I tend to focus on the last part of that process, but there is a great deal of effort put into saving a relationship before severing it.  

Secondly, Jesus teaches the importance of reconciliation. The goal of this process is not that one person be right or wrong, but that two people be reconciled to each other through forgiveness. We are to seek out those who have offend us so that we might be reconciled to them.

Jesus not only taught this message to his disciples, but he also modeled it. Jesus drew near to us because of (and in spite of) the sins that we committed against him. He came to us because he values a relationship with his people, he offered forgiveness for our sins, and his main goal was to reconcile us to God. The next time someone sins against me, I hope my actions reflect my value for relationships and reconciliation in the same way Jesus modeled with his life, death, and resurrection. I am thankful we serve the God who came to us so that we could be reconciled to him.

Prayer

Dear God, your forgiveness reaches beyond my comprehension. I am thankful you did not wait for us to come to you with our sins but instead came to us offering forgiveness. Thank you for teaching us the value of relationships and reconciliation. Help us to be better students of yours and to love others the way you love us.

Past Reflections