Matthew 5:23-26
“Therefore, if you are offering your gift at the altar and there remember that your brother or sister has something against you, leave your gift there in front of the altar. First go and be reconciled to them; then come and offer your gift.
“Settle matters quickly with your adversary who is taking you to court. Do it while you are still together on the way, or your adversary may hand you over to the judge, and the judge may hand you over to the officer, and you may be thrown into prison. Truly I tell you, you will not get out until you have paid the last penny.”
REFLECTION
God created mankind for relationship: with God, with Creation, and with other people. One way we love God is by loving our neighbors…and broken relationships hinder our worship and separate, where unity is Christ’s desire. As disciples, we have been given a ministry of reconciliation (2 Corinthians 5:18-20). We cannot be fully reconciled with our Creator while we are in an adversarial relationship with a brother or sister.
And we must seek reconciliation urgently! The season of Lent is a wonderful time to peer honestly into our relationships and understand their true nature: do we love others and forgive them their debts to us? Do we show them the mercy we hope for from God? Do we desire the peace and unity of the kingdom of heaven above all other things in our marriages, our friendships, our parenting, and our congregational life?
PRAYER: Lord, our hearts are an open book to you. You know our inmost thoughts and desires and from you nothing is hidden. Show us the fractures in our relationships with others. Expose our unforgiveness and mercilessness. We confess our sin against both God and man and seek the courage to reconcile and the faith to love. AMEN
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