15 “If your brother or sister sins, go and point out their fault, just between the two of you. If they listen to you, you have won them over. 16 But if they will not listen, take one or two others along, so that ‘every matter may be established by the testimony of two or three witnesses.’ 17 If they still refuse to listen, tell it to the church; and if they refuse to listen even to the church, treat them as you would a pagan or a tax collector."
18 “Truly I tell you, whatever you bind on earth will be bound in heaven, and whatever you loose on earth will be loosed in heaven." Matthew 18:15-18
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I have a friend who is deeply hurt and offended by something that his brother did to him recently. Close friends for a lifetime, there is now a seemingly endless river dividing the the two. Not only are they no longer close, they are not speaking because of what happened...a burden for both of them and their families that could, theoretically, continue for decades if left unchecked.
Today's Scripture tells us that we must try our level best to reconcile with others, even if we are the one that has sustained the offense. In essence, we are led to and through the prescribed biblical process of reconciliation before turning away from those who hurt us. Even then, if reconciliation efforts fail, we as Christians are called to 'turn the other cheek.'
In light of our humanness and pride, forgiveness can be quite a challenge. For forgiveness is often a divine event. But when we are aware of how often we ourselves have fallen short with others, and in the eyes of God, we are more able to treat others as we would want to be treated and give those who hurt us every opportunity to make amends.
Adele M. Gill 2014 Copyright
