Why Wait?
"23 “Therefore, if you are offering your gift at the altar and there remember that your brother or sister has something against you, 24 leave your gift there in front of the altar. First go and be reconciled to them; then come and offer your gift."
You have probably heard it said, "don't let the sun go down on your anger!" One of the worst nights of sleep is when you go to bed mad at some on. It is better to settle matters quickly and not suffer the pain. Today Jesus goes one step further, and says if you are in worship and offering something to God, if you have an unresolved issue with a brother or sister in Christ, resolve that first. We see here how important relationships with others are to God.
Jesus is trying to root out hypocritical worship, where we sit in church looking pious, when our lives are filled with unresolved relational issues. If one of our relationships is out of sync, we shouldn't wait or rationalize why there are other things more important. A lot of times we make lots of stuff up as to why we can't reconcile with someone. But usually it is either pride, resentment, or fear of conflict. But the bottom line is the best indicator of our relationship with God is how we treat others. When we offend or hurt someone, as we often do, we are to make the first move to apologize and make things right. We all want to be right, but sometimes being in a right relationship is more important. This honors God, the other person, and shows the world an example of unconditional love.
Who do you need to be reconciled with today? It is not matter who is right or wrong, but forgiving as we have been forgiven. After all, Jesus did not wait for us to come to him, but went to the cross willingly to reconcile us to the Father forever. Don't wait, this is probably the most important thing you can do today. Even God thinks so.
You have probably heard it said, "don't let the sun go down on your anger!" One of the worst nights of sleep is when you go to bed mad at some on. It is better to settle matters quickly and not suffer the pain. Today Jesus goes one step further, and says if you are in worship and offering something to God, if you have an unresolved issue with a brother or sister in Christ, resolve that first. We see here how important relationships with others are to God.
Jesus is trying to root out hypocritical worship, where we sit in church looking pious, when our lives are filled with unresolved relational issues. If one of our relationships is out of sync, we shouldn't wait or rationalize why there are other things more important. A lot of times we make lots of stuff up as to why we can't reconcile with someone. But usually it is either pride, resentment, or fear of conflict. But the bottom line is the best indicator of our relationship with God is how we treat others. When we offend or hurt someone, as we often do, we are to make the first move to apologize and make things right. We all want to be right, but sometimes being in a right relationship is more important. This honors God, the other person, and shows the world an example of unconditional love.
Who do you need to be reconciled with today? It is not matter who is right or wrong, but forgiving as we have been forgiven. After all, Jesus did not wait for us to come to him, but went to the cross willingly to reconcile us to the Father forever. Don't wait, this is probably the most important thing you can do today. Even God thinks so.
Comments
Post a Comment