Patch it Up, Baby - A Reflection on Matthew 18:15-20




“If another member of the church sins against you, go and point out the fault when the two of you are alone. If the member listens to you, you have regained that one. But if you are not listened to, take one or two others along with you, so that every word may be confirmed by the evidence of two or three witnesses. If the member refuses to listen to them, tell it to the church; and if the offender refuses to listen even to the church, let such a one be to you as a Gentile and a tax collector. 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. Again, truly I tell you, if two of you agree on earth about anything you ask, it will be done for you by my Father in heaven. For where two or three are gathered in my name, I am there among them.”

 

We reflected on this reading a few days ago(see The Offenders:https://youtu.be/FLo6S5ByFMA) I believe it has some really important lessons for all of us, so if you haven’t watched/read it, please do so. It even explains that part about how God will listen to our prayer if two of us on earth agree on anything in its proper context. I have provided links to it everywhere, so just look for it. Today I want to reflect upon just one little thing that Jesus advises us to do if someone offends us. He says: Talk to the person.

 

People are going to offend us. They can’t help it. Just like we can’t help offending people. Haven’t you offended somebody lately? Perhaps not deliberately, but a remark you made or a joke you cracked at somebody’s expense is enough to cause offense. Now we don’t want people to take it seriously, right? After all, we really didn’t MEAN any offense. So why should we take the things that other people say seriously? But we do, don’t we? And we react terribly! 

 

What do we do? Well, unfriending them on Facebook is usually the first thing we think of! Unfortunately it doesn’t end there. We want others to unfriend them too, so we bad mouth them to everyone, sometimes so savagely that whatever little reputation they might have had is shred to pieces. Then, depending on how vindictive we are, we will step up the assault. Sometimes this gets so savage, there is little hope of redeeming the relationship at all. And for the person who claims to be a believer of Christ, this is nothing short of tragic, don’t you think?

 

So, what’s the solution? To quote Jesus again: talk to the person. Don’t talk ABOUT the person; talk TO the person. Tell the person, as lovingly as you possibly can, that what they said or did offended you. There is a good chance that the person will acknowledge their mistake, apologize for it, and the matter is resolved in a manner that is graceful and godly. Graciousness and godliness are actually synonymous with each other and should define our every word and action. Now, this one on one encounter will bring about peace nine times out of ten. I can practically guarantee it.

 

Now, in the very attempt to do this, we become peacemakers. Jesus says that “blessed are the peacemakers, for they will be called children of God” (Matthew 5:9). What does that say about those who don’t wat peace? I’ll leave that for you to figure out. Now, how about making peace with those who have offended us? Go on. Pick up the phone and call them. Remember to be gracious and godly, and see what happens. If leaders of nations can be inspired to do this same thing, can you imagine what this world can become?

 

Well, to quote Elvis Presley, we can patch it up with a whole lot of love! 


Watch a video of this reflection by Aneel Aranha here: https://youtu.be/XJgWvr8WpKM


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