Exploring the Text: Conversation and reconciliation
One of the biggest challenges facing our society is the amount of division and conflict that we have. We let misunderstandings, questions, or offenses lead to division and bitterness. Jesus has a better plan. Here in Matthew 19, Jesus says that if we are upset or offended by someone, we should go to them privately and discuss is. Now it seems like our approach is to post it on Facebook, gossip about it with our friends, Instead, we should go to them privately and engage them in a conversation about it. If that solves the issue, then the relationship has been restored. That is the goal of this entire process. We ware looking for restored relationships; we are looking for reconciliation.
If they don't respond to a private conversation, Jesus says that we should take one or two others with us and have another conversation. The idea isn't to get a couple of other people on your side first. The idea is to get another perspective that can help you reconcile. If it works, then we have restored the relationship. If we still cannot find a resolution, then Jesus says we can finally make it public. Again, the hope is reconciliation and restoration, not shaming.
If the relationship can still not be restored, then Jesus says you can treat them like an outside. There are a couple of cautions even here, however. We are often to quick to get to this point. We try to ostracize people as soon as we are offended or insulted. Jesus lays out an entire process of reconciliation that we should follow first. Secondly, Jesus asks us to treat even the outsiders with love and respect. Even when we cannot reconcile a relationship, we should still treat people with respect and hope that one day we will be able to restore the relationship.
I wonder what would happen if people in our society started following Jesus' approach of conversation and reconciliation instead of offense and division. We may not be able to get the whole world to follow Jesus' approach, but we can in our lives.
David Dalton
One of the biggest challenges facing our society is the amount of division and conflict that we have. We let misunderstandings, questions, or offenses lead to division and bitterness. Jesus has a better plan. Here in Matthew 19, Jesus says that if we are upset or offended by someone, we should go to them privately and discuss is. Now it seems like our approach is to post it on Facebook, gossip about it with our friends, Instead, we should go to them privately and engage them in a conversation about it. If that solves the issue, then the relationship has been restored. That is the goal of this entire process. We ware looking for restored relationships; we are looking for reconciliation.
If they don't respond to a private conversation, Jesus says that we should take one or two others with us and have another conversation. The idea isn't to get a couple of other people on your side first. The idea is to get another perspective that can help you reconcile. If it works, then we have restored the relationship. If we still cannot find a resolution, then Jesus says we can finally make it public. Again, the hope is reconciliation and restoration, not shaming.
If the relationship can still not be restored, then Jesus says you can treat them like an outside. There are a couple of cautions even here, however. We are often to quick to get to this point. We try to ostracize people as soon as we are offended or insulted. Jesus lays out an entire process of reconciliation that we should follow first. Secondly, Jesus asks us to treat even the outsiders with love and respect. Even when we cannot reconcile a relationship, we should still treat people with respect and hope that one day we will be able to restore the relationship.
I wonder what would happen if people in our society started following Jesus' approach of conversation and reconciliation instead of offense and division. We may not be able to get the whole world to follow Jesus' approach, but we can in our lives.
David Dalton