Creator, Father, King #201

Make me truly happy by agreeing wholeheartedly with each other, loving one another, and working together with one mind and purpose.

TURTLES LIVE A SIMPLE life, don’t they?

Sleepy? Scared? Fed up with life? Doesn’t matter. Whenever turtles don’t like what’s happening in the outside world, they just retreat into the safety of their shell.

Oftentimes, when someone sins against us, we act like a turtle, shrinking behind a self-constructed emotional barrier and waiting for the other person to ask for forgiveness. We justify our isolationistic strategy by saying, “Well, he started it,” “She should’ve known better,” or “I’ll forgive when they ask.”

In Matthew 18:15-17, Jesus instructed us to think differently:

If another believer sins against you, go privately and point out the offense. If the other person listens and confesses it, you have won that person back. But if you are unsuccessful, take one or two others with you and go back again, so that everything you say may be confirmed by two or three witnesses. If the person still refuses to listen, take your case to the church. Then if he or she won’t accept the church’s decision, treat that person as a pagan or a corrupt tax collector.

What’s It Mean?

We often think when we’ve been wronged that it’s the other person’s responsibility to initiate reconciliation with us. But Scripture teaches an opposite mindset.

If another Christian sins against you, your job is to lovingly, gently approach that person to rectify the matter, not waiting impatiently—with arms crossed and foot tapping—hoping they’ll come to you. In other words, the Bible calls you to be proactive in reconciliation.

After all, isn’t this what God did for us? He is the supreme example of this. We started life as God’s enemies (Romans 5:10), rebelling against him in every way possible, even by our very nature.

Thankfully, he didn’t wait for us to “come around” to repentance and faith. We never would have on our own. So he pursued us. Verses such as John 3:17; 2 Corinthians 5:18; Ephesians 2:1-9; and Colossians 2:13-14 are a small sampling of Scripture’s overwhelming evidence that God, the aggrieved party, reached out to us first.

When someone sins against you, go and reach out to them. The goal of all this is the underlying message of today’s verse: loving fellowship and unity of purpose in the body of Christ.

Now What?

Look carefully at Matthew 18:15-17 again to see Jesus’ step-by-step method of reconciliation.

Did You Know?

If you have offended someone, it’s still your responsibility to approach that person and ask for forgiveness.