Saint Paul, Minnesota, United States - Lutheran Seminary's God Pause "Moved by the Promise" for Thursday, 4 September 2014 - Matthew 18:15-20

Saint Paul, Minnesota, United States - Lutheran Seminary's God Pause "Moved by the Promise" for Thursday, 4 September 2014 - Matthew 18:15-17 “If a fellow believer hurts you, go and tell him—work it out between the two of you. If he listens, you’ve made a friend. If he won’t listen, take one or two others along so that the presence of witnesses will keep things honest, and try again. If he still won’t listen, tell the church. If he won’t listen to the church, you’ll have to start over from scratch, confront him with the need for repentance, and offer again God’s forgiving love.
18-20 “Take this most seriously: A yes on earth is yes in heaven; a no on earth is no in heaven. What you say to one another is eternal. I mean this. When two of you get together on anything at all on earth and make a prayer of it, my Father in heaven goes into action. And when two or three of you are together because of me, you can be sure that I’ll be there.”(The Message)
Community is of upmost importance for Jesus. But he is realistic that where "two or three are gathered" in his name that there will be two or three (at least!) opinions of how the church (or ministry) should function or how others in the congregation should behave. I'm inclined to think that Jesus is not worried here just about differences of opinion but about those occasions when real harm has been done to another in the community. Yet even a small offense is still a tear at the fabric of our relationships with each other as the body of Christ. Jesus wants even those small offenses reconciled, not simply covered up with a band aid where they can continue to fester. 
Bringing everything to the light, speaking the truth in love and airing our differences is what makes communities rich, diverse and meaningful. It's also a reminder that we cannot go about participating in God's mission in the world alone, in a vacuum or in our own silo. Only when we can truly come together with open hearts, minds and souls can we move forward past our own baggage to reveal God's desire for reconciliation with all of creation.
God of unity, we were created to live in community. We were created to love and serve you and our neighbor, yet we fall short. Forgive us and bring us together as one people of God bound in love and mercy for the sake of your world. In the name of your Son who shows us radical love, we pray. Amen.
Brigett Weier
Englewood, Colo. 
Master of Divinity , 2012
Matthew 18:15 "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.
16 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.
17 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.
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.
19 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.
20 For where two or three are gathered in my name, I am there among them."(New Revised Standard Version)
____________________________