Love is Patient

  About correcting another believer…”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.” Mathew 18:17

  It’s an “ah-ha!” moment this morning after spending a good while perusing the Bible for today’s passage. I have no idea where the understanding evolved that treating a fellow believer like a pagan or tax collector meant banishment or walking away from them. That’s how I’d always interpreted this passage. Was I wrong!! So terribly, terribly wrong. (Thank You, Lord, for Your mercy.)

  Instead, I believe Jesus is telling us to take it back a notch. Instead of trying to force the issue or demanding something be corrected, we treat the person with love. We treat the person as a non-believer, starting all over again with whom Jesus is and what his life, death and life represents. We let the life and teachings of Jesus do the “correcting”. And they will, according to God’s time.

  These are personal matters for God to contend with. Only God knows what lay in a person’s heart, what hurts, what challenges, or what is stopping them from being able to receive His love. He even knows why they (me, too!) get it wrong.

  Perhaps an earthly father who did harm gets in the way of knowing a heavenly Father.

  Perhaps an earthly spouse who did harm gets in the way of knowing Jesus as Bridegroom.

  Perhaps it was another believer who did harm despite their “good intentions”…Or sadly, through an abuse of religious authority.

  Lord, be with those who have been sexually abused by priests and pastors and church leaders. If my heart breaks at the thought, Your pain must be more than I could ever bear. Be with the wounded, comfort them and bring them out of the shadows. Break the silence of shame so a journey into freedom can begin. In Jesus’ name I pray.

  I also pray for the people I have harmed in Your name because it wasn’t in Your name at all.

  These are heavy thoughts for a beautiful, sunny day. Even so, I can’t help but smile because I have learned one more thing about love.