Pentecost 16, 2011
Matthew 18:15-20
“Go to your brother!”
Grace, mercy, and peace be to you from God our Father and from our Lord and Savior Jesus Christ. Amen.
“What do you think? If a man owns a hundred sheep, and one of them wanders away, will he not leave the ninety-nine on the hills and go to look for the one that wandered off? And if he finds it, I tell you the truth, he is happier about that one sheep than about the ninety-nine that did not wander off. In the same way your Father in heaven is not willing that any of these little ones should be lost.” (Matthew 18:12-14)
The Parable of the Lost Sheep comes right before our Gospel lesson this morning. In it we see the love of Christ and our Heavenly Father. Jesus goes off and leaves the 99 sheep behind to find that one lost sheep. That is God’s love for the straying sinner. That is God’s love for each of you. Remember how important that one straying sheep is as we hear our Lord’s Word from the Gospel lesson this morning.
“If your brother sins against you, go and show him his fault, just between the two of you. If he listens to you, you have won your brother over. But if he will not listen, take one or two others along, so that ‘every matter may be established by the testimony of two or three witnesses.’ If he refuses to listen to them, tell it to the church; and if he refuses to listen even to the church, treat him as you would a pagan or a tax collector. “I tell you the truth, whatever you bind on earth will be bound in heaven, and whatever you loose on earth will be loosed in heaven. “Again, I tell you that if two of you on earth agree about anything you ask for, it will be done for you by my Father in heaven. For where two or three come together in my name, there am I with them.” (Matthew 18:15-20)
This is a hard text to preach and hear. It is a hard text because it tells all of us what we are called to do as Christians. This text isn’t just for one person…but all of us. The audience for this text is the faithful believer. It tells us, both Pastors and laity, to go…to your brother that sins against you. This is not an easy task. This, like all mission work, focuses on sharing the truth of law the Gospel with others. It is something that we all agree needs to be done…and yet none of us wants to do. It is like when we sing the hymn “Hark the Voice of Jesus Crying who will go and work today…” and resound together in singing “send me send me.” And yet…when it comes down to it we’d really rather sing “send someone as long as it’s not me!”
There are many reasons we don’t like to go proclaim Christ to the world…especially not to our own brother or sister. Even more than sharing the Gospel…we really don’t want to go and tell someone that they have sinned; that they are a sinner. Much of it is our own laziness. A lot of it is our worry for offending those we love. Often we don’t want to go just to be rejected or ridiculed. Sometimes we don’t know what to say. And of course…we don’t want to drive people away from us, the Church, or God or take the blame as being the cause of this happening.
This is a real problem in our Church. It is a problem here in Clinton and Chestnut. All of us are guilty of not heeding our Lord’s command. It’s all of us. God doesn’t call just one of us to go to our brother…He calls all of us to go. Notice how our text tells us to handle the situation. If your brother sins…go to him. If he won’t listen to you take witnesses. If he still won’t listen take the Church. All of us are supposed to be involved!
We might ask: who is your brother? It’s all those around you. There is a reason we call each other brothers and sisters in Christ. Your brother is your relative by flesh and blood and your relative in Christ Jesus.
We might also ask…“but what if they haven’t sinned against me?” If a person has sinned in front of you…if a person has sinned against the Word of God…they have sinned against you as a member of Christ and against Christ Himself. The point of the text isn’t what the exact sin was…it is in calling a person to repentance.
A call to repentance. This is the heart of our text. This is the reason we are to go to our brothers and sisters that have sinned. The reason that all people must repent is that all sins are equal in the eyes of God. That is, all sins equally condemn us to eternal damnation. That’s why this is so important. Salvation is at stake. Eternal life is at stake. Do you care? Do you care enough about someone to tell them they have sinned? Do you care enough to go to your brother and call him to repentance?
I know that you care. I care. God knows that we care and forgives us of our shortcomings. God knows that going to your brother when they sin isn’t easy. That is why He promises to be with you. He gives you brothers and sisters in Christ to go with you. He gives you the very Church. We are in this together.
This is such an important, noble, and blessed task…and I know it’s not easy. I know how hard it is to be rejected when sharing Christ. I have had people ignore me and get angry with me over calling them to repentance. I have been told that I’m offensive, mean-spirited, judgmental, and un-loving. I know the stress involved…the anxiety…the fear…the sadness…the weight it puts on your shoulders.
God gives us the strength to endure. He gives us the very words to speak. He lets us share His love. That’s also what this is all about. We call people to repentance because we love them. We share the wonderful news of Christ…His death and resurrection…because we love them. And while it doesn’t happen as often as it should…people do come to repentance and faith. That, my brothers and sisters in Christ, is an unspeakable joy. As Jesus tells us “there is rejoicing in the presence of the angels of God over one sinner who repents.” (Luke 15:10)
The heavenly Father has but one will, the will to save. This includes all, young and old. It also includes those who have fallen into sin, but who by loving patience and hard work might be won back. How great is the Father’s love for all people! How great is His love for you!
“Hark, the voice of Jesus calling. Who will go and work today?” By God’s grace let us respond not with “send someone else” but with the words “Send me! Send me!” Amen.
Now may the peace of God which passes all human understanding keep your hearts and minds in Christ Jesus our Lord and Savior. Amen.
Comments