“When he came to his senses, he said, ‘How many of my father’s hired servants have food to spare, and here I am starving to death! I will set out and go back to my father and say to him: Father, I have sinned against heaven and against you. I am no longer worthy to be called your son; make me like one of your hired servants.’ So he got up and went to his father.” Luke 15:17-20a
Our focus this week looks out through the eyes of the offender rather than the offended. Perhaps, in the story of the Prodigal Son, the younger son asked for his inheritance long before his father had come even close to dying. In that culture, this was an insult of monumental proportions. To make matters even worse, the younger son didn’t ask with a plan for good in mind. He was up for fun, using his inheritance to invest in sin, which multiplied the insult to his father. Finding himself on all fours, feeding with the dreaded pigs, he came to his senses, and returned to his father. He made the wise choice to reconcile.
But there is a circumstance that makes this choosing a little more difficult, actually a lot more difficult, and it is a situation that we may find ourselves embroiled in more often than we’d like. It is that time when we occupy the position of being both the offended and the offender. We perceive that we have been mistreated, and strike out in kind. We have been hurt and self-righteously point our finger at the person we think we have been wronged by. Which takes me here.
“Come to me, all you who are weary and burdened, and I will give you rest. Take my yoke upon you and learn from me, for I am gentle and humble in heart, and you will find rest for your souls. For my yoke is easy and my burden is light.” Matthew 11:28-30
When I consider this wonderful offer from Jesus, my mental photo album sees that third world mother with far too many bundles of clothes in her arms, on her back, shoulders, and even head, stooped over by the weight, trudging down to the stream to wash. For us, that unrequited anger causes us to ignore our own part in the disagreement. Consider this:
“Why do you look at the speck of sawdust in your brother’s eye and pay no attention to the plank in your own eye? How can you say to your brother, ‘Let me take the speck out of your eye,’ when all the time there is a plank in your own eye?” Matthew 7:3-4
God would like nothing more than to remove that burden, but in order to do that, we must make the choice to reconcile. Ours needs to be the first step. Failure to do that will take us to hypocrisy and seriously interfere with our relationship with God.
“Therefore, if you are offering your gift at the altar and there remember that your brother or sister has something against you, leave your gift there in front of the altar. First go and be reconciled to them; then come and offer your gift.” Matthew 5:23-24
Reconciliation.
The choice is yours…
Do your aching back a favor
by Bruce Hanson
