Narrative Lectionary Key Verse for Today
“Then Peter came and said to him, ‘Lord, if another member of the church sins against me, how often should I forgive? As many as seven times?’ Jesus said to him, ‘Not seven times, but, I tell you, seventy-seven times.’”
NL Daily Devotion for Sunday, February 26, 2023
by Dr. Kimberly Leetch, Clergy Stuff
Main Idea: A community only thrives when forgiveness abounds.
Maybe it’s human nature to hold grudges. Despite all the messages of forgiveness from most faith traditions, people still seem to want to hold on to what they’re owed. This might be money, respect, or reconciliation. People do well at keeping score and don’t easily let go of resentment.
But Jesus sees it differently. When two people disagree, he suggests first trying to work it out between the two. If that doesn’t work, Jesus says it’s ok to bring in one or two others to mediate. If that still doesn’t work, then bring it to the community. If the person doesn’t want to listen to the community, then that person has already isolated themselves. They have made themselves “as a Gentile and a tax collector,” an outsider unwilling or unable to honor the word of the community.
Jesus tells a story of a slave that owed a great debt to a master. The master forgave the debt, but then the slave turned right around and refused to forgive the debt of another. For that he was tortured until he could pay his debt.
Forgiveness only works for a community when everyone in the community contributes to the forgiveness. It’s difficult for a community to become vulnerable enough to trust in each other’s forgiveness. But when a community works toward it together, then that community can thrive. As long as members of the community are willing to trust and forgive, the community can continue to grow in faith, maturity, and deepening relationships.
