My apologies for not sharing a post last week. The posting did not happen due to the Labor Day holiday. After taking Monday off, I did not get a chance to share my initial thoughts on the passages for September 10th. We will pick up the practice today and attempt to get future posts up on Wednesday if I have Monday meetings/holidays.
This week's readings pick up the theme of forgiveness and reconciliation. This theme builds on Jesus' proclamation that we have the power to bind and loose, to hold grudges and to release/forgive those who sin against us.
Reminder: my thoughts are in italics after each of the readings. If you have any impressions to add or any questions to ask, share them in the comments below!
Genesis 50:15-21:
15Realizing that their father was dead, Joseph’s brothers said, “What if Joseph still bears a grudge against us and pays us back in full for all the wrong that we did to him?” 16So they approached Joseph, saying, “Your father gave this instruction before he died, 17‘Say to Joseph: I beg you, forgive the crime of your brothers and the wrong they did in harming you.’ Now therefore please forgive the crime of the servants of the God of your father.” Joseph wept when they spoke to him. 18Then his brothers also wept, fell down before him, and said, “We are here as your slaves.” 19But Joseph said to them, “Do not be afraid! Am I in the place of God? 20Even though you intended to do harm to me, God intended it for good, in order to preserve a numerous people, as he is doing today. 21So have no fear; I myself will provide for you and your little ones.” In this way he reassured them, speaking kindly to them.
Joseph’s brothers were worried that Joseph may still be carrying a grudge against them, one that he has hidden and chosen not to act upon until their father’s death. Now that Jacob has died, they want reassurance that Joseph will not take his revenge against them. Joseph proclaims that the Lord has taken their betrayal and turned it into something good for the known world: the survival of many thanks to the Lord acting through Joseph.
Psalm 103:1-13
Bless the LORD, O my soul, and all that is within me, bless his holy name.
2 Bless the LORD, O my soul, and do not forget all his benefits--
3 who forgives all your iniquity, who heals all your diseases,
4 who redeems your life from the Pit, who crowns you with steadfast love and mercy,
5 who satisfies you with good as long as you live so that your youth is renewed like the eagle's.
6 The LORD works vindication and justice for all who are oppressed.
7 He made known his ways to Moses, his acts to the people of Israel.
8 The LORD is merciful and gracious, slow to anger and abounding in steadfast love.
9 He will not always accuse, nor will he keep his anger forever.
10 He does not deal with us according to our sins, nor repay us according to our iniquities.
11 For as the heavens are high above the earth, so great is his steadfast love toward those who fear him;
12 as far as the east is from the west, so far he removes our transgressions from us.
13 As a father has compassion for his children, so the LORD has compassion for those who fear him.
Psalm 103 can be broken into three parts. We have the option of reading part one alongside part two. Part one focuses on the Lord’s acts of healing and salvation. Part two focuses on the Lord’s forgiveness and love, comparable to a parent’s love for the parent’s children. Both are words of comfort that deserve to be heard on Sunday.
Romans 14:1-12
1Welcome those who are weak in faith, but not for the purpose of quarreling over opinions. 2Some believe in eating anything, while the weak eat only vegetables. 3Those who eat must not despise those who abstain, and those who abstain must not pass judgment on those who eat; for God has welcomed them. 4Who are you to pass judgment on servants of another? It is before their own lord that they stand or fall. And they will be upheld, for the Lord is able to make them stand.
5Some judge one day to be better than another, while others judge all days to be alike. Let all be fully convinced in their own minds. 6Those who observe the day, observe it in honor of the Lord. Also those who eat, eat in honor of the Lord, since they give thanks to God; while those who abstain, abstain in honor of the Lord and give thanks to God.
7We do not live to ourselves, and we do not die to ourselves. 8If we live, we live to the Lord, and if we die, we die to the Lord; so then, whether we live or whether we die, we are the Lord’s. 9For to this end Christ died and lived again, so that he might be Lord of both the dead and the living.
10Why do you pass judgment on your brother or sister? Or you, why do you despise your brother or sister? For we will all stand before the judgment seat of God. 11For it is written,
“As I live, says the Lord, every knee shall bow to me,
and every tongue shall give praise to God.”
12So then, each of us will be accountable to God.
Romans 14 first builds from earlier discussions of eating meat sold in the local marketplaces. Such meat often came from animal sacrifices at local temples dedicated to other “gods,” and many Christians wondered whether eating any form of meat sold at the marketplaces constituted worship of another god. Paul’s conclusion was that we know that these “gods” are merely idols and we are free to eat meat sold at the marketplace. However, if someone specifically claims that the meat in question was offered as a sacrifice at these local temples, then one should refrain from eating to avoid the appearance of participating in the worship of another god. Verses 7-8 are often read as part of the funeral liturgy, usually when the procession arrives at the graveside (we could also include verse 9 in the reading). The final verses push us toward forgiving others rather than acting as judges over others; judgment is in God’s hands, not our own.
Matthew 18:21-35
21Peter came and said to [Jesus], “Lord, if another member of the church sins against me, how often should I forgive? As many as seven times?” 22Jesus said to him, “Not seven times, but, I tell you, seventy-seven times.
23“For this reason the kingdom of heaven may be compared to a king who wished to settle accounts with his slaves. 24When he began the reckoning, one who owed him ten thousand talents was brought to him; 25and, as he could not pay, his lord ordered him to be sold, together with his wife and children and all his possessions, and payment to be made. 26So the slave fell on his knees before him, saying, ‘Have patience with me, and I will pay you everything.’ 27And out of pity for him, the lord of that slave released him and forgave him the debt. 28But that same slave, as he went out, came upon one of his fellow slaves who owed him a hundred denarii; and seizing him by the throat, he said, ‘Pay what you owe.’ 29Then his fellow slave fell down and pleaded with him, ‘Have patience with me, and I will pay you.’ 30But he refused; then he went and threw him into prison until he would pay the debt. 31When his fellow slaves saw what had happened, they were greatly distressed, and they went and reported to their lord all that had taken place. 32Then his lord summoned him and said to him, ‘You wicked slave! I forgave you all that debt because you pleaded with me. 33Should you not have had mercy on your fellow slave, as I had mercy on you?’ 34And in anger his lord handed him over to be tortured until he would pay his entire debt. 35So my heavenly Father will also do to every one of you, if you do not forgive your brother or sister from your heart.”
Does it matter whether Jesus said 77 times or 490 times? Either way, the message is to forgive without limitation. An early glimpse of commentary notes suggested that the debt of 10,000 talents was an “unfathomable” sum of money in those days, well above the 900 talents of tax money the Roman Empire collected every year from their provinces in the Middle East. If we assume that this is meant to be talents of silver, the value of this debt today is $161,722,500 (assuming that one pound of silver is worth $215.63, the value as of September 1, 2017). If we assume that this is meant to be talents of gold, the value of this debt today is $16,059,930,681.80 (assuming that one kilogram of gold is worth $47,109.13, the value as of September 11, 2017). To compare the debts, a denarius was the payment for one day of labor, comparable to a minimum wage. At the current minimum wage of $7.25 per hour, 100 8-hour days of labor will earn you $5,800. This is not an insignificant sum, but it pales in comparison to $161 million or $16 billion. And yet, not even $16 billion can truly reveal the depth of forgiveness given to us by the Lord through the death and resurrection of Christ and the sacraments of baptism and holy communion!
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