Reconciliation Before Worship

first be reconciled to your brother, and then come and present your offering (Matthew 5:23-24).

Therefore if you are presenting your offering at the altar, and there remember that your brother has something against you, leave your offering there before the altar and go; first be reconciled to your brother, and then come and present your offering.Matthew 5:23-24 NASB1995

Key Concept

“You have heard that the ancients were told, 'You shall not commit murder' and 'Whoever commits murder shall be liable to the court.' But I say to you that everyone who is angry with his brother shall be guilty before the court; and whoever says to his brother, 'You good-for-nothing,' shall be guilty before the supreme court; and whoever says, 'You fool,' shall be guilty enough to go into the fiery hell. Therefore if you are presenting your offering at the altar, and there remember that your brother has something against you, leave your offering there before the altar and go; first be reconciled to your brother, and then come and present your offering.Matthew 5:21-24 NASB1995

• Fix the breach with your brother before the offering - worship with an unreconciled heart is hollow.
• Level 1: If you are fighting with someone, make peace before you worship - praying while the hurt is still open is empty.
• Level 2: If you and someone else are fighting, make peace with them before you worship - praying while the hurt is still open is empty.
• Level 3: Leave the gift, go reconcile, then return - worship with an unreconciled heart is hollow.
• Level 4: Because offering and anger cannot share one altar, breach repair precedes praise - mercy received demands mercy extended.
• Level 5: Fix the breach with your brother before the offering - worship with an unreconciled heart is hollow; Peacemakers names the active move.
• Worship with an unreconciled heart is hollow.
• The initiative is on the one who knows there is a breach - leave the altar, go, be reconciled, then return.
• This is fellowship restored, not salvation re-earned: Free Grace already settled my standing before God (Standing vs Fellowship).
• Same discipline as Note Relationships in the garden: broken links between notes need typed repair - broken links between people need face-to-face repair first.

Examples

• I warmed up ready to compete while my teammate still had something against me from Wednesday - fix it courtside, then play.
• I walked into the volunteer shift ready to serve while my co-worker still had something against me - five minutes in the parking lot first.

Note Relationships