Preaching the Scriptures

The Rev. Jeremiah Williamson Matthew 18:21-35   The Discipline of Forgiveness It is a great question – asked in just the right way.   Peter knows what he is doing here.   “ How often should I forgive? ”   That's a good question.   But he doesn't stop there.   “ As many as seven times? ”   Not one.   Not two.   Not three.   Not four.   Not five.   Not six.   But seven times.   A good man might forgive.   What about one who would forgive seven times?   That person would have to be pretty extraordinary.   And so you see, it is a great question. Every pupil wants to impress their teacher.   Peter is no different.   He wants Jesus to be impressed with him – impressed with the great depth of his kindness and goodness.   And so he asks the question just knowing the answer will of course be something along the lines of: “ Seven times. Well, Peter that is above and beyond. ...

The Rev. Jeremiah Williamson Matthew 18:15-20 Communities of Reconciliation It is not uncommon for one to long for an earlier age.   We have all heard it, I'm sure: that sweet nostalgia for the simpler days of the 1950's, for example – with its slower pace of life, rudimentary technology, clean-cut television families, packed churches, and mama's good ol' home cookin'.   And with that earlier age, those kinder, gentler, friendlier people, those Mayberry people.   The good old days.   There is always some truth in the nostalgia – lazy Sunday afternoons were actually a thing 60 years ago and no one walked around with a computer in their pocket, there were no answering machines or voice mail and it took like a week to send someone a message and maybe week to get a response.   There are days when all of that sounds amazing.   But also the past is seldom as simple as it is remembered.   The 1950's in our country were certainly not the goo...