Matthew 5:23-26 KJV “Therefore if thou bring thy gift to the altar, and there rememberest that thy brother hath ought against thee; 24 Leave there thy gift before the altar, and go thy way; first be reconciled to thy brother, and then come and offer thy gift. 25 Agree with thine adversary quickly, whiles thou art in the way with him; lest at any time the adversary deliver thee to the judge, and the judge deliver thee to the officer, and thou be cast into prison. 26 Verily I say unto thee, Thou shalt by no means come out thence, till thou hast paid the uttermost farthing.”
Ought means ‘anything’ or ‘something’. As these scriptures flow together, we can see Jesus compare ought to a debt. He is talking here about owing your brother some kind of debt, which can cause him to become your adversary. It’s when you have done wrong to your brother, and you owe him something. It’s something real and legitimate. The judge will be on your adversary’s side. The officer will throw YOU in prison. And you won’t get out till you’ve PAID the last penny.
(Note: The adversary referred to here, could be your brother, or a stranger, or even God… whomever you might owe a debt. But it is not the devil. You don’t owe the devil anything, and God is not telling you to agree with the devil about anything.)
If the fact that your brother has ought against you was HIS problem, or HIS sin; then Jesus wouldn’t say it’s up to YOU to be reconciled, or agree with him quickly. He is saying, that if God reminds you that you owe your brother, go make it right. If you can’t repay him, at least come to some agreement. That’s what ‘reconciled’ means… to be brought into agreement or harmony.
Your brother or your adversary has the option to forgive you. But you can’t demand forgiveness from him. Plead, beg… OK. But you have no grounds to demand anything. Remember… the judge is on HIS side. YOU did the wrong. So even if you have to do it on your adversary’s terms… agree… be reconciled.
God has no time limit, or statute of limitations, on debts. They don’t just go away after 7 years, or a hundred years. And we could never repay Him, in a million years. Jesus paid our debt! But even when our debt to God is paid, that doesn’t mean that our debt to our brother is paid, or forgotten. Though God has forgiven you, He still remembers what you did, (more on that at a later time), and what you owe your brother.
Try going to the IRS or your mortgage banker, and say, “I got saved last night, and Jesus forgave all my debts. My past is past, so forget it. Don’t bring it up anymore. I no longer owe you anything. I’m going forward.” Yeah, right. OK, how about if you went to your brother and said the same thing? Sounds foolish, doesn’t it?
Jesus is saying, when you come to God with your sacrifice, and you ‘remember’… which means either you look back, or God is reminding you of something in the past… then you need to make it right, in any way you possibly can.
I know restitution is not a popular topic, and I don’t remember hearing anyone preach on it, but it is certainly woven into this scripture. And it needs to be taken seriously. If a man steals another man’s car, and a year later, the car is found in the thief’s garage; is it enough for the thief to say, “Hey, I am so sorry that your car got stolen, but I’m going to keep it. You’re just going to have to forgive me and get over it, because I’ve repented to God, and I don’t steal cars anymore.”? Who would ever call that true repentance?
Now, there are many other kinds of debts that one might owe another, besides money or things: apologies, thanks, respect, honor. Or maybe something was misrepresented in a transaction… a false balance that cheated the other person, etc, etc. Some debts are fairly easy to repay… maybe just a phone call. Other debts may be impossible to repay… like if the other person has since died. Or the injury or loss is something permanent, or is more than you have.
Now, here’s where it get heavy, and personal. What if the wrong you said or did to another caused them to stumble… and lose, or miss out on, eternal life? How would you give that back to them? That’s a heavy thought, and it should be. The gospels of Matthew, Mark, and Luke, all tell of a time when Jesus spoke very strong warnings for anyone who would offend even one of His little ones. (See Matthew 18:1-11; Mark 9:41-48; & Luke 17:1-2) These are the scriptures that say that it would be better for that man if a millstone were hanged about his neck, and he were cast into the sea.
Since, by yourself, there are some things that you CAN’T restore or repay, what do you do? It’s not complicated. ‘Offend’ means to put something in someone’s way that could them to trip or stumble. It could be to entice someone to sin. It could be to cause a person to not trust the Lord, and turn away from Him. So, the obvious 1st step is to take away the stumbling block. Confess. Apologize. If it was your actions that caused them to stumble… repent & change. If it was something you said or taught, correct it and make clear what is the truth, and what is not. Whatever it takes, God says, “You… go…be reconciled.” Sometimes that is one on one. Sometimes it would be openly in public. Either way, confession is the doorway to reconciliation and healing. Check out James 5:16. “Confess your faults one to another, and pray one for another, that ye may be healed.”
It really boils down to love vs. pride. Love so deep for your brother that you would be willing to take personal loss, that he might be restored. Or pride so strong that you may not even be able to admit in your own heart that you have wronged anyone, or owe anybody anything.
1 John 1:8-10 KJV: “If we say that we have no sin, we deceive ourselves, and the truth is not in us. 9 If we confess our sins, he is faithful and just to forgive us our sins, and to cleanse us from all unrighteousness. 10 If we say that we have not sinned, we make him a liar, and his word is not in us.
It seems that when God’s Word comes on strong and heavy, He always comes back to His positive promises. Forgiven, and cleansed from all unrighteousness… all weights laid aside… chains to the past broken… we can soar into the presence of our holy, loving, almighty God! Yes! He’s calling! Let’s go!
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