Scriptures: Ezekiel 33:7-11; Psalm 119:33-40; Romans 13:8-14; Matthew 18:15-20
The Reflection is by Kit Allgood-Mellema, Worship Leader.
6 September 2026, 15th Sunday after Pentecost, Proper 18A
Most of us have probably heard some texts from scripture that make us uncomfortable. Not so long ago, if certain readings showed up in the calendar, I would check the schedule to see if someone else was available to give the reflection. These days, though, I tend to look at those ‘uncomfortable’ readings more as opportunities to go deep into the scriptures, to challenge my beliefs, my relationships with God, with Jesus, with the Spirit, with this congregation, with people here and people far away, with the entire created world.
To be honest, today’s gospel is one of those that makes me a little squirmy. Knowing that, I began to prepare by trying to figure out what was making me squirm. I read Matthew’s passage from three different sources; I included several verses before and after today’s selection. I noted the words and ideas that jumped off the pages at me.
When I was done, the word that stood out for me was in two of the three versions; that word was ‘sin.’ ‘If someone sins against you . . .’ (The Message version used ‘hurt’ in place of sin.) The word ‘sin’ is used often in the Bible and also in our Book of Common Prayer, so I decided to look the word up with the hope that I could figure out why it made me uncomfortable - and what better place to start than the Episcopal Church’s online glossary.
A quick search in the glossary for the word ‘sin’ took me to a page on the church website that featured a photo of Presiding Bishop Rowe, shrugging his shoulders, under a note that said, ‘Page Not Found.’ Below that were these lines: ‘Seek, and ye shall find . . . just not on this page.’ Followed by ‘Knock, and it shall be opened unto you: Try typing keywords into our search bar.’ Gotta give it to us – we do have a sense of humor. But on another page, I was able to find this short definition: ‘Sin is intentional disobedience and rebellion against God. It alienates us from our true selves.’
Various dictionaries define sin as ‘an offense against religious or moral law; a transgression of the law of God; ‘state of human nature in which the self is estranged from God . . . as a result of breaking God’s law.’
I decided to make another attempt with the Episcopal Church resources and turned to the catechism pages in the Book of Common Prayer; on page 848, our prayer book tells us, ‘Sin is the seeking of our own will instead of the will of God, thus distorting our relationship with God, with other people and with all creation.’
Sin prevents us from fully loving God, God’s people – including our family, friends, those we know and even those we don’t know - and all of God’s creation.
Knowing that then led me to look at the idea that stood out for me in this passage – that of facing a person who had sinned, whose relationship with God and creation was broken. As someone who doesn’t like conflict or confrontation, the thought of going to another person and pointing out a wrong really made me uncomfortable, until I realized that for years I had been reading into this passage words and ideas that were not there! Jesus was not talking about conflict, or confrontation, or arguments. As he continued to tell his disciples about reconciliation, forgiveness, living and praying together – all the work we heard in today’s readings - Jesus was preparing them to lovingly build up the emerging communities of God and the kindom of God here on earth. He was reminding those around him that when he was no longer on earth with them, it would be up to them, the disciples, to live the life he had taught them, and to teach others how to live a life grounded in God’s love, even if that meant sometimes speaking with another person about a wrong that had been done. It was not about confrontation. It was all about tenderly bringing people into community.
You may have noticed I just said, ‘the work we heard about in today’s readings!’ Put an emphasis on the ‘s,’ please. All our readings this week are about the commandments, about the role of love in our relationships, about teaching and living as an example, and about gathering in community and finding strength and support and life together, through all the times of our lives. This started with our opening prayer this morning - a version of the Shema, that reminds us to love God with all our heart, soul, mind and strength, and to love our neighbors.
No, this gospel is not about conflict and confrontation – this gospel is about connection. This is about coming together with love and compassion, about supporting one another on our walk with God, in God’s Creation. It’s about following our baptismal covenant, when we promise that with God’s help, whenever we fall into sin we will repent and return to God. It’s about listening to and learning from one another, about finding peace as we heal that which has been broken or damaged. It’s about finding wholeness, knitting together people and communities that have been broken apart, that feel estranged. It’s about weaving all our lives into the pattern that forms the fabric of all Creation.
What does that mean to us today? As we begin the 2026 Season of Creation, we look to the theme of “Living Water . . . as a powerful biblical vision of hope and ecological healing. . . .the image of living water flowing from God’s sanctuary reveals divine healing that renews land, water, biodiversity, and human responsibility towards the whole creation.” (from the Season of Creation Celebration Guide). We are reminded that throughout the world today, there are areas too many to count that have lost their water resources. Too many people have no access to clean water for drinking, cooking and washing. There are rivers that no longer flow freely, wells that have run dry, streams that were once full of diverse life that are now too polluted to breathe and support any life. We can’t begin to name all the ecosystems that have been damaged or stripped bare, many beyond repair. Water that was once alive and supported life is no longer safe. The life and creatures the waters once supported, the life that has fed and nourished our bodies for millennia, is now in danger of disappearing.
Today we are called to pray for our created home, the earth, sky and waters. And we are called as God’s beloved to take action, to acknowledge the harm we have caused to the precious gifts of water and life, and to call out to ourselves, to each other, and to all those who share the responsibility for this sin against creation to acknowledge and respond to save our Living Waters and bring healing to the earth. We are called to find our common ground, to connect, to come together with energy and compassion to support one another and creation, to love creation back into wholeness.
Thanks be to God! Amen!