OFFERING WITH CLEAR CONSCIENCE
Mathew 5:21-28
In today’s passage, the Lord teaches us one great lesson about our offerings. For your offerings to be acceptable to the Lord, we must be at peace with fellow men. Peace and love must radiate in our lives before we can give acceptable offerings.
This is how I want you to conduct yourself in these matters. If you enter your place of worship and about to make an offering, you suddenly remember a grudge a friend has against you, abandon your offering, leave immediately, go to this friend and make things right. Then and only then, come back and work things out with God, (Matthew 5:23-24 MSG).
It is crystal clear from the above that your offering is more than what you give. It is about your life. If you are at logger heads with a friend or neighbor, your offering is not acceptable. Following peace is an injunction and pre-requisite to holiness. The word enjoins you to make things right with your friend before coming to drop your offering. Did you notice that the scripture did not just say give your offering? It says “Then and only then, come back and make things right with God” Your offering is an indication of how right things are between you and your God.
When you forgive those who offend you; you create a free path for God’s forgiveness to flow towards you. But wait. This is even more than you forgiving your neighbour. It is about your friend who has something against you. Whether rightly or wrongly, he/she thinks you offended him. If you are aware of this, the injunction is for you to settle matters with him/her before coming back to give God your offering.
God places great value on how you relate to others. It is not just about your vertical relationship with him. No. He takes interest in your horizontal relationship with fellow men. This is a pre-condition for being acceptable before him. It is also a great block in the building of holiness without which one can see God.
“Work at getting along with each other and with God. Otherwise you” never get so much as a glimpse of God, (Hebrews 12:14 MSG).
Work on your relationships. It makes your person and your offering to be acceptable to God.
MEDITATION: If it be possible, as much as lieth in you, live peaceably with all men. Dearly beloved, avenge not yourselves, but rather give place unto wrath: for it is written, vengeance is mine, I will repay, saith the Lord,Romans 12:18.
