Leaving the Nest
Matthew 18:10-20
At some point, do the angels stop watching over you?
Photo by Ali Kazal on Unsplash
“Take care that you do not despise one of these little ones; for, I tell you, in heaven their angels continually see the face of my Father in heaven. What do you think? If a shepherd has a hundred sheep, and one of them has gone astray, does he not leave the ninety-nine on the mountains and go in search of the one that went astray? And if he finds it, truly I tell you, he rejoices over it more than over the ninety-nine that never went astray. So it is not the will of your Father in heaven that one of these little ones should be lost. “If another member of the church sins against you, go and point out the fault when the two of you are alone. If the member listens to you, you have regained that one. But if you are not listened to, take one or two others along with you, so that every word may be confirmed by the evidence of two or three witnesses. If the member refuses to listen to them, tell it to the church; and if the offender refuses to listen even to the church, let such a one be to you as a Gentile and a tax collector. Truly I tell you, whatever you bind on earth will be bound in heaven, and whatever you loose on earth will be loosed in heaven. Again, truly I tell you, if two of you agree on earth about anything you ask, it will be done for you by my Father in heaven. For where two or three are gathered in my name, I am there among them.” - Matt. 18:10-20
Jesus begins talking about the lost sheep by giving us a glimpse of what it is like in the realm of heaven.
There is an angel dedicated to each of the little ones.
Imagine that. The innocent among us cannot fend for themselves, so they have angels who watch over them. It seems that when we are old enough to be our own guides in life, we need to depend on one another for support.
Jesus gives us instructions on how to be that support for one another. He says that at some point, after trying to bring someone around to God, they continue to refuse, then let them be and go on your way.
Some people choose not to come around. We should not keep trying. We should try to talk with the one who sins against us. If that doesn’t work, try again with witnesses. After that, bring the matter to the church, and if he still refuses, let him be.
There is a limit to our compassion and support.
Many who have a loved one who continues to go down the wrong path will focus on the first part, finding and bringing back the lost sheep, but even the father in the prodigal son parable stayed home.
He felt his son was dead, even though he continued to hope and pray for him.
We do all we can do, and then we leave the rest to God.
That is hard for a parent to do. We want to protect our children and get them help, but at some point, we need to let them be adults on their own.
The bird needs to leave the nest. And not all survive the journey.
More to come...