The pastor used...I think it was Matthew 18, where Jesus tells the parable of the master who forgives a servant's debt, then the servant goes and demand payment from someone who owes him money and the master cancels the cancelation, and finished with where Peter asks how many times we should forgive. Jesus answers with 70x7, a nonliteral figure indicating that we should forgive an unlimited number of transgressions against us, even as we are forgiven unlimited times by Christ. The pastor pointed something out that was new to me. Apparently the Jewish rabbis taught that if you forgave the same offense by the same person three times you didn't have to forgive them anymore so when Peter makes his inquiry he doubles the number and adds one, asking "how many times should I forgive my brother, up to seven times?" And then Jesus responds with that lovely 490+ answer. Finally the pastor gave Ephesians 4:31-32 as a benediction at the close of the service. It's always such a wonderful thing to me to be able to go across the country, or across the world, and stand side by side with spiritual 'distant relatives,' all praising the same Father, with often the same music, as was the case this morning. Soli Deo Gloria!
Sunday, June 7, 2009
Prayer with Puppies
This morning Prada and I attended Washington Valley Chapel, a small
nondenomenational church in the area, with another student and her dog. Both
dogs behaved beautifully during the service, lying mostly underneath the pews
at our feet, and didn't even ask for a sample of communion. Neither dog joined us for worship (thankfully)
or snored during the sermon, which was about forgiveness.
The pastor used...I think it was Matthew 18, where Jesus tells the parable of the master who forgives a servant's debt, then the servant goes and demand payment from someone who owes him money and the master cancels the cancelation, and finished with where Peter asks how many times we should forgive. Jesus answers with 70x7, a nonliteral figure indicating that we should forgive an unlimited number of transgressions against us, even as we are forgiven unlimited times by Christ. The pastor pointed something out that was new to me. Apparently the Jewish rabbis taught that if you forgave the same offense by the same person three times you didn't have to forgive them anymore so when Peter makes his inquiry he doubles the number and adds one, asking "how many times should I forgive my brother, up to seven times?" And then Jesus responds with that lovely 490+ answer. Finally the pastor gave Ephesians 4:31-32 as a benediction at the close of the service. It's always such a wonderful thing to me to be able to go across the country, or across the world, and stand side by side with spiritual 'distant relatives,' all praising the same Father, with often the same music, as was the case this morning. Soli Deo Gloria!
The pastor used...I think it was Matthew 18, where Jesus tells the parable of the master who forgives a servant's debt, then the servant goes and demand payment from someone who owes him money and the master cancels the cancelation, and finished with where Peter asks how many times we should forgive. Jesus answers with 70x7, a nonliteral figure indicating that we should forgive an unlimited number of transgressions against us, even as we are forgiven unlimited times by Christ. The pastor pointed something out that was new to me. Apparently the Jewish rabbis taught that if you forgave the same offense by the same person three times you didn't have to forgive them anymore so when Peter makes his inquiry he doubles the number and adds one, asking "how many times should I forgive my brother, up to seven times?" And then Jesus responds with that lovely 490+ answer. Finally the pastor gave Ephesians 4:31-32 as a benediction at the close of the service. It's always such a wonderful thing to me to be able to go across the country, or across the world, and stand side by side with spiritual 'distant relatives,' all praising the same Father, with often the same music, as was the case this morning. Soli Deo Gloria!
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