The Hospitable Leader DevotionalSample

A quick survey of our society would show that people are quick to be angry and render judgment. One bad headline, one out-of-context quote, one misstep, and the wolves are out to play. These quick responses result in broken relationships, broken reputations, and broken possibilities. Sometimes our judgments about people or things may be correct. And surely, Scripture is clear to tell us that we should be good judges with discernment to know what’s right and wrong. However, too often we judge too quickly and angrily, which results in erroneous conclusions, or we judge in a way that creates irreconcilable situations between us and the judged party. These kind of quick and misused judgements leave no room for growth between parties, and simply expand the divide.

Jesus was familiar with these sorts of situations, and he spoke wisely to them in today’s passage. He condemns those who experience and express inordinate anger toward people; he privileges reconciliation of relationship over the gift offering to God; and he encourages people to reconcile on the way to court rather than going to the court and being judged.

This carries all sorts of implications for us, as we frequently get to the place of irrevocable judgment without ever having talked to the person with whom we’re angry. How often have we talked with someone who is frustrated with a person with whom they’ve never addressed the issue? Or how frequently do you get the sense that people have never seriously considered the other side of an argument, but still cast strong judgment? Certainly, the advent of today’s technological advances (email, text, social media) has expanded our ability to avoid the gaze of argumentative interlocutors and simply pose our opinions.

Often, once someone simply speaks to the person with whom they’re angry and addresses concerns, they gain sympathy for the other position and are able to reconcile, finding middle ground they didn’t know existed. In a world that is so divisive, how would this concept revolutionize a workplace, a family, a political arena?