At the end of Matthew 19, Jesus said to His disciples,

Then, chapter 20, today’s text, starts.

Preaching on today’s Gospel, Luther wrote,

What Luther is getting at is precisely what I hope to get across in the sermon today.

After all, many can and do debate about the different hours. As Luther put it, some say that the hours represent different ages in the history of mankind. Some might say that they are meant to show the different stages in the life of a man when he might come to faith, either in the first hour, such as from birth, to the eleventh hour, such as on his deathbed. And I’m sure there are other possible explanations as to what the hours might mean.

“If I live, I win; if I die, I win.” Those were words oft repeated by LaDonna, and ones that have been on repeat in my head for the last several weeks.

Dear friends and family of LaDonna, Dave and Ros, Michael, Sonja, and Rebecca, LaDonna has won!

Peter asked a valid question. That is to say, at face value, it’s a valid question. I mean, he essentially asked, “How often shall I forgive my brother?” But, as Old Adam always does to things like this, the question had to be made personal. “How often shall my brother sin against me?”

Now, you might imagine what Peter was really asking. “Is there a point when I can stop forgiving my brother? I mean, he just keeps on sinning against me! Sometimes, I’ve forgiven him for a sin against me, and he turns right around and does it again! How man times do I need to forgive my brother?”

Jesus’ answer should be obvious: your brother will sin against you often, and you should forgive him for it every time.

The Gospel lesson for this Sunday combines things that one would normally not expect mixed together. There’s talk of who is the greatest in the kingdom of heaven and faith like a child combined with temptations to sin, and the joy over the return of a lost sheep. Then, there’s Church Discipline—including excommunication—mixed with the authority of the Apostles and the promise of Jesus that the heavenly Father will answer your prayers, mixed with the wonderful promise of Jesus to be present with His people when they gather in His name. It is a wonderful combination of command and promise, of instructions and authority.

Essentially, these 20 verses deal with your life as a Christian, especially in relation to one another.

• Who’s the greatest in the kingdom? The one who has humility and faith like a child.
• Oh, and speaking of children, you best not cause them to sin—lead them into sin—for it would be better for you to be weighed down and tossed into the ocean.
• Speaking of sin, if any of your bodily members cause you to sin, best get rid of it, be it your hand or foot or even an eye, and enter into eternal life maimed and blind than to burn in hell fully intact; of course, your hand or foot or eye do not cause you to sin, but your heart—that sinful heart. As Jesus said, “For out of the heart come evil thoughts, murder, adultery, sexual immorality, theft, false witness, slander. These are what defile a person.” (Matthew 15:19-20a)
• There is much rejoicing in heaven over a sinner who repents, and there ought to be the same in the Church on earth, because it is the will of the Father that none who are His should perish.

In other words, your life as a Christian on earth is to be humbly faithful to God, repentant and forgiven, and rejoicing with those who, like you, are humbly faithful, repentant and forgiven.

As you heard over the last couple of weeks, Jesus had just fed the 5000 men, besides women and children, then went for a stroll on the water. (cf. Matthew 14:21ff) Miraculously, a mere five loaves of bread and two fish became a banquet for a great multitude. On top of that, when the crowd finished eating, there were leftovers; twelve baskets full of fragments.

After the events of today’s lesson, Jesus does it again, feeding 4000 men, besides women and children. (cf. Matthew 15:38) This time, seven loaves and a few small fish were the meal. And the crowd had their fill. When they were done, once again there were leftovers; seven large baskets full of fragments.