Ordinary Time, 23rd Sunday (A) If God is our Father, then what does that make us? We and our fellow Christians are brothers and sisters. In Matthew 18, Jesus talks about what it means to be a child of God and how we should treat our brothers and sisters.

Here's a brief summary:

Matthew 18:3 - You need to humble yourself like a little child.

Matthew 18:6 - Don't cause a brother to sin.

Matthew 18:8 - Get rid of all sin (it keeps you from being a little one).

Matthew 18:14 - God will make sure that none of his little ones is lost.

And that brings us to today's Gospel. What do you do when you are trying to be a little one, a good child of God, and someone else hurts you? Go talk to him about it. If he repents, then you and your brother can have a stronger relationship. If he refuses to listen just to you, then include one or two other brothers. Lastly, you need to involve the church.

The church has a mission. If our members are sabotaging the mission, they can no longer be part of the church. The early church was serious about their obligations to be a child of God, a little Christ, and a brother to fellow Christians.

Gather with fellow Christians and pray for the repentance and healing of wayward brothers. Jesus is with us in our struggles. How would your last argument with your spouse look or feel if Jesus was right there the whole time?

Jesus treated gentiles and tax collectors with love and he always invited them to become God's children. In a similar way, we must stay in God's love and invite others to come into the light. If God is our father, then we are each brothers and sisters. Let us act like brothers and sisters.

(6 Sep 2026)

Going Deeper: If you happen to find yourself talking about the hurtful actions of a third person, pause right then and there and pray together for that person.

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