13/09/2026
🌺FIFTEENTH SUNDAY AFTER TRINITY🌺
Sunday, 13th September 2026
Psalm: Psalm 103:1–12
O.T. Lesson: Genesis 50:15–21
Epistle Lesson/Text: Romans 14:1–12
Gospel Lesson: Matthew 18:21–35
Theme: WHETHER WE LIVE OR DIE, WE BELONG TO THE LORD
Grace, peace, and mercy to you from God our Father and from our Lord and Savior Jesus Christ. Amen.
Beloved in Christ, one of the most powerful stories of forgiveness in the Bible is the story of Joseph and his brothers.
Joseph's brothers had hated him. They were jealous of him and eventually sold him into slavery. Joseph was taken away from his family, suffered injustice, and spent years in difficult circumstances. Yet God was with him and eventually raised him to a position of great authority in Egypt.
Years later, Joseph's brothers came before him because there was famine in the land. Now Joseph had the power to punish the very people who had destroyed his life.
His brothers were afraid. They thought Joseph would take revenge. But Joseph said to them, “Do not be afraid. Am I in the place of God?” He reminded them that although they intended evil against him, God had used the situation for good.
This story connects beautifully with our Gospel today. Peter asked Jesus, “Lord, how often will my brother sin against me, and I forgive him?” Peter thought he was being generous when he suggested forgiving seven times. Jesus answered, not seven times, but seventy times seven.
Jesus then told the parable of the unforgiving servant. A servant owed his master an enormous debt that he could never repay. The master had compassion on him and forgave the entire debt. But that same servant went out and found another servant who owed him a much smaller amount. Instead of showing the mercy he had received, he demanded payment and had the man thrown into prison.
The message is clear: we who have received God's mercy must learn to show mercy to others.
Theme: WHETHER WE LIVE OR DIE, WE BELONG TO THE LORD
This means that our lives do not ultimately belong to ourselves. Whether we are living or facing death, we belong to Christ. Therefore, our relationships, decisions, attitudes, forgiveness, and treatment of other people must be shaped by the Lord to whom we belong.
Romans 14 tells us not to judge one another over matters that belong to the Lord. Paul says that whether we live or die, we are the Lord's. He reminds us that each person will give an account of himself or herself before God.
Yet how easily we put ourselves in God's position.
We judge people's lives. We criticize their choices. We condemn their weaknesses while ignoring our own. We become quick to point out the sins of others but slow to examine our own hearts.
Sometimes our greatest problem is not what someone has done to us, but our unwillingness to forgive them.
We say, “I can never forgive that person.”
We keep records of offences.
We remember what happened five years ago.
We tell other people about someone's mistakes.
We carry bitterness in our hearts while still claiming to be followers of Christ.
But Jesus confronts us with a difficult question: How can someone who has received such enormous forgiveness from God refuse to forgive another person?
The servant in the parable owed his master an enormous debt. He could never repay it. Yet the master cancelled everything.
That servant represents us.
Our sin against God is greater than any debt another human being can owe us. We have broken God's commandments in our thoughts, words, attitudes, and actions. We have sinned through what we have done and through what we have failed to do.
Yet sometimes we expect God to forgive our sins while we refuse to forgive others.
That is hypocrisy.
we have failed to live as people who belong to the Lord.
We have allowed anger to control us. We have allowed pride to separate us. We have allowed unforgiveness to poison relationships. We have judged others without remembering that we too will stand before God's judgment.
We cannot escape this judgment by pretending to be good.
We need mercy.
The good news is that our salvation does not depend on how perfectly we forgive others.
Our salvation depends upon Jesus Christ.
Before we ever asked God for forgiveness, Christ acted for us.
Jesus Christ, the Son of God, came into this world and lived the perfect life that we could not live. He fulfilled God's law completely.
Then He went to the cross.
There, Jesus took upon Himself the enormous debt of our sin. He did not demand that we pay what we could never pay. Instead, He paid the price Himself.
He suffered for sinners.
He died for sinners.
He shed His blood for sinners.
And He rose again from the dead.
The cross is God's declaration that the debt has been paid.
Our forgiveness is not based on our good behaviour. It is based on Christ's finished work.
Psalm 103 gives us this beautiful assurance: God forgives our iniquity and removes our transgressions from us.
But this forgiveness must also be received personally through faith.
The question is not simply, “Did Jesus die for sinners?”
The question is, “Do I trust Jesus Christ as my Saviour?”
Faith receives what Christ has accomplished.
When your conscience reminds you of your failures, look to Christ.
When you remember the things you have done that you cannot undo, look to Christ.
When you know that you have failed God and failed other people, do not try to hide your sin. Confess it and trust the promise of forgiveness in Christ.
Through faith, God declares the sinner righteous because of Christ.
You do not have to earn forgiveness.
You do not have to make yourself worthy before coming to Jesus.
Come as a sinner who needs mercy.
Christ is sufficient.
And because Christ has forgiven us, we are now free to forgive others.
So how should we live?
First, forgive as you have been forgiven.
Forgiveness does not mean that what happened was acceptable. It does not mean that you pretend the hurt never happened. It means that you refuse to allow the offence to become your master.
Leave judgment in God's hands.
Second, stop judging others as though you were their Lord.
Romans 14 reminds us that we belong to the Lord. Therefore, we should be careful about condemning fellow believers over matters where Scripture gives freedom.
There is a difference between correcting sin according to God's Word and judging people from pride.
Third, live with eternity in view.
Whether we live or die, we belong to the Lord. This means that our greatest identity is not our wealth, position, career, family name, or social status.
We belong to Christ.
Therefore, let your life point to Him.
If you are alive, serve Christ.
If you are blessed, thank Christ.
If you are suffering, trust Christ.
If someone hurts you, seek grace to forgive.
If you hurt someone, humble yourself and seek reconciliation.
If death comes, do not forget whose you are.
You belong to the Lord.
Beloved, today's message is both a warning and a comfort.
The warning is this: Do not claim to belong to Christ while deliberately living in hatred, pride, judgment, and unforgiveness.
The comfort is even greater: Christ has paid the debt of your sin.
Joseph could have used his power to destroy his brothers, but he chose mercy. More importantly, Jesus did not use His divine authority to destroy us. He gave Himself for us.
We have received a forgiveness that we could never earn.
Therefore, let us forgive.
Let us stop keeping records of offences.
Let us stop placing ourselves in God's judgment seat.
Let us love our brothers and sisters.
Let us live humbly before God.
And let us remember every day that whether we live or die, we belong to the Lord.
You belong to Christ when you are strong.
You belong to Christ when you are weak.
You belong to Christ when people celebrate you.
You belong to Christ when people reject you.
You belong to Christ in life.
And you belong to Christ in death.
Therefore, live today with confidence in Christ, forgive because you have been forgiven, and let your life testify that Jesus is truly your Lord and Saviour.
In the name of the Father, and of the Son, and of the Holy Spirit. Amen.
I am the Royal Priest🩷🤍🖤
