When God Says Your Worship is Meaningless

God says seeking reconciliation with others takes priority over worship: 

“Therefore, if you are offering your gift at the altar and there remember that your brother or sister has something against you, 24 leave your gift there in front of the altar. First go and be reconciled to them; then come and offer your gift.”  Matthew 5:23-24 

When Christ gave this command, before the New Covenant was put in place by His death, making offerings was a form of worship. Christ was saying that genuine worship requires a heart seeking His truth and obeying His commands. And refusing to seek peace with others makes our worship simply external.

We can sing beautiful songs of praise, lift our hands, or bow in worship, but if we refuse to make genuine attempts to reconcile with others, our worship is meaningless.

“God is spirit, and his worshipers must worship in the Spirit and in truth.” John 4:24

True faith forgives and loves even when it's difficult (1 John 3:14; John 13:35; Romans 12:10).

Romans 12:14-21 tells us to bless those who persecute us, do our best to seek peace, seeking to “overcome evil with good.”

If someone has something against you and refuses to discuss it, you can do nothing but pray and treat them kindly. But if anyone is seeking to work through relationship problems and you refuse, your disobedience makes your worship of God meaningless (1 John 3:14).

Don't let this happen, Dear Christians. True faith does the hard things out of love for Christ.

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See Weak Faith and Broken Families and Biblical Problem Solving.

And please check out Lies in Disguise. Among other half-truths, it offers insights into some of the half-truths that have encouraged relationship problems.