Be kind and compassionate to one another, forgiving each
other, just as in Christ God forgave you
(Ephesians 4:32)
Bear with each other and forgive whatever grievances you
may have against one another. Forgive as the Lord forgave you. (Colossians
3:13)
After spending yesterday writing
about people and communities needing a mechanism for receiving and giving
forgiveness, it seems reasonable to consider what that forgiveness might look
like. Yesterday's passage said our forgiving of one another is to be "just
as in Christ God forgave you." Today's says to forgive "as the Lord
forgave you." The answer to what
forgiveness "as the Lord forgave you" looks like could fill books. Here
are a couple to for your meditation:
God forgave you from the before the beginning of the world, knowing what you were going to do. He allowed you to do it. We may not always know the future, but sometimes we do. We know that someday, each person in our lives is going to disappoint us. We may know that a specific person or group is going to hurt us because they hate us individually or hate what we represent. Jesus told us that in this world we'd face troubles. Early Christians went into the homes of plague victims who had persecuted them before the plague hit. They did this knowing that the plague could kill them. They did it knowing that the plague victims were as likely as not to persecute them if they survived. In modern times, Elizabeth Eliot served as a missionary to the tribe that killed her husband.
God forgave you at the price of Christ's death. Jesus went to the cross and provided the means of salvation by dying. Today, it seems as if we are more willing to kill for Christ than we are to die for Him. Our lives are so precious to us. If you dare mention the idea of forgiving Muslim extremists, mass murderers, child or animal molesters, rapists or pedophiles, you'll be considered insane. The idea that we should not fear to invite those who will probably kill us here, not hold on so tightly to our lives, is madness. No, we are not willing to die to forgive them, or forgive them for killing us.
God forgave you completely and freely. As far as the east is from the west, that's how far He forgives. (Psalm 103:12) Our sins are remembered no more. (Ezekiel 33:16) We don't have to add anything to it to make it complete. It might be said that He forgave you aggressively. You didn't seek Him, He sought you. (Romans 5:6) You might even have put up a fight. He didn't wait for your permission or your cooperation. His sovereign assertiveness brought about your response to His forgiveness.
God forgave you joyfully. For the joy set before Him, Jesus endured the cross. (Hebrews 12:2)
I have to wonder what would happen if I practiced this sort of forgiveness? Like Isaac, I might not have to die, but to be willing to die, to suffer injustice, to be hated, laughed at, and hurt, and to have willingly and knowingly walked into it. I'll admit, it's a terrifying prospect, but those who did it before did it knowing that God can and will raise the dead. It's not possible for me to be this way, but it is possible for God to work it in me. But how can a person even begin to head in such a noble direction? By forgiving the little things today. “Whoever can be trusted with very little can also be trusted with much, and whoever is dishonest with very little will also be dishonest with much." (Luke 16:10)
God forgave you from the before the beginning of the world, knowing what you were going to do. He allowed you to do it. We may not always know the future, but sometimes we do. We know that someday, each person in our lives is going to disappoint us. We may know that a specific person or group is going to hurt us because they hate us individually or hate what we represent. Jesus told us that in this world we'd face troubles. Early Christians went into the homes of plague victims who had persecuted them before the plague hit. They did this knowing that the plague could kill them. They did it knowing that the plague victims were as likely as not to persecute them if they survived. In modern times, Elizabeth Eliot served as a missionary to the tribe that killed her husband.
God forgave you at the price of Christ's death. Jesus went to the cross and provided the means of salvation by dying. Today, it seems as if we are more willing to kill for Christ than we are to die for Him. Our lives are so precious to us. If you dare mention the idea of forgiving Muslim extremists, mass murderers, child or animal molesters, rapists or pedophiles, you'll be considered insane. The idea that we should not fear to invite those who will probably kill us here, not hold on so tightly to our lives, is madness. No, we are not willing to die to forgive them, or forgive them for killing us.
God forgave you completely and freely. As far as the east is from the west, that's how far He forgives. (Psalm 103:12) Our sins are remembered no more. (Ezekiel 33:16) We don't have to add anything to it to make it complete. It might be said that He forgave you aggressively. You didn't seek Him, He sought you. (Romans 5:6) You might even have put up a fight. He didn't wait for your permission or your cooperation. His sovereign assertiveness brought about your response to His forgiveness.
God forgave you joyfully. For the joy set before Him, Jesus endured the cross. (Hebrews 12:2)
I have to wonder what would happen if I practiced this sort of forgiveness? Like Isaac, I might not have to die, but to be willing to die, to suffer injustice, to be hated, laughed at, and hurt, and to have willingly and knowingly walked into it. I'll admit, it's a terrifying prospect, but those who did it before did it knowing that God can and will raise the dead. It's not possible for me to be this way, but it is possible for God to work it in me. But how can a person even begin to head in such a noble direction? By forgiving the little things today. “Whoever can be trusted with very little can also be trusted with much, and whoever is dishonest with very little will also be dishonest with much." (Luke 16:10)
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