Is it time for us to forgive?

Yesterday Rev. Tim Callow (Newberry United Methodist Church) talked about forgiveness as just one means of “clothing ourselves with Christ’s qualities.”

In fact, the Epistle lesson for the day came from Colossians 3:12-17 (NIV), in which the Apostle Paul wrote in verse 13, “Bear with each other and forgive whatever grievance you may have against one another. Forgive as the Lord forgave you.”

As I think about forgiving those who have wronged or slighted or otherwise defamed me, I think about a recent marketing sensation that focused on the question, “What Would Jesus Do?” Paul’s last sentence in the verse references exactly what Jesus would do, he would forgive the offending party.

After all, Jesus came to this earth to bear the sins of all who believe in Him as explained by the unknown writer of Hebrews, chapter nine, verses 27 and 28 (NIV) [emphasis mine] “27 Just as people are destined to die once, and after that to face judgment, 28 so Christ was sacrificed once to take away the sins of many; and he will appear a second time, not to bear sin, but to bring salvation to those who are waiting for him.”

So, if God can forgive all our sins, and believe me, we have tons of them whether we want to admit it or not, the least we can do is try to forgive our fellow human beings, right?

I hope you’re asking now, just what does true forgiveness entail?

According to Nelson’s Illustrated Dictionary of the Bible, forgiveness is ‘the act of excusing or pardoning another in spite of his slights, shortcomings, and errors. As a theological term forgiveness refers to God’s pardon of the sins of human beings.’

The dictionary text on forgiveness concludes by explaining that because God forgives us, he demands that we forgive others. Drawing on references from the Gospel of Matthew 5:43-48 (NIV) and Mark 11:25 (NIV), the writer surmises, “A forgiving spirit shows that one is a true follower of Christ.”

Basically, if we truly want to forgive, we must abandon any thought of getting even. We must put our ire in God’s hands through prayer, and let Him take care of the situation for us.

Even though it’s next to impossible to forget, forgiveness is required. We all know that trying to forget is a waste of time. Besides, when you continue to try to forget, it seems to me that the forgiving gets abandoned in the less-than-comfortable memories of the problem.

According to one commentary I read, forgiving takes time. The article suggests that we forgive over and over and over again, until we get it down pat. Makes sense to me, especially since there are a few folks that I need to forgive, and, after quite some time, years in some cases, I still find it hard to make the leap to full, unrestricted forgiveness.

Bottom line, if Jesus can die on the cross to save you and me from our sin, to essentially forgive us, we can certainly put on His mantle, making sure we forgive one another no matter how grievous the slight.

I forgive, or at least I actively try to forgive. Do you? Think about it.

Today my prayer for all of us is -
May God give you and I the strength to forgive and get on with our lives minus the negativity that holding grudges brings. Let us put aside the pettiness and indulge in the satisfaction of being a true follower of Jesus.
In His holy name we ask these things.
Amen.

Luke 9:23 (NIV) Then [Jesus] said to them all: “Whoever wants to be my disciple must deny themselves and take up their cross daily and follow me."

Forgive in your heart

Forgive as many times as you would wish God forgave you.
From Daily Inspiration: A Thought for Every Day of the Year via Guideposts.

There are many instances of forgiveness in the Bible, probably the most famous is the plight of Joseph, the son of Jacob, the grandson of Abraham – the father of the Jewish nation.

You may recall the account from Genesis – Jealous of Joseph, his brothers first plotted to kill him, but then sold Joseph into slavery. During his many years separated from his family, Joseph was falsely accused, thrown into prison, but eventually became second in command of Egypt, second only to Pharaoh! God used Joseph’s plight to save the family of Jacob.

You can read Joseph’s story beginning with his birth in Genesis 30:22 through his death in Genesis 50:26.

After many years absent from his family, Joseph forgave his brothers for their unsavory deed, praising God for the way his brothers’ betrayal was used to save the family into which he was born.

That, folks, is amazing forgiveness.

Are you capable of such absolution?

I know I have a problem wrapping my human mind around the notion of forgiving anything and everything, no matter how egregious the transgression.

But, I have found that if I employ my Christ-centered heart, and its corresponding attitude, I find forgiveness a simple extension of my life as a true follower of His Way.

During the Sermon on the Mount, Jesus outlined the consequences of refusing to forgive. In Matthew 6:14-15 (NIV), {Jesus said} “For if you forgive other people when they sin against you, your heavenly Father will also forgive you. But if you do not forgive others their sins, your Father will not forgive your sins.”

Pretty strong admonition, agreed?

Forgive and get forgiven, is what I read here.

Don’t forget that God knows what is in our hearts. We need to forgive all the way. Forgive in our hearts as well as with our lips.

Jesus even explained this direction further in the Parable of the Unmerciful Servant in Matthew 18:21-35 (NIV):
Pay particular attention to verse 35.
21 Then Peter came to Jesus and asked, “Lord, how many times shall I forgive my brother or sister who sins against me? Up to seven times?”
22 Jesus answered, “I tell you, not seven times, but seventy-seven times.
23 “Therefore, the kingdom of heaven is like a king who wanted to settle accounts with his servants. 24 As he began the settlement, a man who owed him ten thousand bags of gold was brought to him. 25 Since he was not able to pay, the master ordered that he and his wife and his children and all that he had be sold to repay the debt.
26 “At this the servant fell on his knees before him. ‘Be patient with me,’ he begged, ‘and I will pay back everything.’ 27 The servant’s master took pity on him, canceled the debt and let him go.
28 “But when that servant went out, he found one of his fellow servants who owed him a hundred silver coins. He grabbed him and began to choke him. ‘Pay back what you owe me!’ he demanded.
29 “His fellow servant fell to his knees and begged him, ‘Be patient with me, and I will pay it back.’
30 “But he refused. Instead, he went off and had the man thrown into prison until he could pay the debt. 31 When the other servants saw what had happened, they were outraged and went and told their master everything that had happened.
32 “Then the master called the servant in. ‘You wicked servant,’ he said, ‘I canceled all that debt of yours because you begged me to. 33 Shouldn’t you have had mercy on your fellow servant just as I had on you?’ 34 In anger his master handed him over to the jailers to be tortured, until he should pay back all he owed.
35 “This is how my heavenly Father will treat each of you unless you forgive your brother or sister from your heart.” {emphasis - mine}

That nails it for me. Forgive as much as is necessary to accomplish true forgiveness in my heart.

It’s the only way to get the forgiveness we need to continue as His followers.

Forgive; kick it to the curb; make the 180; enjoy life minus the burden of hate.

You’ll be glad you did.

May God continually bless you and your forgiving ways. Amen

With God, all things ARE possible

Romans 8:28-31 (KJV) And we know that all things work together for good to them that love God, to them who are the called according to his purpose. For whom he did foreknow, he also did predestinate to be conformed to the image of his Son, that he might be the firstborn among many brethren. Moreover whom he did predestinate, them he also called: and whom he called, them he also justified: and whom he justified, them he also glorified. What shall we then say to these things? If God be for us, who can be against us?

OK, Titus got shoved to the background, again. This time it was because a Florida friend of mine shared one of those Facebook quizzes, and I just had to find out “What Bible Verse are You?”

Well, mine came back Romans 8:28, which our pastor preached on several weeks ago. This particular passage has always been one of my favorites, especially when you add verses 29-31 to the mix.

In fact, verse 31b,  If God be for us, who can be against us? is probably the most encouraging message in the Bible, at least for me.

Think about it, sinner that I am, if I am a believer in Jesus Christ, no one can come between me and Him. No amount of torment or toil or harassment can cut me loose from my Savior.

In fact, those who would intimidate and repudiate only makes my faith in Him stronger.

You see, I find myself turning to the Bible for solace when evil people admonish and attempt to destroy – evil people who profess belief in the same God I pray to every hour of every day.

Obviously these satanic individuals do not know God’s love or forgiveness. Obviously they do not believe what Jesus said about either. Obviously they are not Christians, because if they were, they would abide by His direction on such matters.

Remember the new commandment Jesus brought to this earth found in John 13:34-35 (NIV) “A new command I give you: Love one another. As I have loved you, so you must love one another. By this everyone will know that you are my disciples, if you love one another.”

He had much to say about forgiveness too. Two verses that follow the Lord’s Prayer, to me, make it mandatory to forgive and forget. Do you know the verses? If not, Matthew 6:14-15 (NIV) “For if you forgive other people when they sin against you, your heavenly Father will also forgive you. But if you do not forgive others their sins, your Father will not forgive your sins.”

I really do not believe you can get any plainer than that, do you?

Love one another. Forgive one another. Live life as a follower of Jesus Christ. Can’t think of any better way to live out my days.

What about you? Do you love? Do you forgive? Are you a follower?

Think about it and live life according to His guidance. God expects it.

After all, with God all things are possible!

Until tomorrow – May God bless each and every one of you every day in every way. Amen.

Do the 180...today

Are you a new creation?

If you have accepted Jesus Christ as your Lord and Savior, you are a new creation according to the Bible. Just take a look at Paul’s second letter to the believers at Corinth where he writes in chapter five, verses 17-19 (NIV) –

Therefore, if anyone is in Christ, he is a new creation; the old has gone, the new has come! All this is from God, who reconciled us to himself through Christ and gave us the ministry of reconciliation that God was reconciling the world to himself in Christ, not counting men’s sins against them. And he has committed us to the message of reconciliation.

As a follower of Jesus, your life is not always perfect. I know mine hasn’t been. I accepted Jesus as my savior and was baptized when I was 13 years old. Since that time I have committed a multitude of sins, many of which I believed were unforgiveable. My granddaddy always called this retreat from belief as “backsliding.” But granddaddy always assured me that this temporary condition can be remedied through confession of the sin and doing, “a 180 back to Jesus.”

Even though I wrestled many times over this about-face type of confession and new birth in Jesus, as I read the Bible, I found His saving grace to be a real and prominent message throughout the New Testament.

Recently as I participated with ladies of the community in a Monday evening Bible study, Mercy Triumphs, authored by Beth Moore, Moore’s study was a comprehensive examination of the book of James, an epistle that is believed by most biblical scholars to have been written by Jesus’s brother James.

During the study I found unparalleled confirmation that, as always, my granddaddy had hit the proverbial nail on the head with his 180-plan of restoring sinners to faith and getting back in God’s good graces.

My copy of the Quest Study Bible concurs with Moore’s teachings in this study with its introduction to the book of James, which poses the question, “Why read this book?” explaining, “…James shows it’s possible to believe the right things, yet live the wrong way…”

James’s commentary on how to live life as a Christian was written to the believers of the day, but certainly rings true for us today, especially if you, like me, have been a backslider and fallen away from your commitment to God on more than one occasion.

If you have experienced the same sinful condition, take heart by reading James’s closing, where he assures us of God’s forgiveness in The Prayer of Faith found in Chapter 5, verses 13-19 (NIV) –  

¹³ Is anyone among you in trouble? Let them pray. Is anyone happy? Let them sing songs of praise. ¹⁴ Is anyone among you sick? Let them call the elders of the church to pray over them and anoint them with oil in the name of the Lord. ¹⁵ And the prayer offered in faith will make the sick person well; the Lord will raise them up. If they have sinned, they will be forgiven. ¹⁶ Therefore confess your sins to each other and pray for each other so that you may be healed. The prayer of a righteous person is powerful and effective.
¹⁷ Elijah was a human being, even as we are. He prayed earnestly that it would not rain, and it did not rain on the land for three and a half years. ¹⁸ Again he prayed, and the heavens gave rain, and the earth produced its crops.

¹⁹ My brothers and sisters, if one of you should wander from the truth and someone should bring that person back, ²⁰ remember this: Whoever turns a sinner from the error of their way will save them from death and cover over a multitude of sins.

Our God is definitely an Awesome God, one who understands the human condition He created and is willing to make all of us a new creation in Him if we just confess and believe. If you are experiencing sin that you feel alienates you from God, remember we are all sinners and He is ready, willing and able to forgive.

Confess your sins today; get right with God; adopt the 180-plan. None of us are guaranteed the next second on this earth; make sure you know where you will spend eternity.

Interested in reading the entire book of James? Find it on BibleGateway.com by clicking this link.

 

And, as is always my prayer for you, May God bless each and every one of you every day in every way. Amen!