|
|
Love
Forgives
I
can remember being told to
eat broccoli when I was a child.
Invariably when I was told to eat
it, there was also the accompanying
statement, “It’s good for you.” Just like the broccoli of my
childhood, there is an element of
successful Christian living that is
often thought to be
extremely
distasteful. It is Forgiveness.
It is human nature to
want revenge when we
have been offended. We do not
find forgiveness among the natural
responses to insult,
injury, betrayal, and other
transgressions. However, it is for
our own benefit that we are told to
practice forgiveness toward those
who do wrong toward us.
"For
if you forgive men when they sin against
you, your heavenly Father will also
forgive you. But if you do not forgive
men their sins, your Father will not
forgive your sins."
Matthew 6:14-15
|
|
A Pathway for Power
There are many reasons we do not
want to forgive others.
According to Dr. Sdney Simon, “There
is something disturbing about the
prospect of actually forgiving the
real people who caused us pain.” He further surmises
that forgiveness is considered “giving
up, giving in, wimping out, and
admitting defeat.” After
all, no one wants to be a wimp.
It is natural to
want to retaliate and get
back at others who hurt us.
There is a sense of justice and equity
when those who harm us suffer for what
they have done. The thought of
forgiving feels like our offenders are
getting away with what they did.
However, when we forgive we are not giving up
on the consequences of wrong doing, we
simply
relinquish the right to personally
execute the punishment. We may
never forget the occurrence, but we release any
claim to cause suffering for the wrong that
has been done.
By choosing to forgive others, we
open the pathway for God to take action
on our behalf and avenge our situation.
We have God's assurance that He will
handle it. Romans 12:19 says,
"...vengeance is mine, I will repay says
the Lord."
Forgiving is not easy to do. We
live in a world in which relational pathways
are often
cluttered with transgressions and offenses. Forgiving
others is the way we clear the pathway
for God's forgiveness and power to be
effective for us. |
