Luke 17:3-4
So be careful what you do. Correct any followers of mine who sin, and forgive the ones who say they are sorry. Even if one of them mistreats you seven times in one day and says, "I am sorry," you should still forgive that person.
Scripture taken from the Contemporary English Version © 1991,1992, 1995 by American Bible Society, Used by Permission.
Years ago, I confided to my pastor about a deep hurt I had experienced. He looked at me with amazement and said, “But I’ve seen you interact with this person, and you have such a loving relationship!” I replied, “Yes, because I forgave… I had to. Otherwise, this would have eaten me alive.” He just shook his head, touched my hand and said, “God bless you… you did the right thing.” Forgiveness is a daunting challenge for most of us… especially when we have been mistreated, insulted, deceived and/or wounded repeatedly. And I will tell you, I don’t always forgive easily or readily… even when I know I should.
The sad fact is that we expect Jesus to forgive us for infractions toward Him, when we cannot forgive those who offend us. We make promises to Jesus and fail to deliver… we turn our back on Him when it suits our need to impress someone or look important – or when doing what is right would not be quite as much fun… we wound Him deeply with our inability to stay faithful and serve as He desires. And yet, He forgives us… over and over again.
So we must forgive those who mistreat us or behave badly. I didn’t say we have to accept what they do… or ignore it. Jesus tells us that we must gently correct those who do this, which means you have every right to tell another person that you do not like how they are behaving… if you feel it is harmful to you, others, or themselves. We must be very careful to judge another person’s “sin,” but we are all pretty good gauges of behavior that is unacceptable toward us or others. If you have a friend or loved one who is abusing alcohol or drugs, you should say something.
If you know someone who is acting irresponsibly, failing to show up for school or work, not taking proper care of their children or their own health and hygiene, or even mistreating their pets, you have an obligation to confront them in a loving manner. Whether you affect a change is not the issue… only God can truly help them to change. But when these people come to you and ask you to forgive them – whether they have changed temporarily or forever – you must do so. And honestly, you must forgive them even when they don’t ask. We cannot ask God to forgive us if we are not willing to forgive others.
I know this is hard. I know that there are times we all want to just give up and walk away… and there is nothing wrong with taking a break for awhile and letting the dust settle. But ultimately, we are bound by our covenant with Jesus Christ to forgive others… over and over again, if necessary.Who is seeking your forgiveness today? Who do you need to ask to forgive you? Are you ready to be a true Disciple of Christ and accept the hard challenges? Do you need to begin by asking Jesus to forgive you yet again – or to help you forgive someone else? He will… and you must. What are you waiting for? Forgiveness is only a prayer away.
©2011 Debbie Robus
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