Forgiveness: What It Is Not and What It Is
Forgiveness is one of the most difficult parts of living out a life with Christ. For some, it is the most difficult part.
So often over these past weeks, the subject of forgiveness has come up again and again in Bible studies of 1 Corinthians 13 and conversations I've had with others about hurts they and I have experienced in our lives.
The word "forgiveness" means a lot of different things to different people. It's a word loaded with meaning -- for some good, others bad, for most a mix of both. I think it helps to define what forgiveness is not and what it is, biblically.
Forgiveness is not saying "what you did was OK." Nor is it saying "I deserve what you did to me." Nor does it mean "Go ahead and do it again." When God forgives us our sins He indicates none of these things to us. In fact, He tells us the complete opposite: the wages of our sins is death (decidedly not OK); when we sin, we sin against God first and He, being completely holy, never deserves our wrong acts toward him; and upon forgiveness, He tells us "Go and sin no more."
Forgiveness is letting go of bitterness, wrath, and a desire for vengeance toward another, releasing those things as an act of obedience toward God knowing that He first forgave us our sins and we are commanded to do likewise toward those who wrong us (Matthew 6:14). It is moving forward in freedom, unshackled from the prison of untamed anger and an obsessive desire for revenge or vindication. Without it, peace with God is impossible (Matthew 6:15).
Paul wrote of it better than I ever could in Romans 12:14-21:
May God grant us the strength and grace to live that out in our lives every single day.
So often over these past weeks, the subject of forgiveness has come up again and again in Bible studies of 1 Corinthians 13 and conversations I've had with others about hurts they and I have experienced in our lives.
The word "forgiveness" means a lot of different things to different people. It's a word loaded with meaning -- for some good, others bad, for most a mix of both. I think it helps to define what forgiveness is not and what it is, biblically.
Forgiveness is not saying "what you did was OK." Nor is it saying "I deserve what you did to me." Nor does it mean "Go ahead and do it again." When God forgives us our sins He indicates none of these things to us. In fact, He tells us the complete opposite: the wages of our sins is death (decidedly not OK); when we sin, we sin against God first and He, being completely holy, never deserves our wrong acts toward him; and upon forgiveness, He tells us "Go and sin no more."
Forgiveness is letting go of bitterness, wrath, and a desire for vengeance toward another, releasing those things as an act of obedience toward God knowing that He first forgave us our sins and we are commanded to do likewise toward those who wrong us (Matthew 6:14). It is moving forward in freedom, unshackled from the prison of untamed anger and an obsessive desire for revenge or vindication. Without it, peace with God is impossible (Matthew 6:15).
Paul wrote of it better than I ever could in Romans 12:14-21:
Bless those who persecute you; bless and do not curse. Rejoice with those who rejoice, and weep with those who weep. Be of the same mind toward one another; do not be haughty in mind, but associate with the lowly. Do not be wise in your own estimation. Never pay back evil for evil to anyone. Respect what is right in the sight of all men. If possible, so far as it depends on you, be at peace with all men. Never take your own revenge, beloved, but leave room for the wrath of God, for it is written, “VENGEANCE IS MINE, I WILL REPAY,” says the Lord. “BUT IF YOUR ENEMY IS HUNGRY, FEED HIM, AND IF HE IS THIRSTY, GIVE HIM A DRINK; FOR IN SO DOING YOU WILL HEAP BURNING COALS ON HIS HEAD.” Do not be overcome by evil, but overcome evil with good.To me, that is as beautiful a passage as exists in the Bible. That kind of forgiveness, of love for others, is more than powerful; it is divine.
May God grant us the strength and grace to live that out in our lives every single day.
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