Forgiveness, anyone?

I always think of Paul as bold—assertive, even to the point of being aggressive, with keen intellect and a ‘take no prisoners’ kind of mentality.  Somebody wronged him terribly, and the whole assembly knew about it.  Consequences were meted out, to correct the behavior not to cause him to feel alienated or unloved.  Now….Paul tells them, ‘Enough!  It is time to forgive him and move forward.’  We see Paul’s compassionate side.

“If anyone has caused grief, he has not so much grieved me as he has grieved all of you, to some extent—not to put it too severely.  The punishment inflicted on him by the majority is sufficient for him.  Now instead, you ought to forgive and comfort him, so that he will not be overwhelmed by excessive sorrow.   I urge you, therefore, to reaffirm your love for him.   The reason I wrote you was to see if you would stand the test and be obedient in everything.  If you forgive anyone, I also forgive him. And what I have forgiven—if there was anything to forgive—I have forgiven in the sight of Christ for your sake,  in order that Satan might not outwit us. For we are not unaware of his schemes.”  2 Corinthians 2.5-11

Ah . . . forgiveness.  Forgiveness is a gift.  I should like to untie the bow, and begin to tear off the wrap to expose its many facets.  There is the vertical, and there is the horizontal aspect of forgiveness.  We are invited to ask God for forgiveness of our sins, so that he can wash us white as snow.  Only a loving God could have conceived of something so rich, so liberating as the whole notion of forgiveness.  Forgiveness is a way of setting things right and wiping the slate clean before a holy God. 

When we utter, ‘forgive us our trespasses as we forgive those who trespass against us,’ we acknowledge that forgiveness is needed for right relationship with God.  And God is not stingy with forgiveness…why, he offers it freely….if we ask for it.  In turn, we need to forgive others.  (More later on that aspect of forgiveness)

I love King David’s prayer in Psalm 139, “Search me, O God, and know my heart. Try me, and know my thoughts.  See if there be any wicked way in me, and lead me in the way everlasting.”  Accordingly, I like to include a time of confession in my private prayer time, asking God to reveal anything I need to set right or change or perhaps make straight with another person.  I bear in mind that, “If I cherished sin in my heart, the Lord would not have listened,” Psalm 66.18. 

Confession and forgiveness are two sides of a coin, which is evidenced in 1 John 1.9: “If we confess our sins, he is faithful and just to forgive us our sins, and cleanse us from all unrighteousness.”

Having received forgiveness from God, he asks only that in turn, we would forgive others.  So many people are walking around wounded because of unforgiveness—they just can’t let go of the wrongs done against them.  Oh, those wrongs may be pushed deep inside, but unresolved, the residual bitterness will seep out.  Unforgiveness stifles our personalities and creativity, ages us prematurely, causes mysterious illness, and gives us barbs that stick out and gouge others. 

When God offers us forgiveness, it is divine—made possible only through Jesus.  When we need to forgive, we need to access the divine also, by asking God to help us forgive, to release others from their error, regardless of whether or not they are seeking forgiveness.  “Father, please help me forgive my dad . . . for his cold, detached way and critical tongue.  How many times did he cut me to the core!  Lord, he must have been hurting inside to have been so mean-spirited.  I want to release him of my expectations of what a dad should have been like…help me, Lord…..” How about you—who do you need to forgive?  Form your own prayer right now.

That is where it starts—acknowledgment of someone who has hurt you, and the attached pain--and the realization that I must release him to God.  Paul had done that with this Corinthian who had wounded him, and he would entrust the rest to God, because he cared about the fellow maintaining his faith and fellowship in the congregation.   

Forgiveness, anyone?

Christine