What is a Christian?
Again he said, “Peace be with you. As the Father has sent me, so I am sending you.” Then he breathed on them and said, “Receive the Holy Spirit. If you forgive anyone’s sins, they are forgiven. If you do not forgive them, they are not forgiven.” Luke 24:21-23 (NLT)
I think that these words of Jesus are HUGE!
First, he breathed on them. Remind you of anything?(see Gen. 2:7). The words for breath, wind and Holy Spirit are the same in both Greek (the New Testament language) and Hebrew (the language of the Old Testament). Jesus gives his disciples both a commission and the power to carry out that commission, even if imperfectly. We don’t have a lot of excuses for not trying to do what he’s commissioned us to do. We’ll never be perfect, but we have his ability in us to live a life of being sent into the world as a healer just as he was sent into the world as a healer. I am to be a healing force in the world. I’ve been blessed to be a blessing. There is simply no getting around this. Our life purpose is to love God, serve others and live His purpose for our lives, not our purpose.
Second, Jesus connects our mission in life to forgiveness. If you read how Jesus concludes the Lord’s Prayer (see Matthew 6), and these words, you will not be able to escape the implication that there is a sense in which our unforgiveness not only separates ourselves from God, but it can also bind others in their sin. Jesus came to set the world free from the bondage of sin. To the degree to which we hold a grudge, unforgiveness in our hearts, we are actually fighting against the work of God. On the cross Jesus forgave. We must forgive. Here’s a brief word of help. Forgiveness is a decision that may need to be made a thousand times before the negative emotion is gone. The emotion may not be under your control but the decision is. God honors your decision.
Forgiveness seems to me to be one of the hardest things to learn. Because it is reinforced by the pain from the trespass, I have often, literally, cried out to the Lord, "what do I do with this hurt? Where do I put it? How do I get rid of it?"
ReplyDeleteI read this passage many years ago and it blew me away. I did not want to be responsible for someone else's not being forgiven. I was totally unaware that I had that authority. Its a scary thing to me.
Jeff, when you say we make the decision to forgive, that is so true. It cannot be brought forth from feelings. I have literally had to tell myself that "so and so is forgiven, you are not allowed to think about that anymore". The thought/pain would come (most certainly for the devil is a master) and I would have to remind myself that I forgave that person. I still have to be very careful not to nurse the hurt but I pray for a forgiving heart. Its something I know I need and I trust God will make it so.
By knowing my own sinfulness helps me to forgive others. Who am I to cast the first stone, or any stone for that matter. Another thought that helps me to forgive, is that I love (am commanded to love) the person who has sinned against me.
ReplyDeleteIt appears that forgiveness is double fold. Not only do you set the offender free, you set yourself free as well.
ReplyDeleteI sometimes find myself having to let forgiveness come in layers and the deeper the offense, the more layers I may have to process. The process includes getting past the pain and allowing the love to surface, again.
It may not be correct, however, sometimes I need to distance from the offender to allow the healing process to begin. Ever hear that some people are easier to love from a distance? Unfortunately, sometimes this has been the case.
Forgiveness and relationships have such a huge impact on growing in the Lord. I found a book to help me reflect on these. May I suggest this reading: Keepers of the Flame by Robert Stearns.
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