Jesus said, “Father, forgive them, for they do not know what they are doing.” And they divided up his clothes by casting lots.
Luke 23: 34
On this Holy Saturday, the
beauty of spring fills up my house as the sun and the cool breeze come in
through the open windows. My sons and my
husband are outside and I am here, thinking about the precious gift that we
celebrate this weekend. The gift of God
in the flesh, coming down to us, to suffer and die on the cross to rise again
on the third day so we, His beloved, could be justified in His presence, saved
for all eternity to spend it with Him in His glory.
Today, I contemplate the gift
of grace. The grace of God by which He
grants us forgiveness of our sins so we could be saved.
My personal struggles with
forgiveness make this a very uncomfortable subject for me to reflect upon. I stand in the midst of several spiritual
battles that keep me from offering sincere and complete forgiveness to some
around me. I say I forgive, but I find
myself re-taking the hurt; therefore, having to forgive again and again. I have a hard time letting go of the pain
caused by the offense. In some
instances, the pain remains because my ego was bruised, and pride blocks the
door to forgiveness. In other cases, the
pain is deeply rooted because the real offense has been perpetrated against someone
whom I dearly love, and it hurts me more than if it was against me.
I then struggle forgiving my
brothers and sisters in Christ. I
struggle forgiving my own flesh and blood brother. I struggle forgiving myself.
There is no reason for me to
harbor un-forgiveness in my heart. The
Lord is clear in His command, “And when you stand praying, if you hold anything against anyone, forgive them, so that your Father in heaven may forgive you your sins.” Mark 11: 25 We also reiterate the need for forgiveness every time we recite the Lord’s Prayer, And forgive us our debts, as we also have forgiven our debtors. Matthew 6: 12. As it is written, For if you forgive other people when they sin against you, your heavenly Father will also forgive you. But if you do not forgive others their sins, your Father will not forgive your sins. Matthew 6: 14-15
We know it is not for the benefit of the person we are forgiving, as much as it is for our own benefit, so we may also be forgiven and have peace. But we, I still struggle.
Jesus explained how those who have been forgiven much, love much. (Luke 7: 36-47) Those with a great debt that is forgiven, cannot take forgiveness for granted. It is impossible. They cannot forget the great gift of grace that they’ve been given, so they extend that same grace to others generously. They are very aware of their sinful nature and of the mercifulness of God. The reality of grace is constantly evident in their daily walk with the Lord. The truth is, however, that regardless of how good we think we are, and how little we believe God has had to forgive to us due to, what in our eyes is just a limited and “insignificant” amount of transgression; There is no one righteous, not even one. Romans 3: 10
…there is no one who understands, no one who seeks God. Romans 3: 11
If we claim to be without sin, we deceive ourselves and the truth is not in us. 1 John 1: 8
We should all do, therefore, as the woman at the house of the Pharisee. The woman, who, under the cruel scrutiny of the self-righteous, disregarded their scorn and focused on the Living God sitting right in front of her. She washed Jesus’ feet with her tears, dried them with her hair, poured exquisite perfume on them and did not ceased to kiss the feet of her Lord as an expression of her great love and gratitude for the grace that, though undeservedly, He had extended to her without reservations.
We have all been forgiven much. Only grace justifies us. It is only the gift of the “amazing grace” of our Great God that “saves the wretched like me/us.” And as we walk the road of sanctification, we remember that even though, “Once we were blind, now we see.” We see and receive the forgiveness of our sin and remember that forgiveness brings about love. It is this love what moves us to forgiving our debtors, as we have been forgiven our many debts. Grace is a gift that we receive thanks to the costly price that Jesus paid on the cross. He gives it to us not to keep to ourselves, but to pour out freely and abundantly to His beloved. It’s only grace. And only grace will lead us home.
We know it is not for the benefit of the person we are forgiving, as much as it is for our own benefit, so we may also be forgiven and have peace. But we, I still struggle.
Jesus explained how those who have been forgiven much, love much. (Luke 7: 36-47) Those with a great debt that is forgiven, cannot take forgiveness for granted. It is impossible. They cannot forget the great gift of grace that they’ve been given, so they extend that same grace to others generously. They are very aware of their sinful nature and of the mercifulness of God. The reality of grace is constantly evident in their daily walk with the Lord. The truth is, however, that regardless of how good we think we are, and how little we believe God has had to forgive to us due to, what in our eyes is just a limited and “insignificant” amount of transgression; There is no one righteous, not even one. Romans 3: 10
…there is no one who understands, no one who seeks God. Romans 3: 11
If we claim to be without sin, we deceive ourselves and the truth is not in us. 1 John 1: 8
We should all do, therefore, as the woman at the house of the Pharisee. The woman, who, under the cruel scrutiny of the self-righteous, disregarded their scorn and focused on the Living God sitting right in front of her. She washed Jesus’ feet with her tears, dried them with her hair, poured exquisite perfume on them and did not ceased to kiss the feet of her Lord as an expression of her great love and gratitude for the grace that, though undeservedly, He had extended to her without reservations.
We have all been forgiven much. Only grace justifies us. It is only the gift of the “amazing grace” of our Great God that “saves the wretched like me/us.” And as we walk the road of sanctification, we remember that even though, “Once we were blind, now we see.” We see and receive the forgiveness of our sin and remember that forgiveness brings about love. It is this love what moves us to forgiving our debtors, as we have been forgiven our many debts. Grace is a gift that we receive thanks to the costly price that Jesus paid on the cross. He gives it to us not to keep to ourselves, but to pour out freely and abundantly to His beloved. It’s only grace. And only grace will lead us home.
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