The powerful depth of forgiveness

Bitterness and resentment fester for years in hearts and minds singed by criticism, both given and received. Even frequent, prayerful surrender of such struggles to God does not seem to completely remove the emotion that wells up in response to a reliving of experiences that cut us to the core of our beings. 

What do we do? 

How do we fix it? 

How do we press on in the face of such unfair opposition? 

How can we focus our energies on the task at hand when these constant attacks require significant portions of our mental and emotional stamina? 

In September, nearly a year ago now, God kept hammering away at the concept of forgiveness in my life – weekend sermons, snippets caught on the car radio, scheduled Bible studies, random You Version devotionals. Everyday, multiple times a day, God kept revealing more to my heart about the need to completely forgive, what that looked like, and the steps involved.  The funny thing is, I don’t really struggle with forgiveness. I’m not a grudge holder. Even after talking with my husband about this strange emphasis on forgiveness, I couldn’t really put a finger on why God was continuing this deep, prolonged scrutiny of the concept of forgiveness.

Regardless of the reason for this focused teaching, I felt the need to respond to the promptings of the Holy Spirit and compile these thoughts rather than ignore them and chalk them up to personal growth points. 

Pervasive teaching throughout Scripture

In addition to the words of countless recent sermons, these verses brought up in other contexts have weighed heavily on me as I watch the body of Christ attack itself. I have to share the Words God kept bringing before me:

•  Beloved, never avenge yourselves, but leave it to the wrath of God, for it is written, “Vengeance is mine, I will repay, says the Lord.”– Romans 12:19 
•  Vengeance is mine, and recompense, for the time when their foot shall slip; for the day of their calamity is at hand, and their doom comes swiftly. -- Deuteronomy 32:35
•  For we know him who said, “Vengeance is mine; I will repay.” And again, “The Lord will judge his people.” ³¹ It is a fearful thing to fall into the hands of the living God. – Hebrews 10:30-31 (this whole passage, really)
•   Jesus answered, “I do not have a demon, but I honor my Father, and you dishonor me. 50 Yet I do not seek my own glory; there is One who seeks it, and he is the judge. – John 8:49-50
•   And Jesus said, “Father, forgive them, for they know not what they do.” And they cast lots to divide his garments. – Luke 23:34  (love this example of Jesus asking God to forgive them)
•   For the love of Christ controls us, because we have concluded this: that one has died for all, therefore all have died . . . All this is from God, who through Christ reconciled us to himself and gave us the ministry of reconciliation; ¹⁹ that is, in Christ God was reconciling the world to himself, not counting their trespasses against them, and entrusting to us the message of reconciliation. ²⁰ Therefore, we are ambassadors for Christ, God making his appeal through us. – 2 Corinthians 5:14, 18-20
•  Now who is there to harm you if you are zealous for what is good? ¹⁴ But even if you should suffer for righteousness' sake, you will be blessed. Have no fear of them, nor be troubled, ¹⁵ but in your hearts honor Christ the Lord as holy, always being prepared to make a defense to anyone who asks you for a reason for the hope that is in you; yet do it with gentleness and respect, ¹⁶ having a good conscience, so that, when you are slandered, those who revile your good behavior in Christ may be put to shame. ¹⁷ For it is better to suffer for doing good, if that should be God's will, than for doing evil. – I Peter 3:13-17
•  For this is a gracious thing, when, mindful of God, one endures sorrows while suffering unjustly. ²⁰ For what credit is it if, when you sin and are beaten for it, you endure? But if when you do good and suffer for it you endure, this is a gracious thing in the sight of God. ²¹ For to this you have been called, because Christ also suffered for you, leaving you an example, so that you might follow in his steps. ²² He committed no sin, neither was deceit found in his mouth. ²³ When he was reviled, he did not revile in return; when he suffered, he did not threaten, but continued entrusting himself to him who judges justly. – I Peter 2:19-23
•  “Blessed are those who mourn, for they shall be comforted.

⁵ “Blessed are the meek, for they shall inherit the earth.

⁶ “Blessed are those who hunger and thirst for righteousness, for they shall be satisfied.

⁷ “Blessed are the merciful, for they shall receive mercy.

⁸ “Blessed are the pure in heart, for they shall see God.

⁹ “Blessed are the peacemakers, for they shall be called sons of God.

¹⁰ “Blessed are those who are persecuted for righteousness' sake, for theirs is the kingdom of heaven.

¹¹ “Blessed are you when others revile you and persecute you and utter all kinds of evil against you falsely on my account. ¹² Rejoice and be glad, for your reward is great in heaven, for so they persecuted the prophets who were before you. – Matthew 5:4-11

    

•  Who has spoken and it came to pass, unless the Lord has commanded it? – Lamentations 3:37
•   ²¹ Do not take to heart all the things that people say, lest you hear your servant cursing you. ²² Your heart knows that many times you yourself have cursed others. – Ecclesiastes 7:21-22
•   Woe to you, when all people speak well of you, for so their fathers did to the false prophets. – Luke 6:26 (We should be more concerned if no one speaks against us)

Some other longer passages for further study if you are hungering for more:

• Psalm 135
• Nehemiah (to fight against attackers, he informed the people and armed them with a vision for the task at hand and a physical weapon as well)
• The rest of I Peter 3
• The rest of Matthew 5
• Romans 8
• Psalm 15
•  Colossians 3:1-4, 12-17, 23-25

Jesus’s accusers chased away every single one of his followers in His moment of need. Every. Single. One. Yet, it was by God’s design and He did greater things through their scattering. He brought each of them to a defining moment in their personal faith. Even in the background to Jesus’s most significant act of saving mankind from sin, God cared for each individual’s eternity that had pledged allegiance to Jesus to the point of death. 

Yes, many in the Church (universal) have parted ways, and yet, how many have joined to the Church  as a result of these splinterings? How many have stormed off from a church fired up for something “better” and started churches, or joined others with a passion for the gospel and reaching others? I believe we have seen God use divisions to drive greater numbers to Him. He is used to having to work in and through our sinful human natures.

A just response

As God kept whittling this concept of forgiveness into a masterpiece, a debate stirred around me about the legitimacy of taking a believer to court in a lawsuit. While I can understand a difference of interpretation in some of these Scripture passages, I feel that the choice to bring a fellow Christian before a legal court is a risky step that opens the church (both local and universal) up to incredible hurt and outward criticism and goes counter to the overall teaching and natural interpretation of many passages of Scripture.

We all make hurtful choices at times and sometimes don’t realize until we cross that line what has happened. As my heart breaks for Christ’s Church in America today, I could not let this pass without pouring out the highlights of God’s teaching to me in this area.

Verse after verse after verse pounds out the message of forgiveness. Counter arguments seem largely based elsewhere. If the best arguments for any decision come from study notes, a Christian book, or someone's personal comment, that seems to raise a concern for the biblical validity of a decision. Make sure that every step, every move has clear grounding in Scripture.

Throughout Scripture I see no validation for legal offensive action. Response? Yes. Immediate defense when accusation arises? Yes. Defending oneself when dragged by others into a court of law? Yes. Filing a lawsuit, which is clearly discouraged elsewhere in Scripture? I do not see validation for this.

Seems that the best place to leave it is where it has always rested – in God’s hands. 

So many quotes from sermons come to mind (taken from my Bible’s margin):

·         “Mercy doesn’t mean you don’t care, it means it’s not your job.”

·         Sometimes we think that the hurt is too big - or that time will heal it. Unforgiveness is like a tumor in our soul. Forgiveness is the Christian-life survivor skill.

·         Grace is being vulnerable to further injury

·         Is it worth fighting over?

So much criticism, unforgiveness, and retaliation is tearing apart the Church today. Praying for unity over the insignificant things for greater victory for the gospel.  

Whether we attend the same or different churches, regardless of the side of the political aisle where we take our seat, no matter our home state or native country -- forgiveness is what we have received in abundance and what we should also pour out on others without keeping score. 

Not an easy lesson to learn or live out, but oh so needed to heal hurts in our own and others' hearts.