Forgive
Introduction
Ephesians 4:32
Forgiveness
In Ephesians 4:32 Paul wrote, “Be kind and compassionate to one another, forgiving each other, just as in Christ God forgave you.”
An academic definition of forgiveness says, “to stop blaming or being mad at someone for something that person has done, or not punish them for something.”
(https://dictionary.cambridge.org/us/dictionary/english/forgive).
Given the fact that the world’s definition of forgiveness is to no longer blame, be mad at, and cease to want to punish them, it’s no wonder we find forgiveness to be nearly impossible!
Mother Teresa gave us a very different view of forgiveness when she said, “People are often unreasonable and self-centered. Forgive them anyway.”
It’s not the first time I’ve written about forgiveness…I have touched on it a lot. That’s because in my life I’ve dealt with it a lot. I do not think I’m different from anyone else. I do think forgiveness is difficult. When someone hurts us or those we love either intentionally or unintentionally, it hurts!
In this series we’re going to look at the cold hard facts about what Jesus taught us about forgiveness.
We’re going to look at how Jesus responded.
Once again I don’t think the issues Jesus faced were very different from what we face every day. However, it does seem like Jesus was a target for many different groups of men in the first century.
I do think because Jesus was turning their world upside down He made Himself a target. In other words, Jesus KNEW He was upsetting the apple cart. He came to bring change and change is seldom embraced by people.
We often like things the way they have always been.
I also have to think that until a few Seminary Professors challenged me to think outside the box when I read scripture. When studying the New Testament Gospels prior to Seminary I hadn’t been looking at the whole picture of what was going on with Jesus.
I had one professor who encouraged us to look at every word and every punctuation mark in every translation.
Then we learned to look at the Hebrew (Old Testament) and the Koine Greek (New Testament) and we added that layer onto the English.
Im telling you because I learned how very much I do not know.
I’m telling you because when I pray and ask the Spirit to teach me, the Spirit TEACHES me more.
Then I remember how much I really do not know.
And I LOVE it.
I am passionate about it.
That’s why I write.
The same is true about learning about forgiveness. Every time I think I know something about forgiving, God teaches me more. I am very much looking forward to what God has to teach me/us NEXT.
Today’s Spiritual Practice is: Forgive
Ask God to teach you something about how Jesus forgave.
In God, Deborah