Seventy x Seven

Good morning!  I hope you had a great weekend.

Throughout our lives we face times and circumstances in which we feel we have been wronged by someone else.   Our natural responses can run the emotional spectrum from resentment to hatred, but for the follower of Jesus, the example of forgiveness has been clearly given.   Even as He was being put to death, Jesus cried out for the forgiveness of those putting Him to death.

Forgiveness is never easy, particularly when we have been wounded deeply.   Our desire to never be wounded by an individual again, leads to a vast array of defenses being erected in our lives.  We simply do not want to give those who have offended us the opportunity to do it again.

Peter was wrestling with the need to extend forgiveness as he posed this question to Jesus:

Matthew 18:21-22 (HCSB)
Then Peter came to Him and said, “Lord, how many times could my brother sin against me and I forgive him?  As many as seven times?”
“I tell you, not as many as seven,” Jesus said to him, “but 70 times seven.”

Peter was looking for that justification to hold a grudge.  His question was simple, surely there must be a limit to the amount of forgiveness that should have to be offered to someone who has wrong us?  Peter gave a number that to him seemed generous.  After forgiving someone seven times already, there should be no obligation to forgive again, if they wrong him again.  Jesus instead responded that forgiveness needed to offered exponentially more.

This standard of forgiveness is in play in our lives each and every day.  What if God placed an arbitrary number on His forgiveness?  Suppose God's forgiveness was no longer available to you and I after our 500th offense, even our 1,000th offense.  Most of us would have exhausted God's forgiveness before we were even out of primary school.  The simple disobedience of childhood and the rebellion of youth would have exhausted that forgiveness supply.   God continues to forgive us time and time again, that is the example we have been called to follow even though it is difficult at times.

When we refuse to forgive, we allow unforgiveness to control us.  Rarely is the person who has offended us, affected by our resentment.  That area of our lives is robbed of the peace that is rightfully ours and that lack of peace reflects in our actions and words.  

Today, there may be someone who needs your forgiveness.  Their actions may not warrant forgiveness, but true forgiveness is not based on the actions of the other person, true forgiveness is birthed within you, it is your act of mercy and grace towards them.  As difficult as this step may be, it will be very freeing for you in the long run.  By taking this step, you will be releasing the hold that unforgiveness has on your life.

Until next Monday, may God's richest blessings be yours this week.

Carl

When All Becomes New

Good morning! I hope you had a great weekend.

This past Thursday my co-pastor and his wife welcomed their second child into the world. It has been 7+ years since we last had a baby in our lives, so it has been fun watching the commotion around this little fellow. Eyes opening slowly to look around, fingers curling and uncurling, legs extending and bending all displaying the newness of life.

This got me to reflecting on one of my favorite descriptions of life in Christ:

2 Corinthians 5:17 (NASB)
Therefore if any man is in Christ, he is a new creature; the old things passed away; behold, new things have come.

Take a moment to close your eyes and ponder this question: “What would it mean in your life for all things to become new?” Imagine a life where there was no past mistake, error in judgment, criminal record, first marriage, etc… Imagine for a minute that you had not been burned before, wounded by a friend or stepped on thoughtlessly. Imagine a carefree existence where only the future lay ahead, because the past has been put to rest.

I think if each of us is honest there are some things we would like another opportunity to do correctly, some pain we would like to altogether avoid and some guilt we would rather not be saddled with. All too often it is our experiences that are allowed to define us. The promise of this scripture is simple…today is a new day.

Christ expunged our sin record with His blood. What we do with that freedom today is our choice. We can both explore and experience the freedom of that newness or we can allow the past to hold us forever in its captivity.

Today if you are weighed down by the baggage of days gone by, I encourage you to try being a little infantile today. Open your eyes and look around at what has changed in your world. Stretch your fingers out towards the hand of God and enjoy the freedom of motion that He has blessed you with.

Until next Monday, may God’s richest blessings be yours this week.

Carl

If My People

Good morning! I hope you had a great weekend and are starting your week off with renewed energy.

Over the past few weeks we have seen our nation and different parts of our world rocked by serious natural disasters. This tornado season has been one of the worst on record, the Midwest has been ravaged by floods while other parts of the nation face a serious drought. In China the earthquakes continue and in Myanmar the devastation of the cyclone continues to take a human toll. The stock market is a roller coaster ride and the price of oil is making families choose between food and gasoline.

So how do we handle such crisis situations? The answer is simple; we need to get serious about renewing our intimacy with God. What I am going to say next may not be very popular, but the Bible makes it clear that it is accurate. The wickedness of men does not go unchecked. Just as God prevents and protects, He also chooses at times to allow. I am amazed so many times that we want God to be “Almighty” and able to move mountains, but we don’t want Him to be holy or righteous. We expect Him to just bless and bless and bless without any regard for our actions. That is utter foolishness!

God gives us the antidote for those times that He is allowing difficulty to break our rebellious spirit:

2 Chronicles 7:14 (NLT)
Then if my people who are called by my name will humble themselves and pray and seek my face and turn from their wicked ways, I will hear from heaven and will forgive their sins and heal their land.

What a promise…the only “if” is us. Please understand God is a loving Father who disciplines those He loves, not to bully them, but to better them. His actions are no different than any parent who molds their child’s will and behavior.

This week take a few moments, assume a posture of prayer and ask God to show you the areas of your life that need to change course and claim this promise that if we will all commit to doing this their will be forgiveness and healing.

Until next Monday, may God’s richest blessings be yours this week.

Carl