Mosaic Church of Bellingham

Jesus says in Matt. 6:14-15, that if we do not forgive those who sin against us, neither will we experience forgiveness from our Father in heaven. This is not a suggestion that will make life happier, it is a command. Jesus does not even qualify the statement. He doesn’t say, “when you are ready, think about forgiving those people who sin against you.” He just says it straight out! “Forgive and you will be forgiven. Don’t forgive and you won’t experience forgiveness.” Period!

It has been said, “Holding onto un-forgiveness is like drinking poison and expecting someone else to die.” Think about that for a minute. The only person that is going to suffer if you hang on to un-forgiveness, is you.
I had a conversation recently with a person who had been abused in terrible ways as a child. She was happy, excited about life and able to talk about her past even though it was incredibly painful. She even said that she wasn’t glad that it happened, but she knew God had done wonderful healing in her life and even used this pain for good.

How could she do that? How could she look back at something so painful and yet believe that God was working in her life and using it for good? There is only one answer. Forgiveness. This young woman had come to know the same truth that marked the life of a famous Bible character named Joseph.

Joseph (Gen. 37-50) was a young man who experienced great things from God and terrible things from the hands of those he was supposed to be able to trust. After being abused, beaten and left for dead by his own brothers, he was was sold into slavery and taken to Egypt. He was put to work as a slave and eventually achieved a level of leadership in the house of a prominent political figure. Some time later he was falsely accused and thrown into prison. He spent the next few years having his hopes dashed and his dreams crushed.

But God had not forgotten Joseph and he was delivered and rose to a high level of political office. In the midst of all the pain and difficulty, Joseph came to understand something that is absolutely profound.

In Gen. 50:19-20, Joseph speaks to his brothers, the very ones who beat him almost to death and then sold him as a slave. Joseph says to his now very afraid brothers, “…am I in the place of God? You intended to harm me, but God intended it for good to accomplish what is now being done, the saving of many lives.” Wow! How could he do that? It is obvious he is not justifying their behavior because he calls their actions evil and even says that this was their intent. If you read the previous chapters you will find that he doesn’t make this statement because his trust in his brothers was restored, he tests them. No, something else has gone on in Joseph that goes way beyond this. Joseph, somehow, understood what forgiveness was and what it was not.

Here are some thoughts about forgiveness that might be of help:

What forgiveness is not:

• Forgiveness is not forgetting – Gen. 45:4
• Forgiveness is not denial – Gen. 45:24
• Forgiveness is not trust – Gen. 42-45
• Forgiveness is not the absence of anger – Gen. 42-45.
• Forgiveness is not excusing – Gen. 50:20
  

What forgiveness is:

• Forgiveness is entrusting the outcome to God, the righteous Judge. The word “forgive”, literally means to “bear up” or “to carry”. It means that we let go of the grudge that we are carrying and entrust the outcome of our lives and the lives of all those who have hurt us to God. It is not some magic phrase. It is a lifestyle. It is a lifestyle of acknowledging that we are not God. God is God, and I am not Him! The sooner we learn this the better. When we forgive someone, we make a decision to let God be God. We stop trying to determine the outcome of their lives and we leave the outcome of our lives in God’s hands.
• Forgiveness can happen even when we don’t understand all the “why questions”. Some people say that they will forgive when they understand why the pain happened. Really? Will that really help? Think about it for a minute. What if you never understand why? What if you do and you don’t like the answer? Then what? True forgiveness happens whether or not we understand. It is given because we trust God, not the people who hurt us.
• Forgiveness is surrounded by confusion. In other words, it may not make sense. We don’t forgive because it makes sense in light of the circumstances. We don’t forgive because someone has finally asked us for forgiveness. We forgive because we are told to and because it is consistent with what it means to trust God with our whole life, even our pain.
• Forgiveness happens progressively but always begins with a choice. Forgiveness is often like peeling an onion. With each layer, there is more onion.
• Forgiveness has to be given freely. No one can make you forgive them. Not even God will force you to forgive. Forgiveness is something that we do in response to God, not because he puts us in a situation where we have no choice. We choose to give it to God because we have received the same thing from Him. He has forgiven us and called us to put our lives in His hands; past, present and future. The act of freely forgiving is one of the greatest acts of trust that we can do. We turn over our hurt and pain and let God carry it for us.

Whatever has gone on in your life. No matter how painful or hurtful or destructive. Know this, what people intended for evil, what the enemy of your soul intended for evil, God intends for good! Turn it over to Him. Let God be in charge of the outcome of your life and the lives of those who have sinned against you. FORGIVE!