Friday, August 9, 2013

Forgiveness

As a white woman, in some ways I feel ill-equipped to point to this article:

Forgiven People Forgive

Fortunately, the author sites two African American responses to the comments made by Riley Cooper.

I can have no real understanding of what it means to be an African American.  However, I know what it feels like to be judged.  And, I know what it feels like to need lots of forgiveness. And, I know what it feels like when it is hard to forgive.

Sometimes, forgiveness requires looking at our own frail nature.  As an important sidenote, I'm not talking about boundaries.  It is important to have appropriate boundaries to enable you to make a conscious effort to use God gifts where guided but that is a whole different topic that can be covered in multiple posts.  You can forgive while keeping boundaries.

Forgiveness may be a character trait that only can be given when one realizes the magnitude of their own fallen nature.  Tullian Tchividjian points to Luke 7:

44 Then he turned toward the woman and said to Simon, “Do you see this woman? I came into your house. You did not give me any water for my feet, but she wet my feet with her tears and wiped them with her hair. 45 You did not give me a kiss, but this woman, from the time I entered, has not stopped kissing my feet. 46 You did not put oil on my head, but she has poured perfume on my feet. 47 Therefore, I tell you, her many sins have been forgiven—as her great love has shown. But whoever has been forgiven little loves little.”

This is why I love Jesus so much.

Although I find myself wanting to digress about perpetual sin that often takes a process to address, broken relationships and fear of confrontation, I will stay on point.

When struggling to forgive, we should ask, "Am I really all that much more of a sinless person that I can deem this person unworthy of forgiveness?"  It may be the motives of  heart that God knows, denial of our own weaknesses and our fears that keep us from facing the truth. We need to forgive because we need forgiveness. Then, in a process, restoration will occur.

I do not know the heart of any of the men mentioned in the article.  I am a football fan, who hopes for restoration in the Eagles team as well as in my own life.  God searches the hearts and works to purify them.

We will all be a Cooper, a Vick and a McCoy, at different times in our lives, if only within our own thoughts.  Sometimes we sin, sometimes our sin enables us to proceed with forgiveness more readily and sometimes we fail to see our own sinful nature.  Jesus knows all of these emotions and took our sin, so that we can be made new every day.  How do you respond to Jesus' command?

When you stand praying, if you hold anything against anyone, forgive him, so that your father in heaven may forgive you your sins.  Mark 11:25