Forgiveness is one of those things that as a Christian, you'd think it would be easy, but it still can be one of the most complex - yet simple - parts of faith. As humans, not only are we to forgive, but after an offense, then we have to wrestle with the next step of trust. "Okay, so I forgave this person. Does that mean I have to trust them again?" Forgiveness and trust are not the same thing. And yet, repeatedly in Scripture, I find that God so easily forgives. Someone is caught in their sin, they apologize, and God commends them for turning back to Him.
I wonder if why I struggle with forgiveness (and trust) after an offense, but God can just remove it from His sight as far as the east is from the west, is because...He knows that His Holy Spirit has the power to enact the change needed to transition from "repent" to "turn from the wicked ways". In our humanity, we cannot. But He can. (That is why time is required, after a wrong, to build trust in human relationships. As for a relationship with Jesus, it is more automatic.)
Forgiveness is foundational to the Christian faith, and yet, if I was honest, I got sucked into the rope that I had to prove my repentance by charging myself to obey and do the right thing. Good idea, except...I'm not Jesus and I can't carry His grace without Him. Doing good things without Jesus' leading or empowerment is just works...and experience has proven that as adamant as I am about becoming a godly person, when I get ahead of His work, I fall right back to the old ways and mindsets.
But what an amazing thing that it is Jesus who does the work! So often, I read in the Old Testament concerning the righteous and wicked, and wondered if I could be the latter. If people really knew me, they would know how much I actually struggle and fall. But while reading Micah, it finally hit me. God wasn't describing the wicked as the ones who sought after Him, would periodically fall into sin but repented. The wicked were the ones who desired evil but did sacrifices just to save their butts. Maybe they even looked holier than the saints, because they hid their sins. But the righteous...it's not always an absence of doing wrong. Boy, do I wish it was. Nevertheless, the righteous, when sin is confronted, run to Jesus and repent. They trust in Him to do the work...and God is faithful to complete it.
So, when I find myself fallen, may I instinctively run to the One who can make me new. (Micah 7:18-20)
I wonder if why I struggle with forgiveness (and trust) after an offense, but God can just remove it from His sight as far as the east is from the west, is because...He knows that His Holy Spirit has the power to enact the change needed to transition from "repent" to "turn from the wicked ways". In our humanity, we cannot. But He can. (That is why time is required, after a wrong, to build trust in human relationships. As for a relationship with Jesus, it is more automatic.)
Forgiveness is foundational to the Christian faith, and yet, if I was honest, I got sucked into the rope that I had to prove my repentance by charging myself to obey and do the right thing. Good idea, except...I'm not Jesus and I can't carry His grace without Him. Doing good things without Jesus' leading or empowerment is just works...and experience has proven that as adamant as I am about becoming a godly person, when I get ahead of His work, I fall right back to the old ways and mindsets.
But what an amazing thing that it is Jesus who does the work! So often, I read in the Old Testament concerning the righteous and wicked, and wondered if I could be the latter. If people really knew me, they would know how much I actually struggle and fall. But while reading Micah, it finally hit me. God wasn't describing the wicked as the ones who sought after Him, would periodically fall into sin but repented. The wicked were the ones who desired evil but did sacrifices just to save their butts. Maybe they even looked holier than the saints, because they hid their sins. But the righteous...it's not always an absence of doing wrong. Boy, do I wish it was. Nevertheless, the righteous, when sin is confronted, run to Jesus and repent. They trust in Him to do the work...and God is faithful to complete it.
So, when I find myself fallen, may I instinctively run to the One who can make me new. (Micah 7:18-20)
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