Sinful, broken, spiritually bankrupt humanity now has hope for restoration to the fullness of life God intends for His creation. It’s not just about the future and a home in heaven it’s about the present, the right here and right now. Forgiveness is not just about the eternal salvation we get it’s about who we become in the process. Are you ready for more good news?įorgiveness isn’t the end of the story it is where our story begins. Yet to see forgiveness as only the path to salvation and eternal life is to severely limit what our Lord and Savior did (and still does) for us. I wonder if we can fully grasp and comprehend this gift, this act of selfless love which cleanses us from sin. Only through Jesus can anyone be forgivenĪnd restored, the broken made whole. His final words were, “It is finished.” Jesus Christ became the atonement needed to restore humanity to the Creator. For many, the culmination of the gospel is the scene of Jesus on the cross. We tend to view forgiveness as the end of the gospel story. Somewhere in all the dialogue on forgiveness, I felt something was missing. Yet, it is a story with a chapter that seems to go unnoticed. Simply put, forgiveness is the story of the Bible. What was I going to add to the conversation on forgiveness? Forgiveness is the core of Christianity it is the scarlet thread weaving throughout the Bible as the message of God, bringing restoration out of brokenness, redemption out of hopelessness, and light out of darkness. I had been asked to speak on the topic at several women’s events, and then I began to write about it, all the time wondering why I felt compelled to write on a topic about which countless volumes already exist. I had been on a forgiveness journey it had been part of the life story God had given me. I look and remember now I live different.” Her scarlet thread spoke to my heart that day, as did her words. Pointing to the thread bracelet about her wrist, she said, “It is my Jesus, my forgiveness. She then took me to her tattered Bible, opening to the Gospels and the red-letter words of Jesus. “It is my Bible.” I thought perhaps I had misunderstood her. Her stilted answer in broken English was a puzzle to me. A tiny scarlet thread wound about her wrist. I had come to teach women and children, yet upon meeting her, I had the sense that I was the one about to learn a significant truth. …It is through forgiveness that we begin to “live different.” This phrase came to me from a woman in a developing nation. Forgiveness is the conduit through which the transformed life begins to unfold. That challenge, the call to lose ourselves and depend upon Christ to help us forgive others, results in a faith that changes us. Jesus’ reply was not about a number He was challenging them to grow to depend entirely on Him, not their abilities. (Matthew 18: 21–22) Jesus’ answer of not just seven but 70 x 7 blew their 1st century minds as equally as it does ours today! They replied to Jesus, “Lord, increase our faith!” They knew it was not in their ability to do such an impossible thing. The apostles learned this when Peter asked Jesus how many times one must forgive another for the same offense and wondered if perhaps seven was enough. …It is in this challenging work of forgiving that the whole of the gospel story comes to fruition in one’s life, for it requires faith and trust far beyond our ability. But the real challenge in forgiveness lies in what Jesus said we must do, forgive as we have been forgiven. To admit wrongdoing, feel remorse, and ask for forgiveness can be difficult. Recognition of sin can be the catalyst for growth and change. Yet, sin (ones we commit or ones inflicted upon us) does not have to be the defining storyline of one’s life quite the opposite - something quite extraordinary can arise. We hurt one another and grieve God in the process. No one is immune to sin whether intentional or not, we make mistakes that lead to sin. The need for forgiveness is universal it is not a gender, race, or socioeconomic issue but one belonging to all humanity.
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