Just last week, we talked about God’s Rescue Plan. God sent Jesus to sacrifice His own life for ours. Through Jesus’ death and resurrection we are saved, we are forgiven for everything wrong we have done or ever will do. It’s amazing.
That forgiveness can’t stay with us. A result of believing that Jesus is the Rescuer is submitting to His plan, following His lead, and offering others the same forgiveness that He offered us.
This week we begin a month looking at Forgiveness: deciding that someone who has wronged you doesn’t have to pay.
Your family doesn’t have to deal with this, right? That’s what I thought.
I can’t even remember at this point what she did. She may have spilled juice on my new pants or wouldn’t eat her green-beans and through them across the room. But she did something that got me fired up. I’m pretty sure I didn’t talk to my daughter for the rest of the day unless it was required.
I did that. I do that.
Why? Why do we hold grudges for stupidest reasons? Why do we keep our lack of forgiveness bottled up and allow those grudges to grow into bitterness? Why do not take Jesus seriously when he says that forgiveness is way of life for His followers?
Jesus continually offers us forgiveness. We need to do the same.
Our bottom line this week: “Since God forgives you, you should forgive others.”
We were given so much; we need to offer that in return. We are broken people living on a broken planet; we will offend and disrupt and cause pain in others’ lives. When we are the recipient of that, forgiveness can be so hard. However, we’re commanded to love one another, but we don’t do this alone. We love because God first loved us. We forgive because we have been forgiven.
This week, bless someone by letting go of a grudge. Offer the forgiveness that God so freely gives to you.
